darkangel Posted July 15, 2014 Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 I'm new to the hobby guys, so forgive me. I've decided to go with presto pots, rather than Pyrex. When starting with new plastic, can you simply pour it in the pots and let it get up to temp, stirring occasionally? Also, what's the best way of reheating my scrap plastic pieces to reuse? Can I also do that in the presto pots? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gone2long Posted July 15, 2014 Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 Yes to both questions you do need to stay with it and stir if you don't have or make a stir system. Cutting your scrap up and adding a little virgin plastic or some heat stabilizer but not required and all is good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonteSS Posted July 15, 2014 Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 I found it tough to suck up small quantities of plastic in a pot. For personal use where you use 4-8oz batches a microwave is much easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 Thanks Guys! I'm looking at doing 16oz batches in each pot and using a twinjector for doing laminates. The other thing I'm totally clueless on is adding the color to plastic. I'm using M-F colors and plastic. Lets say if I'm going to do chartreuse, how many drops would I need for 16 oz?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted July 15, 2014 Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 You will find that each brand of colors will vary. All fluorescent colors MUST be mixed before the plastic is heated. I've found this works better with chartreuse too. As for MF, that's a great color choice with only a few I had a hard time working with. Pumpkin, for example, is extremely light. I don't think I could mix enough pumpkin to achieve the color I was looking for. LOL. I eventually went to Lure Craft for that one, but for the most part you should be fine. A good general rule for most colors (and I use the term "most" lightly), is one drop per ounce of plastic. Then again, I've never worked with larger amounts like the 16 ounces you mentioned. I was old school and always mixed 4 ounces at a time. Most importantly, write everything down. Once you DO get that color you're looking for, you don't wanna have to do that trial and error thing again! Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edgecrusher Posted July 15, 2014 Report Share Posted July 15, 2014 You will find that each brand of colors will vary. All fluorescent colors MUST be mixed before the plastic is heated. I've found this works better with chartreuse too. As for MF, that's a great color choice with only a few I had a hard time working with. Pumpkin, for example, is extremely light. I don't think I could mix enough pumpkin to achieve the color I was looking for. LOL. I eventually went to Lure Craft for that one, but for the most part you should be fine. A good general rule for most colors (and I use the term "most" lightly), is one drop per ounce of plastic. Then again, I've never worked with larger amounts like the 16 ounces you mentioned. I was old school and always mixed 4 ounces at a time. Most importantly, write everything down. Once you DO get that color you're looking for, you don't wanna have to do that trial and error thing again! Best of luck. Excellent advice there, I agree, I start with a drop an once, a handy thing to do when testing is make a 1oz or 2 oz batch and just pour it into any mold, don't worry about filling it out, but at least you'll get a perspective on what the finished product will look like, remember any glitter used can dramatically change the colour, plus glitter can bleed into your colour if you overcook it. MF is a good start for colours, they mightn't be as strong as others, or as value, but the range is wide, and you can determine your favorites and then look at other options down the track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 You guys are great!!! Thanks for the help! When you add glitter, do you add to cold or hot plastic? It sure seems like a bunch of guys are using LC colors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edgecrusher Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 I always add to hot. I think theres a large spread of colour suppliers people use, LC, ISpikeIt Seems to be getting popular, MF, Do It, Baitjunkys etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Painter1 Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 I heat my plastic in the microwave, making sure to stop and stir it in the mid 200 range. It usually is still gelled but it seems to get the heat distributed. Then I zap it a bit longer aiming for a bit over 300. I then add all ingredients. If I dally too long I give it another short zap so it pours well into the Presto Pot. Sprues get zapped and added back. If using light colors, added heat often darkens or yellows the plastic so go easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 Thanks Guys! I'm looking at doing 16oz batches in each pot and using a twinjector for doing laminates. The other thing I'm totally clueless on is adding the color to plastic. I'm using M-F colors and plastic. Lets say if I'm going to do chartreuse, how many drops would I need for 16 oz??Don't be alarmed when you get air bubbles in bait, you are starting with the amount of plastic I stop at. The presto is so wide it's hard to get all the plastic up. If you have this issue either use more plastic or go to Pyrex and a microwave. I still use the Pyrex till I need a half gallon of each color them I go to a presto pot. To me it is much easier to keep a large amount of plastic at temp than a small amount. On the Mf chartreuse question, I get a good looking color with 30ccs to 32ozs. It's a lot of colorant. That is the non bleed one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 Frank, I think I've watched a bunch of your YouTube videos? Have you injected the 660 4 cavity swim bait mold? If not, it's a 3.75" bait. If you or anyone had to guess, how much plastic do you think it would take to shoot that mold? I'm trying to get an idea of how many of those baits I can get from a gallon of plastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 Frank, I think I've watched a bunch of your YouTube videos? Have you injected the 660 4 cavity swim bait mold? If not, it's a 3.75" bait. If you or anyone had to guess, how much plastic do you think it would take to shoot that mold? I'm trying to get an idea of how many of those baits I can get from a gallon of plastic. I don't know how many but I do have that mold. All of mine are top inject. So I weigh them with sprue to get a price. My name on you tube is franksrooty2 so if you watched him it was me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 Do you think one of those baits takes 1oz, 2oz? I have no idea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallmouthaholic Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 (edited) Monitor your plastisol temperatures w/ an IR(infrared Gun) whether you heat w/ a microwave or presto pot w/ stirrors.Lighter colors can easily change if heated to high for prolonged periods.Keep accurate records as experimenting & experience is your best teacher.The Shooting StarSystem from Bear'sBaits- http://www.bearsbaits.com/ is an economical system to inject two color baits w/ a heated twin injector. The blending block will require periodic cleaning and replacement of internal "O" rings. edited for spelling Edited July 16, 2014 by smallmouthaholic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 Do you think one of those baits takes 1oz, 2oz? I have no idea I would guess 1/4 oz just the bait no sprue. For single color baits sprues can be used over and over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 When mixing fluorescent colors with cold plastic, what do you do if you need to add more color once it's hot and you can see the actual color? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted July 16, 2014 Report Share Posted July 16, 2014 When mixing fluorescent colors with cold plastic, what do you do if you need to add more color once it's hot and you can see the actual color? That's a tough question, and I'm afraid the answer is.......you can't! LOL Seriously, if you add flo colors to hot plastic, it will just come out in small clumps in the finished product. Best thing to do is add a drop per ounce of plastic before heating, and once you get it right, write that sucker down so you know next time. I had a miserable time trying to make bubble gum until someone told me the stuff needs to be pre-mixed before cooking.....and voila......it worked! And edgecrusher also made a great point about the glitter. Keep in mind that most glitters will greatly effect your colors. Example: a decent amount of black glitter will make any color darker. Once I began making a decent bait, I usually mixed everything in cold plastic because I had all my recipes written down. This way I didn't forget anything, and it worked great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallmouthaholic Posted July 17, 2014 Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 When mixing fluorescent colors with cold plastic, what do you do if you need to add more color once it's hot and you can see the actual color? Mix a separate batch w/cold plastisol,heavy on the colorant in the micro wave but don't overheat. Then pour into your pot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted July 17, 2014 Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 When mixing fluorescent colors with cold plastic, what do you do if you need to add more color once it's hot and you can see the actual color? Get spike it's flor colors and add it to hot plastic no worries with there's. They were designed to be put in hot plastic. I do it all the time cause I forget to put it in before more times than not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 Guys when you're making a color in cold plastic, how does it look then, compared to when it's hot and ready to pour? Does the milky color of cold plastic deceive you on how the color will actually look? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallmouthaholic Posted July 17, 2014 Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 Guys when you're making a color in cold plastic, how does it look then, compared to when it's hot and ready to pour? Does the milky color of cold plastic deceive you on how the color will actually look? Yes it will. Count your drops in cold plastic-keep records. Chartreuse,orange/pumpkin,junebug and fluorescent blue are some that require approximately 20-30 drops per 16 oz. of plastisol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 Frank, where do you get those rubber gloves you use for injecting? They look much less clumsy than the normal high heat gloves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted July 18, 2014 Report Share Posted July 18, 2014 Frank, where do you get those rubber gloves you use for injecting? They look much less clumsy than the normal high heat gloves. The ones in the video I can't find anymore but been using the same type but more of a name brand called maxi flex. I got them from a welding supply but amazon has them and you can buy singles, I bought a dozen pair. Much better gloves than the ones in the video. If you need more protection just put another one over the first one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted July 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2014 Guys, is color proportional? By that, I mean if I make a great color with so many drops of this and that in 4oz of plastic, can I multiply the drops of colors by 4 and make 16oz of plastic with the same result? I would think so, but I'm just starting. I would like to come up with a bunch a great mixes in small batches them roll with them in 16oz or 32oz production runs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kajan Posted July 18, 2014 Report Share Posted July 18, 2014 Yes and no, small batchs like that might look correct, but sometimes as you go larger batches it will show any measurments that were not exact. But if your recipe' was exact, it will be, meaning, if you have a large batch recipe' and you down size proportionately it will be correct. But remember if your makin a lure of a smaller size and it looks correct and you decide to make some much thicker lures, you need to adjust recipe to compensate for thickness of the bigger lure because it will look much darker, ect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
