Leaderboard

I order my online.

I've not got the same experience as most of these guys, but for the most part I found I got the best baits and even the best laminates (if both plastics feel about the same viscosity) by shooting with a warm mold and plastic as low temp as possible. I don't have an injection machine so perhaps my experience is not as relevant as some of the others.

I've used "super glue" for a few things on lures before, but never sealed a lure with that name brand. I have used CA glue from a wood working shop which seems to me to be the same thing. It works well to seal the wood for my pin-eye joints in wood bodies. The one I use is labeled "Thin" so I get better penetration in the wood then I would have with the "Thick".

I started building muskie baits for about eight month now and I have learned so much from this site that I really appreciate the basement guys and pro bait builders. I like to give something back. When I first started building I learned how to do wire trough construction, I do not see anything wrong with it at all, very good construction but lots of work. I always try to find another easier way to do something not necessarily better in this case. I am very confident that this is a good construction. I got the idea when I started building baits from PCV boards, I had to drill large holes and insert hard wood dowel pins for the hooks and the toe line. I use oak ½ diameter dowel pins anywhere from 1 inch to 1.5 inches long, depending on the bait shape and size works really nice. Now you can do this with wood. A: Drill the holes for the hooks and toe line for the size and depth of the dowel pin you are going to use B: drill the dowel pin screw eye hole for the screw eye you are going to use in the dowel pins C: need a piece of sheet metal around 20 gauge or thinner, to make a square metal washer for backing up the screw eye, use sheet metal cutter for this Example if you are using ½ Diameter dowel pin cut the washer a little smaller than ½ square, needs to fit behind the dowel pin. Note pre-drill small hole in the metal before you cut the small square. The hole will be a little smaller than the screw eye because you are going to screw the screw eye in the square washer. D: Screw the eye screw pin in to the dowel pin and in to the square metal washer, apply five minute epoxy or 30 minutes which ever you like. Insert the assembled dowel pin screw and washer in to the bait make sure that there is enough epoxy on the washer and bottom of the hole and around the dowel pin. Once the epoxy sets in that screw cannot be pulled out will be there for the life time of the bait, it is permanent. Of course everything must be drilled on center; you have only one chance here Thanks for all the valuable information I was able to get from this site, without you guys would have taken me a long time to build and paint baits Gino Anyone that needs more info or clarification feel free to PM me

DaBehr is right. Time, temperature and pressure are your main variables when producing any plastic by machine. But, soft plastic is a little different. Soft plastic needs twice as much venting as hard plastic because it flows so much faster. And he's also correct about keeping your temperature as low as possible. If you're getting dents, then there's three things you can do to stop the shrinkage. A harder material will help, with your temperature as cool as possible and holding continual pressure on the mold is also something else you'll need to do. After your cavity fills you might have to hold pressure on the mold for 10-20 seconds, it's according to the size of the bait and how many cavities. You need to know what the temperature of your material is. As far as flashing goes, that's a temperature pressure thing. At 22psi if your plastic is say 360 degrees, and it flashes, then you can adjust your temperature down to probably 335. And you may not get flashing at the same pressure. If you feel like your temperature is where it needs to be and you're getting flashing, then just adjust your pressure down a little. I actually try to flash my first shot or two and then adjust my pressures down. That way I'm shooting at maximum pressure. Also you can take a small half round file or round file and open up the gates to the cavity of the mold. This will help material get into the mold faster and help you hold longer pressure on the bait before freeze off occurs. Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. I'll help if I can.

Controlling pressure and temperature is the issue of ALL plastic molding machines ...not just the bait making kind! Flash is due to high pressure (speed) (assuming there is no defect in the mold) Dents are the result of one section of the part cooling faster than the surrounding plastic, so if you are using a mold that others have had good results with (not a mold design problem)...then your plastic is too hot. As with any plastic molding machine (even the big multi-million dollar ones!)...inject at the lowest pressure and temperature possible. (over simplification...but true). Without going through a series of mold trials...it would seem that your temperature is too hot.