alsworms

Hi Craig, What formula of Lure Craft are you using? Calhoun's soft formula is a little harder than Lure Craft's 536. If you're trying to match the 502 formula, I wouldn't put any more than 1/2 cup hardener per gallon of plastic. You might even find that it's best left alone. Calhoun is a different type of plastic. Seems to be much more durable than Lure Craft, even though it might feel softer. It also handles heavy salt very well, and it will harden quite a bit more than other brands with the salt mixed in. Chris

You need to add the fluorescent colors before heating the plastic. Otherwise, you'll have a big glumpy mess. You don't need to add heat stabilizer unless you're pouring with lots of salt in the mixture. You can get heat stabilizer and holographic flake from both Lure Craft and MF Manufacturing. Lure Craft - 1-800-925-9088 MF - www.fishingworld.com/M-F-Manufacturing If you plan to pour with salt or are constantly heating and reheating plastic, then you should add the stabilizer, but in very small amounts. About 1/2 ounce per gallon of plastic is more than enough. Chris

BLUEGILL 4 ounces Plastic 1 Drop Black (smoke) Just a touch (or desired amount) of the following glitter: small blue, medium black and gold, large green. Use less large green than the other flakes. Another version: Same as above, but drop the blue flake and pour a light blue vein instead.

Will post an easy one for bluegill. Chris

Forgot to mention that Bluegill is red hot here now too.

Thanks to Del posting that, I have used various shades of pink with pretty good success; pink with red and/or blue flake especially. However, I still have to say that my personal favorite has always been motor oil. It's an oldie but goodie. Seems to me that the further east you go, the more you here of junebug, green pumpkin, watermelon, etc. They catch fish here, but they aren't as dominant as certain parts of the country. We tend to lean more towards the green/brown mixes, oxblood, cinnamons, etc. Chris

I know you guys have probably mentioned this a bunch of times, but where do I get some of this salt? I'm interested in giving it a try. I like the popcorn salt, but keeping it mixed is a pain. If the Alberger stays suspended and will make the bait fall at the same rate.......sounds like a winner to me. Chris

How does it mix? Does it stay suspended better than popcorn salt? Chris

Hey Fuzz, What happens between the store and customer is their business, and you should not get involved with that. Think about it this way...........when you buy ANYTHING via the internet or otherwise, you always pay less buying directly from the manufacturer. I think most consumers understand this. Kicker Lures is selling my product now and I can't believe the prices they're charging for my stuff, but if they can get it.....I say "hats off to 'em!". I certainly don't claim to be an expert on this subject. I can just tell you that I've been screwed a few times, and wish I had those back. Keep in mind that you're doing all the work; manufacturing, packaging, labeling, shipping, etc. etc. etc. All the store has to do is place your bags on the shelf and let the cash roll in. Keep stressing the 2 most important words in our business: QUALITY and TIME. These are the 2 words that the big companies cannot compete with. Chris

My 2 cents worth (so to speak) is if I tried to compete with the big boys, I wouldn't be doing this anymore. I'll give a 5 % discount for orders starting at 1000 baits or more, and I won't go any lower with larger orders. The fact is simple if you look at it this way: we are making hand-poured baits which basically cannot be mass produced like these big companies. Some guys have come up with ways to kick them out pretty fast, but we are still offering quality that cannot be matched by large companies. Therefore, we shouldn't be forced to give these baits away at ridiculous prices. I could go on forever....(this topic really gets my blood boiling )......but I can give 2 personal examples that apply to this issue: Last year I raised my prices considerably; probably about 15 percent overall. The result was more business. Why? I believe fisherman know what a quality bait is worth, and they're willing to pay for it. Not to say that my products are overpriced, but I need to get something in return for my time and materials. Consider this: big companies get their plastisol for better than a third the price of what we pay, not to mention all other materials involved. Sometimes you have to learn not to budge on price. It's difficult because you want the store's business for both income and exposure, but you don't want to be pushed around either. My example of this is: Last year I lost an account simply because of price. A majority of my product sold there was my flukes, and the owner told me he could get Zoom Flukes for 1.25 a pack. I can't go anywhere near that price. Even though he sold out of my flukes every month, it didn't matter to him. Eventually, he went with Zoom and I had to learn that I'm better off in the long run. The bottom line is believe in your product and stand firm on your prices. I wish I had learned that long ago. Chris

5 words I always ask before I go fishin'....... "Where's my motor oil worms?"!! I just love that color.

I use both MF and Calhoun. I like Calhoun for heavy salt pours, and MF for floating baits. Maybe it's just me, but I think Calhoun seems to handle high heat without burning better than the other brands.

Craig, There's very little separation with Calhoun plastic, and it stays mixed really well. You need to work a little hardener free at first, but nothing at all like Lure Craft. I've been very happy with it. Chris

MF plastic is the only brand that sticks for me. I have problems with the pots, cups, micro., etc. Calhoun pulls right out. The only time there's even a slight problem is when you are constantly heating and reheating. Chris

I haven't tried any of those mixes, but I definitely like that natural color. I found that a natural belly with a motor oil top is very nice, especially with some purple and red flake in the motor oil. I'd add it to the cookbook, but I don't have a name for it.

Yeah I learned that one the hard way. A few years ago, a customer on the east coast wanted some cinnamon worms. When he got 'em, he said "Man these things don't look anything like Yamamoto's cinnamon!". At the time, I had never seen Yammy's cinnamon; was just used to the cinnamons we had around here. I went to our local tackle shop and pulled a pack of Yama. cinnamon grubs. Held 'em to the light, sunlight, etc. and realized they were just a very light brown. I'm with Scot......I do like the red tint in there much better than a straight brown.

Ditto on the Yamamoto recipe. I use 1 drop of Lure Craft brown for every 4 ounces of plastic with medium black flake. Some cinnamons have a red tint to it. Then you would just add 1 drop of red for every 2 drops of brown. Chris

Fuzz, I mixed those two colors one time and got a perfect root beer copy. BUT.....I mixed equal parts melon and black grape. I would never have thought those two would make root beer. Sometime if you get the chance, try it and see if you get the same results.

I only use salt in the mix with baits that need a heavy sinking action (senkos, trailers, etc). With everything else, it's true that the salt will wash off after a cast or two, but I only use the salt to keep the baits from sticking together. I make my baits VERY soft and like to add lots of scent in the mix. Combine those two and there's really no need for salt in the mix. I believe fish will hold on to a soft, scented bait much longer than a hard, salted one. Our methods of fishing out here often require a floating worm, and it's difficult to inject salt in the bait while maintaining buoyancy and softness. There will always be arguments for and against pouring with salt. My theory is......if you need the bait to fall, add salt. If not, leave it alone. Chris

Personally, I don't oil anything other than my saltwater stuff. I treat everything else with popcorn salt. Adding scent to the bag won't hurt the baits, but I prefer putting scent in the mix to keep from having a terrible smell on your hands all day while fishing. I usually let the worms sit for a few hours before I salt 'em. Haven't heard of the saltwater idea, but it sounds interesting. Chris

Hey Chris, Sounds like you're on the right track. I use black to darken any color. If you're not using any salt, I would suggest going lighter on the watermelon and add more black. Another option is to get MF brand brown watermelon and add it to the Lure Craft melon. The brown melon is more of a darker, cloudy color. Hope this helps. By the way, nice name you got there. Chris

I have had the same problems with mixing light blue with red or green flake. The blue will take on the tint of the flake with prolonged heat. I switched to electric blue and have not had any problems since. Chris

I don't think I'd try it unless I could come up with a way to mix it that fine. The stuff is like flour; exactly like the pearl and hi-lite powders. I really have no clue how or why it works, but it sure does. I was turned onto the idea by a guy who got out of the business when I was getting in. I bought out his inventory and he gave me a half pound of the glass to try. It sounded ridiculous to me, but I'll be darned if it didn't make the baits float like a boat! Chris

Hey Cod, I have a few of those MF molds and that's definitely not what you're looking for. That's more of a shrimp/worm type mold. Sorry for the bad news, but I'll keep my eyes out for you too. Chris

Those names bring a tear to my eye. I can remember some of those hits that Ronnie Lott would put on people. OW!!!!