Pit Bass
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Posts posted by Pit Bass
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Wow! I recently purchased and used a respirator from a national Home-Improvement store. Big Difference ! No more fumes and headaches !
I spent about $30 and got a half-face respirator with a p100 filter. This filter is also good for lead dust/fumes, so I think that it's what we need for multi-purpose lure-making.
Even if you have an exhaust fan, please use a respirator ! Play Smart !
Pit Bass
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Howdy men. What are you guys using for breathing resperators/air-filters? I'm very sensitive to any dirt/dust/ fumes and I want to be as safe as possible.
I plan to buy a full-face resperator from Menards. What filteration-rating or chemical resistance do I need ?
Thanks for any help.
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Thanks guys ! All good Ideas that I will try.
Senkosam, great pic's ! Reminds me of a trick that I have used on hard baits- Removing the paint with nail polish removier to create a clear bait.
Pit Bass
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I'm curious about everyone's best color sticks for LMB in clear water. My definition of clear water is being able to see your lure on the bottom in 8-12 ft of water, which is normal for the sandpits that I fish.
I'm guessing that subtle colors, like clear and natural preyfish are perferred.
Any thoughts ?
Pit Bass
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Ditto what Big Splash says. My 3" swimbait has a 1/4" sprue hole with a 9/16 " reserve funnel. Remember to hit the center of the pour hole when pouring !
Pit Bass
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I've been pouring soft-plastics for about two years now. Seems like some baits work better when the plastic formula is hard as oposed to soft. My best example is a sluggo. My best sluggo's are fairly hard and have more of a " glide " action than a " wiggle".
But sticko's are a different deal. Since most folks dead-stick these baits, the wiggle is the deal. But, the high salt ratio seems to make the baits stiff, killing the wiggle.
I don't know how or If I discovered this, but if I pinch, roll, or otherwise " tenderize " my sticko's, the wiggle-action is awesome ! Just grab a stick'o and pinch it a few times to realize how much softer it gets.
So, I guess I'm wondering if all you guys try to "tenderize" your stick-baits or not. Maybe I'm crazy, but it don't feel like it !
Pit-Bass
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I have had bad luck with the small aluminum cups from Lurecraft. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but the plastic handles melted when I used the cups on a small camp stove. I re-made the handles from a small wooden dowel(SP?). Now they seem to work well.
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Northbassman, I use 4 oz aluminum pans from lurecraft. I actually started out using cut-down aluminum pop cans and a pair of bent pliers to grab the can for pouring. Seemed to work ok, but the lurecraft pans have a handle and are eaiser to use. I also have a larger 1 qt aluminum pan from MF for larger pours, but it's a little harder to pour with. I don't know how a soup can would work, but I tried a stainless steel soup-ladle that didn't work to well. It always scorched the plastic.
The only other problem I had was adjusting the stove to heat the plastic evenly and not scorch it. I use a small grill rack spaced-up above the burner and a piece of plate-metal between the burner and grill to disipate the heat. I had to play around with the flame setting and grill height to get the best results, but it's really not too hard. Good luck, pouring is a blast !
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Northbassman, it gets plenty cold here in Nebraska too! I pour in my garage, using a kerosene heater to stay warm, and a 2 burner propane campstove to heat the plastic in aluminum cups. I do store my molds and plastics in the house until I'm ready to pour. I don't know what freezing temps would do molds or plastic.
Hope this helps, Good Luck !
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What about silicone spray-lube ? Has anyone tried to spray it on a silicone mold before pouring ? IT's gotta be worth a try !
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Is there any particular brand of engine paint that you guys perfer ? I only tried it once and the paint never hardened. Did I do anything wrong ?
Pit Bass
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Tm, I use Devcon 2 ton epoxy to seal my plaster and water-putty molds. It's a clear 2-part epoxy with 30 minutes of working time. You can get it at Walmart. I brush it on my molds with a few thin coats using a cheap bristle brush.
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Just for reference, I'm pretty sure that Zeiners sell MF plastic. I've actually been in the store.
Pit Bass
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Thanks Guys. I'm pouring my Calhoun at 350F and I place my 1 part baits on a peice of vinyl siding to cool. When I do this, the flat side of the bait takes-on the "grain" of the vinyl siding. If I cool the baits in water first, this effect is less noticable, but still there. My biggest problem with this is when I pour full-round, 2 part baits. These seem to even get a flat side if cooled on the vinyl siding.
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Hi Guys. What process do you all use to cool your baits after removing them from the mold ? Do you use pans of water or what ? If so, how long in the water? I use Calhoun plastic, leave it in the mold for 3 Min. and then put it in a pan of water. If I leave the bait in water overnight, the color seems to get lighter. If I pull the bait out of the water pan and place it on a flat surface, it seems to flatten out. Am I doing somthing wrong ? Thanks for any help !
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Hey Alby,
I still use aluminum pans for pouring lures. I started out using cut-down pop cans with a pair of pliers. Worked ok and I could throw it away if the plastic scorched. I also use the Barlows' quart pan with good results on larger molds. I recently bought Lurecrafts 1-cup pans for smaller molds or tails. The plastic handles melted so I made my own from a wood dowel. They work well now. All of these pans work best with about 1/4 capacity. Also, make the pouring spout sharper with pliers.
Good Luck !
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I have used mod-podge to seal plaster and water-putty molds. I thin it down with water and brush it on. It usually takes 2-3 light coats to seal a mold. I have never had to re-coat a mold with mod-podge, but a lot of guys say that it will peel. My only problem was brush marks. I recently switched to Devcon 30 minute epoxy to seal my molds. It is thicker and can remove some details, but it dries smooth--no brush marks!
Good Luck !
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Hey alsworms, do you think that a guy could crush regular glass for the floating effect ? Why do you suppose it works ?
Thanks for any help.
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Hi Guys. A lot of discussions on this forum are devoted to making soft-plastic's sink. What about floating plastic's, such as a carolina rig? Is there a perferred brand of plastic for floating rigs ? What about hardner, softner, or heat-stabilizer ? How do these products effect lure flotation ? Thanks for any ideas!
Pit-Bass
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Hi Guys. Is there a scale to rate hardness of a soft plastic bait ? I use calhoun plastic with no additives. How would that rate on a hardness scale? Thanks for any help !
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I pour in my garage on a propane stove, and I got tired of the fumes -n- smoke, so I built a low-buck ventilation system. I found a bathroom "turd-lifter" fan and wired it to a dimmer-switch to adjust the speed/noise. I cut a vent hole in the wall to remove the smoke-N-fumes, and used a flexible dryer-vent hose to connect it to the fan motor. Seems to work well.
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I have purchased Durhams Water Putty from Ace Hardware and Menards for $6-$7 in a 4lb can.
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Oops , I forgot to tell you how I use Durhams ! I superglue my soft-master to a piece of flat plastic and place it belly-up in plastic container. Then, I put 8-12 oz Durhams in a plastic cup. I then add 2-4oz water, and stir with a coathanger, kinda like mixing-up plaster. Pour it into the container and let it cure for a day before disassembling. After that, seal the mold and enjoy pouring !
Alan
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Fish N Fool, I have used Durhams Water Putty to make both one-part, and two-part molds; using soft-plastic masters. I like it much better than plaster, because it seems tougher. Almost all of my water-putty molds turn out perfect, but my plaster molds are about 50 %. Seems like the brittle plaster breaks when removing a hard or soft master. Water putty doesn't seem to have that problem. I use devcon 2-ton epoxy to seal plaster and water-putty molds.
Good Luck !
Trial Run with SenkoSam's Sugar Crystals
in Soft Plastics
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