loodkop

Bill. Only you can decide how soft you want to make your sticks. For my personal use I would add softener to soft plastic but my Dad refuses to fish a worm that only lasts for one fish. I don't really sell but I have a couple of friends who buy from me and I have formula for each of them.

My formula for sticks is 1 cup plastic, 1/2 cup salt and 1/4 cup softener. I use this a starting point and play around with the salt and softener to get what I want. Hope this helps.

For chatterbaits I like tying in a zonker strip. Plenty of action and lasts much better than plastic.

Nicely done.

Cadman. Thanks for the advice. I will definitely try the vinegar on my next batch. - used acetone to clean a handful of old shakey head jigs before painting today and it came out looking great. I will have to check the durability however. I also want to say thank you again for the fluid bed help, it really makes a difference.

Thanks, I did not want to waste both time and paint.

Do you need to prepare a jig in anyway before powder coating? I have just finished my fluidbed and have unpainted jigs that were poured yesterday as well as some that are more than a year old. Is it better to paint fresh lead or is there no difference? Thanks

+1. I'm looking forward to learning anything you have to share. I've been grinding down a knife for months and still can't make a proper swimbait.

I agree with SHK. I only buy soft plastics to try and work out the colors. It is much easier to come up with a formula if you have a sample in hand. Pictures can be misleading. I was shocked to see bait photos I sent to my. brother on his PC. It looked plain wrong.

I have found this to be a very instructive post. At this stage I am only selling a couple of packets to club members and friends. I have never thought about half of the stuff you mentioned. I will definitely re calculate my production costs using your formula. Thanks for sharing.

I want to add my thanks to the previous posts. I have learned more in a couple of months reading than in 10+ years of making lures on my own. I don't post a lot but have used the search function extensively. I'm in totally different time zone so I log in every morning to see what happened during the night and the give a last check before going to bed. I'm addicted to both luremaking and TU.

I do the same.

This must be the best clear water color ever, regardless of time of year.

Great recipe. I can't wait for the weekend to fish this. Thanks

I have ordered and paid for molds/injectors in 2009 and never received them. I had nearly stopped pouring altogether because at that stage I was also buying plastic and colorant from the same vendor. After 18 months of trying to get satisfaction I consider it a lesson learned and now do my homework before doing business with any internet supplier.