Rtv Molds

[ethan3]

I am going to make some RTV molds to make my own crankbaits. I was wondering how to attach the crankbait lips after I make a lure. Is it possible to make a slot in the mold so I can slip a lip into where the crankbait body is formed so it forms around it? Or do you just make the body, then glue the lip into it? I was also wondering what plug I could use to make the mold. I don't have any crankbaits without lips already on them. Any advice on this would be great. I checked the tutorials already and didn't really find what I was looking for.

Thanks

[Travis]

You can use Devcon 5 minute epoxy to glue the lips in. You can (not usually done) mold the lip directly into the lure. You can use any plug to make the mold. If it is a wooden crank just a little twisting or sliding of a sharp blade will free the lip. If plastic bait or firmly secured then cut it out with bandsaw, scroll saw, dremel, etc..... I would recommend just making a wooden master a lot more satisfying than copying something.

Edited August 14, 2010 by Travis

[Vodkaman]

I agree with Travis, why copy someone elses work when you can create your own. Take your time to get the master as perfect as you can. Spend hours on it, the time will be well spent. If you remove too much material in one spot, add a layer of bondo filler, in 20 minutes you will be working the shape again.

When I did some body molding, I thought about molding lips in, but decided against it, preferring to have the flexibility to be able to change the lip geometry. It is possible though.

The biggest problem is going to be cutting the lip slots, as the molded body does not have a flat side to help with the band saw. A jig can be made to solve this problem fairly simply.

Dave

[atrophius]

Checkthe other forum post on here, "Excellent mold tutorial". There is some good info in there. Also, I had been thinking about the same thing you have about molding around the lip in the mold. However, I came to thinking about different lips and what if I wanted to make a shallow version or a deep diving version. So I think you could probably make a slot to mold around it, but it may be more counter productive to do so as your limit yourself to just that lip. Plus I like to eyeball the lip alignment.