Plastickayak Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I've been searching for this but haven't been able to find a post. How many 4" swimbaits can I make with a gallon of plastic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonteSS Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 Pour water in mold. Measure how many fluid oz. fills one bait. This assumes mo waste which is impossible. ...Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 What style? Big Hammers, Fish Trap, MC, Robo, Pearl, BassTrix, etc all have different sizes/weights...The less material equals more baits per gallon I used to pour 4" fish traps and got around 200 per gallon If I remember right - You will end up with some waste You can use the remelts and regrinds for backs and the clear for bellys, the salty bass don't care bout a pretty swimbait If your trying to sell them, thats a different story - The trick is having enough cavities to fill with no down time or reheating Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plastickayak Posted October 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 Sorry, big hammers. I was hoping to get more than 200 from a gallon. I'm trying to sell them, but wanted to see if it would be profitable. And what type of money I would have to invest with the start up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plastickayak Posted October 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 Thanks for the comments. I would agree, California has no room for another company selling swimmies. Where I'm located there's no one selling them. I have a company interested, and the quantity would be like me pouring my own. I could probably get away with a really basic setup. I would use the profit to fund my fishing addiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I am just guessing the LA is the state and not the city. If you want more profit buy the plastic in the largest quantity you can, like drums it is way cheaper that way. Do the math if you buy a drum and see the differance. Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plastickayak Posted October 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I saw that when i compared a gallon to 5. I'm sure its really cheap when you buy a drum. Any problems with it when you store large quantities like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 Shipping will kill your profits. No problems storing MF plastic for me but go through it pretty fast at times. So was I right about the state and not the city? Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plastickayak Posted October 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I thought about the shipping when I did the math on a drum. Not really worth it when you compare the savings to five gallons. Yeah you were right about the state. Thanks for bringing these things to my attention! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHK Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I am just guessing the LA is the state and not the city. If you want more profit buy the plastic in the largest quantity you can, like drums it is way cheaper that way. Do the math if you buy a drum and see the differance. Frank only way to try and make a buck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishBones Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I'm in your boat, about six months ahead of you. My first advice would be the first piece of advice I received, "believe in your product". While I understand that real world concerns matter, 3/4 of our planet is covered with water, I think there's even room for another one in Cali (me!). Ditto what everyone said about weight/volume with one other point. With top pours it's easy to have a lot of variation, practice and if need be marking your molds will help with even pouring and consistent baits. The more cavities in your mold (and the more molds) the more baits you can pour at a time between reheats, giving more color consistency. If you're going to store large amounts of plastic for long periods of time, come up with a way to stir it and try to avoid a lot of temp variation. (I've been warned of, but haven't yet encountered, settling) Oh and clean edges to your mold help with pouring consistency and drastically lower deflashing time spent (and usually the less flasshing to cut off, the better the bait looks anyway). I concentrate on solid colors with glitter, this lowers cost as it takes less time to pour than layers and anything that goes wrong can be tossed right back into the cup instead of into the "black" bucket. I reserve the layered pours for short runs and custom orders. Anyway, hope that helps. I haven't even covered costs yet but I'm on my way. Good luck to you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHK Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I thought about the shipping when I did the math on a drum. Not really worth it when you compare the savings to five gallons. Last 2 Drums i bought came in close to half the cost of buying the equivalent quantity in 5gal pails, including all the costs of shipping it across the border was it worth it? well, i wont buy it in any other quantities, cut my total cost per bag of baits nearly in half. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonteSS Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 I think you really need to have your own designs made to make it. Something unique and different then the rest. Buying a pre-made mold and trying to compete seems difficult to me. ....Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted October 15, 2011 Report Share Posted October 15, 2011 I think you really need to have your own designs made to make it. Something unique and different then the rest. Buying a pre-made mold and trying to compete seems difficult to me. ....Bill That really sounds like it is easy to do. Here is my take on this. If you design your own swim bait then you have to market it. But if it is real good it should be patented. Otherwise it will be knocked off faster, by a bigger company with more money and lawyers. Could you afford to defend it? Not that it is not a good idea but how much time will you spend actually making baits with all the other things going on. I say make your baits in the colors your area wants. You see the big guys dont want to do smaller runs of a custom color. Ride there wave and be happy that you can make baits better than what is out there. At Icast this year I talked to a big company about making baits for them on a smaller runs so they could service areas with specific color requirements. But giving up there mold to someone out side of the company is the biggest hold up. Make your baits and have a good time, it will be alot of work but I find it relaxing in a way. Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
