Stencil Making

[bradkoll]

Hey all I got creative last night and ran empty laminate through my laminator to get nice clear but firm material to make stencils out of. The issue I have is now getting a steady hold for placing the stencil over the lure. Predatorbassbaits has stencils that are molded to the bait and would be really handy, I just don't want to spend about $20 per bait style for all the stencils I would like to have. Anybody make these stencils that contour a bait on their own? I'm not sure if I could take the laminating sheets and get creative with a lighter or the oven to make it take shape or not. Thanks in advance.

[RayburnGuy]

There should be some tutorials in the Hardbait How To section that show you how to build your own vacuum former. It's not hard and can usually be done with stuff you have laying around the house.

 

Ben

[bradkoll]

Thanks for the input. Now I just have to figure out the easiest way to cut the design, I have been doing x-acto knife.

[llokkii]

I use PETG plastic.  Most everyone will recommend .020 thickness because its easier to cut.  I've always used .030 so I can't comment on that.  I use a heat gun (low setting) and a homemade vaccuuming system I rigged out of a 5 gallon bucket and a shop vac to get the plastic to form around the bait.  I usually draw my stencils on graph paper first, then lay the plastic over top and trace the pattern.  You just have to remember you'll have to flip one side to make sure you have the stencils running in the right direction.  Not sure how that would work with laminating sheets, but I bet if your careful you could get it to work just fine.

I use a roto tool or an exacto knife, depending on how intricate the stencil is.

There is a lot of info on the hardbait forum on this.

Hope this helped

[MasterChief]

I have been vacuum forming mine then I draw the pattern on the lure with a sharpe pen, then place the vacuum formed stencil over the lure and draw the pattern. Cutting them out I use a exacts knife, then go to a hobby store and buy some of those sticks that are similar to a file, they are found in the model area. The are used to clean up the pices used in making model cars and stuff to clean up the little knobbies that are left over when you break the parts off there hold before putting together. If you are really steady, you can get a small bit for a dremel tool and use that as well, the only issue is if you run it too fast it will melt the stencil and require a lot of sanding and smoothing.

[Tony Maxwell]

I found an electric knife at a local hobby shop. it looks similar to a soldering iron but has an exacto blade on the business end. Once it gets hot it cuts through like a hot knife in butter, almost. Good luck.

[robn510]

ive had good sucess with the plastic sheets used for overhead projectors.