WV4432 Posted May 25 Report Share Posted May 25 New to bait making and I can’t find much info on what to do with your leftover plastic after a pour. How many times can I re-heat my old pucks before it goes bad? Can I continuously re-melt my excess of a certain color or is that a no go? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jig Man Posted May 25 Report Share Posted May 25 You can remelt many times if you are careful with the heat. Light colors need short heat cycles to lessen scorching. Heat stabilizer is often used in remelts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted May 25 Report Share Posted May 25 "Heat stabilizer is often used in remelts." I add stabilizer to new plastic, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiderunner Posted May 26 Report Share Posted May 26 Cut your pucks into very small pieces or find a way to grind them up. Do not try and reheat the entire puck. Go slow on the reheat. I find the brighter colors, orange, yellow, clear, will darken some after a few reheats. Not a lot, but it will be slightly noticeable. I've got pucks up the wazoo, and I'm always reusing them for something. Or blending them to experiment with colors. I just cut mine up with sharp scissors. Takes a few minutes. I'm pretty sure someone here has a better way. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Driftwood Posted May 26 Report Share Posted May 26 Get a cheap meat grinder from harbor freight. I always add some regrind to fresh plastic( same color of course) to cut down on waste. I also add heat stabilizer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiderunner Posted May 27 Report Share Posted May 27 14 hours ago, Driftwood said: Get a cheap meat grinder from harbor freight. I always add some regrind to fresh plastic( same color of course) to cut down on waste. I also add heat stabilizer. Is this electric or hand crank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiderunner Posted May 27 Report Share Posted May 27 Did a search on Harbor Freight. No meat grinders came up. Lots of them on the bay place for sale I may have to get one 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jig Man Posted May 27 Report Share Posted May 27 I have a hand crank. It works but is kind of a pita. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted May 27 Report Share Posted May 27 Lots of meat grinders on Amazon. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted May 27 Report Share Posted May 27 When I was a kid, back in the 50's, my mom had a cast steel pressure cooker, and a cast steel meat grinder that clamped on the pullout cutting board. So did most of her friends, because they ground their own hamburger and sausage meat. Different world back then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basscatlildave Posted May 28 Report Share Posted May 28 I always cut it up and melt in short bursts. You can mix a lot of small pieces together and come up with some wild colors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Driftwood Posted May 28 Report Share Posted May 28 23 hours ago, Tiderunner said: Is this electric or hand crank? It's electric. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRum Posted June 26 Report Share Posted June 26 Yes, if your plastic is good and you’re using heat correctly, you can remelt several times and still make pristine baits QA baits. I always cut up in smaller chunks and add a little fresh plastic, sometimes stabilizer but there’s stabilizer in new plastic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
