MAKING FISHING BAITS

Question
HI I AM NEW TO THIS BUT WANT TO MAKE MY OWN BAITS.TRYING TO FIND BEST SUBSTANCE TO USE FOR MAKING MY OWN MOLDS.MY BAITS ARE GOING TO BE MADE OF SOFT PLASTICS . AND I THINK YOU HAVE TO INJECT THEM AT HEIGHT TEMPTRESS 3 TO 400 DEGRES.I HAVE CERTAIN OBJECTS THAT I WANT TO FORM AROUND TO CAST MY MOLDS SO I WILL HAVE TO POUR HALF WAY UP ON THE OBJECT AND THEN THE OTHER HALF.IT WILL BE A TWO PIECE MOLD .CAN YOU TELL ME THE BEST WAY AND THE BEST PRODUCT TO DO THIS WITH .THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME IT IS PEOPLE LIKE YOU THAT MAKE THE DIFFERENCE.          BRUCE

Answer
Hi Bruce,

I make all of my molds out of plain old Plaster of Paris from the hardware store.  

For a two piece mold, find a container that will hold your prototype.  Pour half of the mold full of plaster.  Right before the plaster sets, but while it is still liquid, gently press the bait half way into the plaster.  Let that set over night.

The next day I use a counter sink bit and drill some divots in the blank spaces in the plaster.  These will become the alignment points.  Now, coat the entire surface with a light but thorough film of Vaseline.  The prototype and everything.  Now, pour the second half of the mold and let it set overnight.  The next day you should be able to de-mold the whole plaster mass.  Gently pull the two halves apart.

Clean up any flash with a knife or razor blade.  Now, use a knife or rat tailed file to file in a pour point.  

Let them dry a couple days.  You can accelerate the drying in a low temp oven, in the sun, or near the furnace.

Once dry, you can coat them.  I mix up 30 minute epoxy and thin it to a watery consistency with acetone.  Carefully brush it into the lure cavities only.  The first coat will soak right into the plaster.  The next coat (the next day) will stay on the surface.  The third coat will give you a nice shiny mold cavity.

After that, you are ready to pour plastic.  Unless you drop them, POP molds will alst a long time.

RTV is another pourable product available in hobby stores, but it is very expensive.  It probably costs $25-$40 to make a RTV mold.  A POP mold probably costs $1-$2.  POP is cheap.

Molding soft plastics is fun.  Pour in a ventilated area.  It stinks and will give you a sore throat.  Get a mask and run a fan and you will have no problems.  

Good fishing.