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MrTom

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For giggles I make my own jigs and soft plastic baits. The jigs I've been making for about 50 years, the plastics about 7. Here's one I did up to post on another site for a 4th of July chuckle that I call Firecracker Shad. The belly and lateral line colors are hand poured and the firecracker glitter color is injected to make the basic bait. I added the eyes and brushed on a nice throat patch using rose hi lite powder, then gave the bait a clear coat to seal up things.

jY2Os3V.jpg
 
That looks awesome! I agree it would make a good crappie pattern although it looks like it might catch our wipers also.
 
I'm primarily an angler but I love my black powder guns and shooting them. I take my deer season each year just to hunt black powder and have taken deer with kit type sidelocks, in-line bolts, break action in-lines and even my Optima pistol. But I do love my crappie and walleye fishing.

The bait shown is a 4" bait and has a fairly bulky head section. It does a great job on walleye and sauger. Its 2 3/4" cousin is better for targeting crappies. I have perhaps 20 different styles and sizes of bait molds ranging in size from 1" ice fishing baits to walleye sized baits in the size range of the one shown.

I don't make to sell much anymore but I do enjoy making baits that appeal to the eye and enjoy working with people who have decided to enter into this area of tackle crafting and are somewhere in the learning curve.
 
Here's another good plastic bait. This one, in the color combo shown, was a super good spring bait this year on the Mississippi for walleyes and sauger.

yEguNr1.jpg


In the mold this one measures spot on at 4" but runs out closer to 5.5" on the retrieve. A lighter jighead makes this guy dance pretty.
 
Here's one that resembles a Rapala. The finish colors again are brushed on then top coated.

ebgsHnI.jpg
 
These are a shorter version of the baits shown here already. 2 3/4".

PilnPVN.jpg


The top and third bait down are done using brushed hi lite powders used in a number of venues other than in soft plastic but work great for this plastic technique. The second and 4th baits are done using automotive paint pearling products and do an amazing job too.
 
Here's a school of the two sizes in this bait style. The larger is pretty much geared for walleye or bass while the smaller version will do both of those fish and crappie too. The color shown is a great cold water walleye color.

IlzalfM.jpg
 
Those look great. I am curious thought about the paint. How does the paint stay flexible and not crack when the bait flexes?
 
Its not paint Shawn. Those that appear to have a metallic skin or sheen to the have been coated with powdered mica product that usually goes into the raw plastic prior to cooking it. The powder in some instances is called a hi lite if it doesn't add any color or doesn't affect the clarity of the plastic its put in. If the powder adds color to the plastic, changes the color in any way, or makes the plastic opaque then its referred to as a pearl. Both types of powders have been used in these examples either in the plastic or has been brushed on dry after the bait has been made.

The ribbed work with the chartreuse tail has a violet hi lite in the purple colored plastic used for the top of the bait and is "just " visible on the tops of the ridges. The other baits have been dry brushed. The blue-green/gold minnow has been finished with pearl powders. The three purple baits have been dusted on the backs with a purple product used in automotive paints. The same purple is used on the second bait down of the four along with the hot pink automotive product used on the back of the bottom bait of the four baits. The other two baits in that picture and the one that's got the thin metallic sheen of varying colors are done using products that are used in the glass making industry.

The eyes and this powder coat need to be sealed and all of these baits have received a clear coat of plastic that has a dose of uv enhancement add to it so they stand out in all kinds and colors of water. Once the clear coat is applied the baits' colors and finish is pretty well protected.

Some person make simple baits using clear plastic, then airbrush acrylic colors on them. They too need to be clear coated as soon as the acrylic has dried. Myself I use plastic ranging from clear to maybe a smoke back or maybe purple...any color that will work within the direction I want to finish the bait in really. As seen many baits will get a color line injected thru them to help fire up the tails a bit. In clear plastic or the clear plastic with lots of silver/fire-opal glitter in it I like the line colors as they add color from inside the bait that works off the underside of the hi lite or pearl film added to the outside of the bait when kept in a relatively thin in coat.

Its fun stuff to work with. No two baits are the same...maybe close but never the same. And yes, they catch a lot of fish.
 
MrTom said:
Its not paint Shawn. Those that appear to have a metallic skin or sheen to the have been coated with powdered mica product that usually goes into the raw plastic prior to cooking it. The powder in some instances is called a hi lite if it doesn't add any color or doesn't affect the clarity of the plastic its put in. If the powder adds color to the plastic, changes the color in any way, or makes the plastic opaque then its referred to as a pearl. Both types of powders have been used in these examples either in the plastic or has been brushed on dry after the bait has been made.

The ribbed work with the chartreuse tail has a violet hi lite in the purple colored plastic used for the top of the bait and is "just " visible on the tops of the ridges. The other baits have been dry brushed. The blue-green/gold minnow has been finished with pearl powders. The three purple baits have been dusted on the backs with a purple product used in automotive paints. The same purple is used on the second bait down of the four along with the hot pink automotive product used on the back of the bottom bait of the four baits. The other two baits in that picture and the one that's got the thin metallic sheen of varying colors are done using products that are used in the glass making industry.

The eyes and this powder coat need to be sealed and all of these baits have received a clear coat of plastic that has a dose of uv enhancement add to it so they stand out in all kinds and colors of water. Once the clear coat is applied the baits' colors and finish is pretty well protected.

Some person make simple baits using clear plastic, then airbrush acrylic colors on them. They too need to be clear coated as soon as the acrylic has dried. Myself I use plastic ranging from clear to maybe a smoke back or maybe purple...any color that will work within the direction I want to finish the bait in really. As seen many baits will get a color line injected thru them to help fire up the tails a bit. In clear plastic or the clear plastic with lots of silver/fire-opal glitter in it I like the line colors as they add color from inside the bait that works off the underside of the hi lite or pearl film added to the outside of the bait when kept in a relatively thin in coat.

Its fun stuff to work with. No two baits are the same...maybe close but never the same. And yes, they catch a lot of fish.

Thanks for the info. Not sure what I was thinking. Somehow thought you also painted them. After re-Reading I see you were brushing on a powder and not paint. :d'oh!: I can see those smaller ones killer on Crappie.
 
QuinnTheEskimo said:
It's not like I need another hobby, but I'm intrigued. Where do you get the molds and materials Mr. Tom?

I use Do-It molds for my molds and supplies. They're in Denver, Iowa. Check the web store out....www.do-itmolds.com
 

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