Is it possible, or even feasible to try and melt and repour old plastic llures? I have been tossing this idea around for awhile and figured that if I could "recycle" old sluggos or fin-s lures, I could save a few bucks in the grand scheme of things.

If I were to carve out a mold, would I be able to effectively melt and pour old lures to create new lures?

Any comments would be appreciated.

You can melt them and make more, the ony thing is I believe you can't melt ones down that have been scented. Like ones with pogie oil etc.

I have to warn you, once you go down the dark side there is no turning back, trust me I speak from experience. Back in my freshwater bass tournament days, soft plastics were the choice, but damn weren't they pricey and one and done. Turned to repairing torn baits with a worm repair tool (bass pro carries them) and on larger baits a hot butter knife; but sometimes the same action just wasn't there. That led to copies of baits I liked in bondo and staring to pour my own baits, in the colors and scents I had confidence in.

Switched to striper fishing back in the early 80' and being a big sluggo fan from my freshwater tournament days, applied those to striper fishing immediately. As good as they worked, they really were too soft for my taste and lacked the meat I wanted to fish on a jighead and the one and done syndrome was still there. So I designed my own bait, which led to 12 other designs from 3" to 13" and I can't see in the immediate future that time where I will have made back my investment in materials and certainly not my time. Its like most hobbies, you do it for fun, trust me its rare you save or make back your money.

Good luck

I've found that different types of plastics don't work well together, when you try to re-melt them.

I pour my own baits with Lure Crafter's formula 500 liquid plastic, with hardener added in a 16 parts liquid to 1 part hardener blend (8 oz of hardener per gallon of liquid). They re-melt fine together, but if I throw in pieces of old Sluggos, I get a mess.

A gallon of that stuff costs ~ $50. M&Ds sells it pre-mixed in that 16:1 ratio. 8 oz of liquid dye costs about $10, but it lasts for years. You only need a few drops per pour. Then there's the molds. Commercially made silicon molds cost $15 to $20, depending on the bait style, for a two cavity mold. You can get 6-8 10" baits out of an 8 oz pour, so you really need 3-4 two cavity molds for that many baits per pour. The more cost-effective way is to make your own, even though those commercially made silicon molds last forever. You can make a decent mold out of a few pennies worth of plaster of Paris. You need to seal a POP mold. Two coats of Elmer's glue makes a workable one. But POP doesn't last forever, and heat wears it down. Or you can invest in some RTV silicon and make a mold, or buy the commercially made ones.

And I'll second Bob on this---once you start pouring baits, you get hooked. You can't stop. I 'm already on my fourth gallon of liquid plastic, and I only started pouring my own baits last April. I have almost a hundred downstairs, on top of the ones I've used, lost to snags, and given away during the season.

this can't be done in a basement - correct?

I recall the smell from melting old LMB worms as a kid.

I wouldn't bother with old baits - you'd have to have a pile of them to save any money, and you're mixing different kinds of plastic with color added, etc. Once you're pouring your own, then you might reuse your own. When you reuse colors, they just come out dark usually. Don't reheat old plastic with metallic flakes in the microwave - flash bang! IF you're working inside, use ventilation.

You dont' need to carve molds - you form them around a model. Pure silicon calking with just a little water added will make a nice mold. Start with a sluggo or the model of your choice - I bought some modelling clay for small money and formed my own. fill the block with silicon, and drop the model in the top. Let set, pull out the model and you have a mold.

IF you bounce plastics of the bottom of the Canal, you can definitely save money making your own. At the rate you lose them to snags, the payoff doesn't take long. There are some really good video tutorials and write-ups online - do a search.

All the pink and green / "motor oil" ones are re-melted plastic from all kinds of old baits and the purple is a mixture of new and old. It works fine if you sort similar color to similar color. I find pouring a touch of virgin plastic or softener in with the old stuff will make it melt a little smoother. Where a respirator. If it does have bunker oil it melts a lot faster and sets up much slower.

am I seeing the start of Plasticsfest 2012 in the works?

I would be more apt to skip the tedious melting and pouring and creating molds etc.

If you have full baits that are just mangled then I would invest in some Pro's Soft Bait glue. I think it dries quick and is quite flexible. I know this does not help with bluefish bitten off nubs, but for those baits that you have that are whole but just really beaten up this will work.

Good Luck

If you have full baits that are just mangled then I would invest in some Pro's Soft Bait glue. I think it dries quick and is quite flexible. I know this does not help with bluefish bitten off nubs, but for those baits that you have that are whole but just really beaten up this will work.

Good Luck

No glue needed. Use a lighter to get a flame on both sides and then weld them back together

I use old rubber as Cod Teasers don't bother trying to repair......

I have seen guys remelt their remnants. The result is an ugly greenish black color. Is it really worth it? I have always gone the other way of putting the effort into finding good deals on the factory made originals. One year we talked to someone who was "going out of business". We bought 2 or 3 thousand (I forget if it was 2 or 3) at a really low price. That many lasts you for years. During those years you keep your eyes open for another opportunity.