Plastic cast needle

[the greek]

I have been wanting to do this for a while and finally took the leap to buy the stuff needed to do it. I thought I would start with something straight forward and easy to mold like a needle. I made several molds from RTV and found the last one I did the most usable. I made a master for the mold from maple and then poured a mold with RTV. The easiest part is actually pouring the baits. It's quite simple. The mold is the tough part and I still would like to find a more user friendly way of doing it.

The baits come out nice and I only have to do one small step to make them ready for primer. I have it set up so that I am pouring the bait with an 1/8" rod already in place and I can place weights anywhere along the rod. I just pull the rod after the plastic sets and I have a through hole for my wire.

Here is the master alonside of one of the plastic baits.

[PNG]

That is really cool.

[numbskull]

Very sharp. Nice and clean.

[stripermaineiac]

you and Sandman should compare notes. I have a few of his that are some sweet. darters,needles a some that are very new ideas. Ron

[stripermaineiac]

oh also a good idea for weight experiments is the flat lead sheets for fly tying. You can cut it to size and wrap it around your center tube. Works very nice

[Tagger]

What material is the needle .. Foam ? plastic ? ... You said you didn't like the mold .. How would Bondo be ? ... I think they came out sweet .. Only took Bob Pond until 1948 to go to the consistency of plastic .. We're all gluttens for punishment .. nice work .. very interested ..

[the greek]

Originally Posted by Tagger

What material is the needle .. Foam ? plastic ? ... You said you didn't like the mold .. How would Bondo be ? ... I think they came out sweet .. Only took Bob Pond until 1948 to go to the consistency of plastic .. We're all gluttens for punishment .. nice work .. very interested ..

I used Alumilite. This stuff is by far the easiest stuff to use. Two part equal mix by volume or weight. Part A has consistency of say olive oil and part B is much thinner like water. Mix and pour. I have used the foam and HATED it. I also have the microballoons that can be added to make the plastic float. I liked the sink on the plastic as is for needles. I don't nessessarily dislike the mold just would like a two piece that I could use a bent wire harness in and not have to do anything but prime and paint. I could not get the wire to line up right on my two part even with using a jig for the harness to make it same everytime. So I opted for the build on the rod thingy. I get a needle that all I have to do is wire and I can move weighting around on the rod wherever I want.

I made this mold from RTV and it is not as user friendly as some other stuff. I have made some real nice two piece molds from a pourable urethane that has the consistency of a car tire. I really like the way they came out and were a little easier to use. May try another with that sometime. In my very limited opinion and from what I have read and tried I would stick with a pliable or soft mold for hard plastic. Bondo would work fine with something like a needle but you have trouble getting the piece out of the mold. The rtv needs no release agent like the urethane molds do. I found that out the hard way when I forgot to spray it on one of my old molds.

I feel like I am rambling on here. If you have anymore questions shoot. I will bring the stuff with me to plugfest so you can check it out.

[Slipknot]

Great idea Ted
that may be a perfect way to make handcarves faster, just mold them

[eastendlu]

Ala Dahlberg? Looking good Ted.

[bennyraw]

looks great Ted. Thats definitely been something I've wanted to try.

[johnny ducketts]

could you put some more info up on the process, they look great!

[ProfessorM]

very nice job. Look perfect

[Nebe]

Greek... If you make a new mold that has a pouring area on the back of the needle and not the tail, you avoid the need for a jig to hold the through wire
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[the greek]

Originally Posted by Nebe

Greek... If you make a new mold that has a pouring area on the back of the needle and not the tail, you avoid the need for a jig to hold the through wire
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I had to add one on the back of this one. I wish I didn't set this up to pour throught the tail as it did not want to pour that way at all. I had some air bubbles in my other mold pouring in the top of the back. I thought that pouring through the tail with a large sprue I would get bubbles only in the sprue. Didn't go so well. So I modified the mold a bit with a gate on top and things are going pretty good now. Thanks for the heads up.

Ted

[kevinthegood]

mold putty is great for making 2 part molds,it's a little pricey $ 30 for 1 pound , very easy to work with, when i get my camera back i will post pictures of the mold i made, you can use lead, resin, aluminite,foam etc.
i also used sculpey clay to make my master, (ala darlberg)

[angler229]

Very cool stuff Ted. I saw Dahlberg's show doing similar stuff and have wanted to try it for a long time.

[Tagger]

http://www.alumilite.com/ProdDetail....tegory=Casting Resins&Name=Alumilite White

good video .. no respirator ? .. Lets see $36.00 for 28 ounces = ? lures ... or $36.00 for 6) 6' 1.5 x 1.5 ayc = 36 lures min . wood is labor intensive and dusty ..