BUNKER RUBBA - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

thill · 10-17-2002, 05:38 AM

Just made a bunker lure from scratch.

Whittled a plug from cedar, sanded smooth and epoxied for a glossy surface. Made a mold, and here is the final product:

It's 8" long plus jig. Should be a hot ticket when the bass are busting bunker.

Field testing later today.

TH

Christian · 10-17-2002, 02:07 PM

coool, i wanna try that. how do you get the soft plastic into the mold? do ya melt it?

thill · 10-17-2002, 09:59 PM

Yup. Melt it in a microwave.

Don't throw your old plastics away, recycle.

TH

thill · 10-19-2002, 02:13 AM

Oops, forgot to post this:

The lure works!

Christian · 10-19-2002, 10:53 AM

nice fish! im working on a mold now and am stock piling old beat up soft plastics. think im going to have to wait till next sring to use them though, its getting a little late in the season.

thill · 10-19-2002, 11:33 AM

Christian,

Playing with lures/tackle is what winter is for! Hurry and find the lures you want to make, and while watching TV, pour rubber during the commercials.

That was a great trip. Between the three of us in only 3 hours we caught at least 100 fish, with 8 being between 31-37" long. This trip marks the beginning of our fall season. The guys in Mass. and NY are still catching, so we have a LONG way to go!

TH

gilligan · 10-19-2002, 08:12 PM

looks alot like it anyway . nice job.ill try to post a pic tommorow but im not sure my camera works from sitting in the tackle bag.

Fishaddict · 10-20-2002, 08:29 AM

So, old rubba can be recycled by melting in the microwave???? How long in micro???
What kind of container works best?? (glass, plastic,???)
Will the wife be able to tell I used her micro to do this???

Thanks guys

thill · 10-20-2002, 11:07 AM

Buy a Pyrex measuring cup. You may also want to buy some "Heat Stabilizer" from Lurecraft to keep the plastic from yellowing from continued re-heating.

If you fill the 2-cup pyrex with cut up plastic, start with about 2 minutes on high. Stir, and give it another minute. Stir and repeat until you figure out how your microwave works.

You want it completely liquid, but not super runny. The thickness of maple syrup is perfect, but it only stays that way for a very short period of time, so pour fast.

If you pour when it's really runny, the lure will shrink a lot as it cools.

Hope this helps.

TH

Fishaddict · 10-20-2002, 12:12 PM

Thanks for the info.. Gives me another good winter project..

StarsnStripers · 10-20-2002, 06:06 PM

I wanna start pouring plastics, becuz I'ts winter soon and I need something to get my mind off fishing all day. Plus, I am off of freshwater (moved to salt for a greater challenge) and I have tons of freshwater plastics to pour.

Can I use my freshwater plastics for saltwater after i remelt and mold them?? Will all the attractants and oils on the plastics start a fire?? And where do I get molds to shape my plastics?? Thanx, please help a newbie plastic pourer.

Christian · 10-21-2002, 02:56 PM

not sure whether you can buy mold or not but what i am in the process of doing is making a wood model(for lack of a better word) and i will push that into plaster of paris. after the plaster dries ill have the shape of the lure in the plaster. epoxy that to make it smooth like thill said above. im sure freshwater soft plastics will work, wash them off in soapy water before and dry them. i tried melting a plastic powerbait worm. all of the oil stuff floated on top of the plastic it was messy. i did it again after washing and it worked fine. sort of smelled funny though. im going to stick to plain unscented from now on. hey, salt water fishing isnt that much of a challenge you just have to be ready for the big fish. dont throw away your rubber worms they work well for stripers and blues, they think their sandeels.

TheSpecialist · 10-21-2002, 06:35 PM

You can buy molds at lurecraft.

thill · 10-22-2002, 07:36 AM

www.lurecraft.com

That will give you a lot to chew on!