Custom Baits - Forum

Soft Plastic Bait Making => Color Cook Book => Topic started by: ctom on 03/08/13 19:40 UTC

Title: baby bass
Post by: ctom on 03/08/13 19:40 UTC
I've dinked around with a bunch of colors looking for something that really looks like a baby bass and may have found it here.

(http://i574.photobucket.com/albums/ss184/crappietomtackle/3e474acd-89d9-48d2-9797-3c21200bd1a2_zpsedaaa2f9.jpg)

I hand poured the pearl/silver glitter belly color trying hard to keep the belly cavity less that 1/2 full of that color. Then I slipped my thin plate in and shot the black over the belly color. The green that finishes as a top color is actually a green pumpkin with a touch of chartreuse and one small swish of brown pumpkin. The transparent color is carrying some medium green and medium gold glitter plus a shot of green hi lite.

The red eyes make this one look just plain real. About the only thing left is to use a marker and wiggle some vertical lines along the sides before doing the cover dip. Of course I did think of that until AFTER I had dipped them.

On the plastic colors. I made the green in a 2 ounce batch just for playing with this bait and another, while the pearl and black are scrap colors.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: CrabbyBass on 03/08/13 21:59 UTC
Tom, you are amazing!  Great job!
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: gstott on 03/08/13 22:40 UTC
Those look pretty awesome.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: pieterbez on 03/09/13 02:56 UTC
awesome baby bass color
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: BareKnuckleJigs on 03/09/13 03:27 UTC
Aw Yeah!  I'm diggn' that like a Snow Shovel!  Watch out for Game Wardens when You're throwing those, Mr. Tom...it's illegal in most states to use Game Fish as bait.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: basskat on 03/09/13 04:45 UTC
I'll take about 50 of them! Awesome color.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: pjmcla on 03/09/13 06:40 UTC
Yep; that's what a bass minnow looks like alright.  You nailed that Green back.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: fsh4fun on 03/09/13 07:16 UTC
Very nice again. You said you pour that white patch with a spoon.Is it a really small spoon?
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: ctom on 03/09/13 07:39 UTC
Yes sir. I use a teaspoon and I heat the plastic in a 4 ounce pyrex cup. Everything comes down to controling how much plastic is in the spoon and having the plastic and mold very close to one another. If you try this, get your things together and practice doing it with junk plastic. It takes some getting used to but if you are using something that could well go in the trash in the first place you're way less likely to give up on it. It does take some practice.

I'd open a small fry or some similar mold and lay it out in front of me then I'd start dipping the plastic into the belly area using a real dark color, maybe black. First try to get the right amount of plastic in the cavities. When you think its right, close the mold and shoot it using using a lighter plastic color. When you open the mold, you want to study the castings, looking for weak spots or where the belly pour may have interfered with the fill shot. On the dud cavities, try to find what caused what, then you'll know when you hand pour again what to look for as far as problems. Its easy to lift a bad pour in the belly cavity then re-pour it when you are making good colors.

The process is super easy but you have to invest the time to get the technique down before you use good plastic or you can get frustrated.

One thing to completely ignore is how the plastic you just poured into the belly section wants to look like a small puddle instead of laying nice and flat like a plate gives you. The lam plate is nice, but the most realisting looking baits will come from cavities that get hand poured and do not have precise straight lines between colors. Remember that nothing in nature is perfect and hand pouring the bellies replicates that as close to perfect as we can get.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: fsh4fun on 03/09/13 08:10 UTC
Thanks tom,I`ve been pouring bellies in frogs and other small baits,but always used the cup. The spoon sounds like I`d have much better control.
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: tpalmer on 03/12/13 00:12 UTC
Great lookin baits.. Thank you sharing the work behind the product....
Title: Re: baby bass
Post by: MonteSS on 03/12/13 00:30 UTC
Awe, aint they cute.

....Bill