Crystal Clear vs Alumisol

[NSfisher]

Hello all, new to forums and relatively new to home made baits. What I'm curious is would anybody know what are some of the big differences, if any, of Crystal Clear vs Alumisol (Alumisoft brand). I have made some very nice baits from Alumisol, caught some fish too, I digress. I have purchased some molds from Do-It, which work very well, -1, vents dont seem to be deep enough. Would I notice a subtle or a more noticeable change in bait action using crystal clear? I also have some softener, hardener & stabilizer from alumisoft, would these be compatible with crystal clear? I guess I'm just trying to get my supplies from one source without having to look all over NA to acquire them, not much here in Canada. BTW: x2 colorants are awesome, work great for my color schemed brain. haha

[efishnc]

Hey fisher, 

Sorry no one has welcomed you here yet, so let me be the first... Welcome!

Given by the number of reads (131 as I write), I'm guessing there is no experience here (because these guys are not snobs.)  I know Larry Dahlberg uses alumisol and I would recommend emailing him directly and asking if he knows.  One of my buddies emailed him about some other lure question and he replied directly... he seems to be a fairly down to earth guy. 

[ctom]

NSFisher....

Indeed, welcome.

I have no experience personally with the alumisol but I have heard others comment favorably on it.  Do-It offers the Crystal Clear AND the Essential plastics. I am very familiar with both of these and would suggest you look at the Essential as a cross-over plastic for a couple of reasons. First is the heat tolerance it possesses. Second is the clarity with very, very few bubbles. The noticeable lack of odor while cooking as compared to all other plastics is yet another plus on its behalf. The Essential is the most forgiving plastic I have used and I have used quite a few. As your talents in using the plastic get more advanced, the Crystal Clear is the direction that I would shift to, but that Essential is really an excellent plastic to begin with or to move to gain experience. The Crystal Clear comes in three great firmnesses, the Essential only in medium; however, you can soften or harden the Essential product using those components you already have on hand.