Worm vs swimbait plastic

[Phatdonkey]

Hello all. New guy here and first post.

I have thought about making soft plastics for about 3 years. Over that time I have been saving torn baits and have had friends do the same. Bought an injector and a do it 6 inch senko mold and started melting and repouring old baits. This is tons of fun and incredibly addicting.

I have since bought a few other molds and just ordered my first swimbait mold. A 6 inch open pour angling AI mold.

So i am, at this time, mostly going to be making worms and swimbaits. My question is this. I have done some research and am going to buy some dead on plastix. I want to buy a 5 gallon bucket to save some money. 127 delivered for the 5 gallon bucket. Buying a few different types of 1 gallons is considerably more expensive.

So should I go with the swimbait mix and add softener to make worms with it or the worm mix and add a bit of hardener for the swimbaits? Are the mixes close enough that the worms will still be soft enough and the swimbaits okay as well?

May seem like a silly question, but im not familiar with the different firmnesses.

Any help would be appreciated.  Im looking forward to doing this for my own enjoyment and to share baits with friends too.

[WALLEYE WACKER]

Welcome Phatdonkey when remelting manufactured bait’s you have to be very careful. Most of the bait’s I pour are in MF super soft but also pour DO-IT essential medium most swim bait’s I pour in medium.

[Lamar]

  Personally if you're just make baits for yourself then 5 gallons is way over kill. I like the Do-it essential series and the last time I bought 2 1/2 gallon and I ended up mixing it and pour it in quart jars so it was easier the mix when I needed it. That was 2 years ago and I'm getting close to being out now. The first gallon may go fast but then you realize you can only fish so many baits and your production will slow down.

[ctom]

Welcome to the Do-It forums Phatdonkey.

I use the Essential plastic for everything. Once in a while I will soften some but generally leave as is.

[olsarge]

I use both of Dead ons formulas.  If it were me I would order the swim bait (medium) and add softener when making worms

[Phatdonkey]

Thanks for all the info guys.

I was thinking 5 gallons might be overkill but I ran thru the first gallon I bought in just a two weeks and the open pour mold I ordered i will be making quite a few swimmers for fishing for hybrid stripers in a local lake. I'm just making them for myself, but it's fun to do. I was also thinking of splitting it into smaller amounts to make it more manageable.

I think ill go with the medium and add softener when needed.  Thanks again for the info. I'm sure I'll be headed back here quite a bit for more info.

[Lines]

I've used soft, medium, and ultra soft. I always go back to medium. I like the finished product that medium plastic produces. It seems to handle easier when bagged. It holds up well enough for my liking. I like the way it goes onto hooks and jigs. I really never have tried using a softener. Guess I really couldn't tell that much difference to justify using a softener or hardener. My opinions only, and you know the saying about opinions...... .
Welocome to custombaits.com Phatdonkey! Great name btw.

[Apdriver]

I’m with Lamar on this one. You might use your first five gallons in the first couple years. After your initial stocking with the first five, I think you will slow way down. I have some plastic now that’s 4 years old and I can tell it has some limitations. Still usable but I need a few white trailers and may have to order a fresh gallon for it. The old plastic will darken just bringing it up to 350 now.

[Les Young]

I have a few baits on the wall in the garage, but that’s not even close to the amount i’ll use in a year. I make my  own tubes, brush hogs, super hogs,beavers, all types of different worms,  Ned rig lures, 5 different styles of jig trailers &  a few different craws so 5 gallon doesn’t last me long & now i’ve bought a hula grub mold too so I know i’ll be making a bunch of them & a bunch of skirts to attach to other lures too.  In  less than 3 years I’ve went through 26 gallons. Won’t be as much this year, but will still be  over 5 gallons.