Twinjector

[CrabbyBass]

I know this subject has been beat to death, but wanted to start this topic again.  I bought a twinjector and have been having issues with it.  At first I was getting really good looking lures out of it.  I have been working on a batch of black and chartreuse and nothing seems to be working out for me.  The colors are running together.  After reading through the forums, I thought maybe I was shooting the plastic too hot.  I bought a IR thermometer yesterday to make sure I was shooting around the 320 people recommended.  I tried it out last night.  One cup was at 320 and the other was 316.  I injected and the same thing happened.  I was looking at some of the other lures I have made that came out good and noticed that the colors did in fact run together on those, but the colors were lighter, so you cannot tell.  Is it harder to get a good looking laminate with the twinjector with dark colors?  Could my molds be the issue?  I am trying to shoot the Wittle Wutz and 3.5" swim shad.  Does anyone have any other suggestions?  Thanks in advance!

Chuck

[andrewlamberson]

First problem (yes...I know I beat this to death....) but get rid of the IR thermometer! There are a bunch of posts why...and the recommended thermometer for Amazon. Bottom line...the IR only tells you the skin temperature...and is not very accurate. It may read 320 on the skin...but if you used a digital thermometer you could actually be pouring significantly higher (significantly!!!!).

2nd...shoot super slow!

I shoot laminates with both those molds without issues....but I keep my temp really low....and I measure with a digital thermometer (and stir) to make sure the entire batch is a uniform temperature.

And yes...I suspect you always get some mixing at the boundary layer, that is especially noticeable with such contrasting colors.  You could try to let your plastic cool to the lowest temperature you can inject (which for me seems to be about 300)...but then you run into clogging issues and poor flow.

Also.. hand pouring the bottom....then inject the top....or if hand pour isn't your thing...and  you really want to use those contrasting colors...I think you'll have to go to a laminate plate.

[CrabbyBass]

Thanks for the info Andy!  My buddy thought the same thing about the surface temp VS the temp of the under layers.  I assumed it had to be pretty close to uniform if you mix it up and take the temp right away.  Maybe I am shooting too fast.  I shoot at a moderate speed, but will slow it down and see if that helps. 

I have the laminate plate, but am trying to double my output with the twinjector.  I am not expecting to get the super clean seam as I do with the plate, but would like it to be cleaner than it is coming out now. 

Thanks again Andy!

[BassDetective]

Andy is right about the skin temp with IR thermometers.  It is not just skin temp with IR.  There are many other issues with reflection and other technical details of measuring IR that affect its ability to accurately measure surface temp with a simple gun style meter.  The more expensive equipment $5000 and up take thousands of points of measurement over a field of view.  So, go with the digital thermometer and that will get you closer to a true temp.

[Frank]

I alway use the IR gun when stirring. An exact temp is not important just a level to compare when it works. Working with plastic that is cooling from the top can be misleading. Mt best laminates come out between 300 and 310. 320 and i get what you are talking about. The temp gauge would be great if you could stir with it or it just gets in the way. Drastic color differences are a real challenge. I know you know by now that if you want to shoot laminates out if the Twinjector is is important to know the temps. Good luck. Frank

[DobynsTriton]

I leave my cups off of the heat while i stir them to get them to cool down then i put them on my griddle when they are ready to let me get a few shots out of them. When they are ready (atleast for me) when i check it won't be like a syrup but but it gets to where it would be too thick to hand pour with/starts to barely stack (hope that makes sense) but its is still pretty workable.Also dont really plunge down on it let the injector do its thing,ive found on some stuff if i used too much my line between the 2 colors mess up some

[CrabbyBass]

Thanks DobynsTriton! I think I have to work in my injector some. I was watching one of Frank's videos and saw how he was able to inject with one hand. There is no way I am able to use mine with one hand. It is way too stiff. I read up and am going to try a couple of things to smooth it out. I loosened the caps on the tubes and also the left the plastic from my last injection in it. I will try it out tonight. Thanks again!

[kipbass]

Just to satisfy my own curiosity Andy. Do you think the ir would not work with a presto and a stirring system? The plastic is always moving till you turn it off to get a reading. It's got to be more than accurate for that.

[kipbass]

Also, I have a cheap digital thermo from wally world, it's sloooowww to get a reading. Is yours fast?

Sorry Crabbybass, didn't mean to high jack your thread.

[andrewlamberson]

It takes a 6-8 seconds... In my research to get one that is instant is big $$.
My Daughter is a microbiologist and this thermometer is the one she uses in her lab and it has to be  NSF approved... which this one is.

I also use it to stir my plastic... Being careful not to whip in air bubbles! But I normally only heat 4oz at a time. If I'm heading a large amount I use a stainless steel spoon.

FYI: She cannot use  an IR because they are not accurate enough. Likewise, in the factory we only use IR thermometers to measure temperatures of metal equipment... Any measurement of plastic or materials is done with digital thermometers.

IR's only measure skin temperatures and can misread due to color (reflective vs absorbing) material composition and density (it will measure metal better than a liquid).

How many IR thermometers do you see Professional Chiefs using?

[CrabbyBass]

I do not get what I am doing wrong here.  I went through and read the other threads and changed things that I was doing and I am still having issues.  I thought maybe the top half fills up before the bottom half so the top plastic fills in the voids and swirls with the bottom color.  I tried rotating the blending block so the bottom color would point more towards the injection ports, but that didn't work either.  This is what I am getting:




I am about to go back to the laminate plates.  Can anyone offer some advice please or post pics of Wutz-its you have shot with a twinjector.  Thank you!

Chuck

[andrewlamberson]

Where's Ghost Baits when we need him???

He's Da' Man on Twin Injectors.

[pjmcla]

Nice color combo.  I bet the fish will hit it as is. 

[CrabbyBass]

Thanks pjmcla! I am sure they will still hit it, but I am looking for a cleaner laminate line. I am gong to try again tonight, but will probably go back to the laminate plates until I can figure it out. Thanks again!

[jl3140]

The best solution for your problem would be to send any that blend together to me. LOL  I don't use a Twinjector yet, but I plan to in the future so I'm interested in the actual solution to this problem. I know my solution wasn't very helpful LOL. I really like the blended version of that color though. I think it makes it more realistic looking.