Crystal Clear Plastisol Issue?

[andrewlamberson]

I was a different brand that came in a 1 gallon jug.

The more I do this...the more I'm convinced that the two biggest issues are temperature, mixing and humidity No matter what brand plastic you use.

Gosh...just like big time thermoplastic injection molding ! Process....Process...Pro cess!

Andy

[ghostbaits]

Funny! I have been making soft plastics for over 10 years now. I have used every plastisol on the market and tested soo many at never made it passed the testing phase. I have never owned and never will own a thermometer. Never have had a cooking issue. Ever. Seems like overkill to me.

Also have lived in the south where our humidity averages 80% or better. Never had issue with it unless the jug stayed open for days. Have had many of jugs arrive bubbling on the cook.

I think the quality control at the mixing company is more important to me. The variation from order to order is easy to see if you run more than a couple 5 gallon pails a year.

Let's face it, some companies even sell "degassed" plastisol. Why would you need to do that unless the company is introducing "gas" as they prepare??!!

I really think there is a lot of overkill and time waste in many of the processes I hear.

Cook enough plastisol to know what your brand does and repeat, repeat. It really is simple in the end.

As with golf or shooting free throws. Do it the same way over and over until it is second nature. Then when something turns out wrong, it is fairly easy to find the issue.

Just my process and experience though. SIB KISS. See it big, keep it simple.

Jim

P'S I have also learned this through my son's competitive archery endeavors.  Another story but that is why I post so little but have learned to just keep it simple.

[hollywood]

Do you take the box off so you can see the plastisol Andy?

Most don't remove the box so it is tough to see if the plastisol is mixing completely. I saw some residue sticking to the plastic bag more than I thought when I used the CC. Caused me issues for sure as a result of inadequate mixing.

Jim

I guess that is what is so puzzling.  We have been doing this for 6 years in a large capacity and never have had an issue like this.  When Caney Creek came out with the CC we switched to it immediately because of how well it worked and the quality.  It was clear, very few bubbles and MIXED EASILY!  That was even one of the selling points in the videos Jason made.  He said it would not settle or hard pack, all you had to do was rotate the box occasionally.  I have a few 2.5 gallon boxes of soft CC I use for personal baits from when the packaging just changed over to Do It.  The box says to rotate box before each use similar to when Caney Creek was making it.  Now the box says mix thoroughly before each use with a picture of a guy shaking a box like a 5 year old trying to figure out what's in his Christmas present!    Those boxes of soft CC turn out perfect every time.  We have used the same manufacturing process for years and are very thorough with mixing and temperature.  Maybe something has changed and now the CC doesn't use the same refined materials so it needs to be mixed much more now than before.  As it is the lack of consistency makes it hard to use in production environments.

[ghostbaits]

Only way around it all is get a 55 gallon drum. At least it will be good for that drum.

Jim

[hollywood]

That is true.  The downside is I could get 55 gallons of the stuff I have now that is not up to par.  That would be much more painful that the small 10 gallons I purchased to see if issues had been fixed.  Unfortunately for the time being they haven't.    Hopefully it goes back to the way it was a few years ago.

[ghostbaits]

Hopefully it goes back to the way it was a few years ago.

Biggest problem with this is raw ingredients change. Unfortunately, nothing the company can do about that....

Jim

[hollywood]

I understand varying quality within batches of ingredients but a complete change in raw ingredients is unacceptable.  We manufacture a natural fishing product and have varying quality of raw fiber from each 500 lb lot we bring in but the quality variance is only a few degrees.  If we were to completely change the fiber we use the customer should know and it would not be sold as the same product because its not.

It seems I can reduce the problem of splotchy and sticky baits by heating up the plastic to around 370 degrees.  This unfortunately causes a problem when making bright fluorescent baits as they show signs of burning at this temp.  I guess it would be ok with darker baits but on bright baits it does not work well.  Very finicky stuff!