Experimentation

[javelin225ho]

alright guys and gals, i see alot of you are getting into the hand pouring of plastics.....here are some things that helped me out when i started...

EXPERIMENTATION!

i spent alot of hours mixing and burning plastic while trying to match the colors that i wanted.  i would start light with the color and work darker.  you can remelt the plastic so if it comes out wrong, heat it up again and adjust your color.  if it all fails, then it is pretty easy to make your black trickworms.....

Save your scraps!  these can be remelted and can also be saved for reference colors. 

Make sure you write down your recipies!  i made that mistake before i could never duplicate it again......especially if you are consuming alcohol when playing with your new hobby.

Use a microwave and Pyrex for your cooking....it is less expensive than the burner and pan.

If you are going to get serious about pouring, get the aluminum molds.  i recommend Del-Mart (www.del-mart.com)for your mold needs.  if you just want to try, i will put up a sticky on how to make fiberglass molds.  i went the fiberglass route and it was a quick way to get 1 sided molds.  after some dremel work, i had some of the best trickworm, finess worm, horny toad, fluke, sweet beaver, pro chunk molds you would ever see.  but after time goes by and you use them, they become unusable due to the extreme temps they are exposed too....

     ---if you dont know about pouring, the plastic is about 300+ degrees when you
         pour it.  to get the glossy look on your worms, pre-treat your molds with pam
         cooking spray, i like the garlic.  You never need to do that with the aluminum molds

Let me know if you have any questions regarding this issue.