Strike King Zulu lures

Questions about Making Your Own Lures

Strike King Zulu lures

Postby Fomen38 » Sat Jan 24, 2015 10:43 pm

So guys..... Have any of you out there ever tried melting these down to pour into one of your silicone lure molds? I had a couple of them in my tackle arsenal and I tried melting them down. The elasticity of these lures is unparalleled. I though if I could melt it down and cast one of my own lures with it, I could use the lure almost indefinitely. So I chopped up 3 of them, stuck them in the microwave, and started the melting process. After 4 minutes on low, they began to pool into a thick mess. I couldn't ever get them to melt down into a nice, thin, smooth, viscous consistency that is conducive for pouring. I'm just curious if anyone else out there has tried this before, and if you might have been successful.

Thanks,
Scott
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Re: Strike King Zulu lures

Postby dahlberg » Sun Jan 25, 2015 6:20 am

hi scott,
When it comes to TPR I've had about the same results as you; so far no good. We've been looking at some solutions to make the stuff from scratch rather than remelt, but it's not a simple process.
best
L
Larry Dahlberg
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Re: Strike King Zulu lures

Postby Fomen38 » Mon Jan 26, 2015 6:51 pm

Yeah- I figured it wasn't as easy as remelting Alumisol after the stuff heated in my microwave for about 5 minutes (on low) before it even started to show signs of melting. It got hot and gooey, but never very liquid. It also cools extremely fast. I didn't want to keep heating it in my microwave for fear that it would burn or catch fire. That's when I decided to pose the question on this forum. I thought that maybe someone on here knew something that I didn't. I wasn't sure what the material even was until you responded. Thermoplasic elastomer. There seem to be lots of suppliers, but from what I can gather from the small amount of research I did, the hot product can't be poured into a mold cavity like the Alumisol can. It needs to be injection molded. It also needs to be heated to about 450 degrees to make this process happen. That's probably why the "garage fabricator" of fishing lures doesn't make these. You need to have 1000's of $ worth of injection molding equipment, as well as CNC machined aluminum injection molds that can handle the high temps and pressures associated with the process. I have to tell you Larry- if there was some way to make a material similar in properties to the cured TPE, but pourable and moldable like the Alumisol, it would absolutely revolutionize the world of fishing with soft plastics. I'm sure you agree.

Thanks for your feedback Larry. And try to stay warm with that nasty blizzard moving through your neck of the woods. I'll try not to rub in the 75 degree weather we are having in San Diego right now :lol: .

Scott
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Re: Strike King Zulu lures

Postby dahlberg » Tue Jan 27, 2015 4:06 am

hi scott
you are pretty much on the right track. I appreciate you not rubbing in the weather thing, but I can take it.... mostly because I am headed to Costa Rica in a few hours...
best
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