The goal of this project was to create a prototype of a 12“ paddle tail swim bait and a mold for small production runs. I usually work in parametric modeling, so this was an experience in surface modeling. I worked with Aaron to translate his idea into a suitable cad model. The goal of this mold was to be used as both a pour and an injection mold for plastisol.

To create the mold, I took the body and created a second surface around it that represented the minimum material thickness suggested by the manufacturer. I created a body around this outer surface to create a shell. I make the shell on my QIDI X-Max 3 and printed the bait as a plug on my Elegoo Saturn 3 Ultra. After attaching a few pieces of copper wire to the plug to provide air vents and a clear coat to prevent the resin from inhibiting the cure of the silicone, I assembled the shell and the plug into the initial mold. Silicone was mixed, degassed, and poured into the initial mold.

After removing the plug, we were left with a skin mold with an added plastic shell for rigidity and sealing. The plastisol is melted and poured into the silicone mold to create the final bait.

• breather vents must be sized based on the viscosity of the casting medium
• it is easier to design a sealing surface in the shell than to seal a mold after the fact
• weight based measurement is superior to volume based measurement