
Today we've got a revolutionary idea that I haven't found anyone else on YouTube doing yet! I want to test to see if 3D printed fishing lure molds are functional or even better than those made out of aluminum. I used something called Siraya Tech Sculpt Resin, which has high-temperature tolerance of nearly 380 degrees! The alternatives are much closer to 350 degrees or less, so under a certain amount of pressure, the material will bend or start to deform.
I have never poured this mold before, I downloaded this (did not create it) and will try about 3 or 4 different trials. I will link another video about the printing and creation of the molds once it is finished, and for your reference, I am relatively new to working with resin likes this. Although aluminum is extremely durable, the main downside is going to be cost ($60-300 for different varieties or custom lures).
For this hollow mold using the resin, it was less than $4.00 and took around 3 and a half hours in total using my Elegoo Saturn. When I printed it solid, it increased to $7.00 on a midsize 3D printer. I may have overcooked it and lost some dimensional accuracy but the overall quality is what I'm looking for here.
After giving it time to cool off post-microwaving, it needs to dissipate the heat. I put roughly 350-degree plastic on the inside, so the plastic needs a while to solidify and then de-mold. The mold was cool at first and has now started to heat up, though I might not have waited long enough.
The detail of my mold is pretty fantastic, though fairly soft after 6-8 minutes or less. I think it would be best to reclamp the mold because it did not warp as much as I thought, as it is hollow with air in the middle. The solid resin as it cured warped more than the current resin walls, and I'll let this one wait for 10 minutes.
Immediately I noticed the hollow mold dissipated heat more, but the molds are much more stuck together. This one is less shiny, including sand and debris, but the color is exactly how I wanted it. My final trial has incredible detail, and I'm very surprised how well they all came out for being my first attempts at this.
Look out for future prints that I am planning on designing, and as always please like and subscribe to the channel!