Berkley Dough Bait Mold; Includes 2 Different Sizes, Lightweight Yet Durable Soft Plastic Composition, Make Perfect Bait Balls and Avoid Contamination

Not scared to get my hands dirty, but this product allows you to get uniform results with your powerbait. I use a size 16 treble and this mold allows me to get a well-packed "pellet" around the hook that won't fall off during casting, reeling back in, or if a trout decides to "hit" before chowing down. This product allows me to hit that sweet spot in buoyancy so I'm not sitting on the bottom or floating at the top of the water. Easy to use, don't overthink it. Fill half the mold (side with the slit), lay your hook in, slightly over-fill the other side of the mold, and press sides together. The excess bait will squeeze out and your usually left with a perfectly formed ball ready for casting. Yes, sometimes your hook will need re-positioning or it won't be perfectly covered, but it takes 5 seconds to redo the process. Honestly, I catch just as many fish but I waste a lot less powerbait because it doesn't fall off and I don't over apply anymore.

I initially got this item thinking it would help with reducing the amount used and to keep my hands clean. while it does help with creating a consistent sized bait ball, I found that the non-stick surface was really a double-edge sword. It allowed for easy release but sometimes the bail ball would slide out and hit the ground picking up dirt...the deeper into the Berkley trout powerbait jar I went the more this seemed to happen. I've only used this on one trip and I'm sure there has to be a knack to get this thing working better, so I intent to figure it out on future trips. I did find that the hit 'n runs some of the trout attempted did not dislodge the formed bait ball where on the hand-formed balls they would something pop apart at the seams that occur in the hand-forming process. Overall, a nice idea that in theory should help to conserve the powerbait and reduce fish hit 'n runs that knock the bait loose. For the price it's really hard to not justify getting one to just try out as it costs less than a lot of jigs or a package of treble hooks. I'm sure with more practice it will be a useful tool in my tackle box.

I used this with power bait to fish for stocked rainbow trout. This helped keep my hands clean and dry when it was only 50-55 degrees out. I found I could get the power bait tight on the hook using less dough than if I used my hands. Only reason I am not giving it 5 stars is that I wish this came with a mold that would fit a size 6 octopus circle hook for slip bobber fishing in deep lakes. But this works well for size 8 - 12 hooks. Below is a picture of a trout I caused with the help of this mold.

Easily mold and install dough balls to hooks

It does make a good uniform ball but it sucks at keeping it on the hook. I tried many ways of using it and I was hoping the compression would make a tight, tight, ball that would float better and also fuse both halves and keep it on the hook better but it doesnt. Where the two halves join there is a fine separation regardless of how much you fill both halves on the tool and how hard you press. With hard casts the bait will come flying off into two pieces. I dont really care for my hands being dirty as I roll a small amount in my palms and then make a tight ball to put on the hook and then dip it in the water for ~10 seconds, and then let it "dry" outside the water for about a minute and it solidifies very well onto the hook. I can cast a good 75 yards and be confident my bait is still on the hook, reel it back in and recast if needed as long as theres no seaweed to rip it off the hook. Doing that same exact method with the tool, I see my bait fly into two halves on hard casts before it hits the water lol. It was roughly 2 bucks and now there charging 6 bucks so take my advice when I say hard pass. Making a ball with your hands and putting it on the hook takes 20 seconds and with the tool I was spending a good minute packing both sides, pressing it into the ball, and cleaning up excess.

I know these molds seem like something so very simple, but they really do work. Set of two, one for size 12 trebles and under and one for size 16 and under. You basically set the shank of your hook on one side of the mold, (there is a V-notch where that goes) then scoop the trout dough with the other side until you have enough to make a ball. You then press it all together, remove the excess and slowly roll out your ball of trout dough from the mold with a hook inside. If you had enough of a gap to not make a full ball, add a bit more dough and re-press. There is no super secret here, you just need enough dough on your hook to float it off the bottom. Many people don't put enough on so their dough/hook stay on the bottom. These make sure you have enough to float and also minimize your handling of the dough. They're cheap, they work, if you fish with trout dough bait, I recommend picking up a set.

Works great on power bait dough

Just barely bought this, haven't used it in the field yet... but tried it at home and think I'm gonna like it! HATE getting trout bait under my nails (yeah I'm a girly girl who loves to fish!) where it usually hardens and need a jackhammer to get it out...this mold makes just the right size ball to disguise your hook, and is easier to use than the last trout mold I bought which was the tube shape you twist down into the bait to get a chunk. Can't wait to use this at the lake!

Convenient, easy to use, no more mess and smell in your fingers'

Cut down on mess. Worked even with single hook. Caught fish with bait moulded by it first go! Avoided lots of mess.

great delivered on time 5/5

Works great very easy to use well worth it it's a must have for power baits

makes moulding of bait onto hook a thing of the past, also stays on hook longer.