Pearl Ex blending & HDPE sources

BoomerangInfo · #1 19th Dec 2011, 10:41 AM

Hey All,

I was wondering if anyone has tried blending Pearl Ex colours to come up with a new colour? I always assumed it would not work, as the mica particles are just held in suspension and do not dissolve, but I am now wondering if they are fine enough that a suitable mix of two colours may show up as the intermediate colour, or is it just a sparkly set of two different colours that shows up?

Secondly, I want to make some new 'cutting board' moulds, but as has been discussed before, the old fashion thick HDPE cutting boards no longer seem to exist, and those thin plastic ones are hard to build into a block shape. So, has anyone made any recently, and know of any readily obtainable sources? Last time I looked a couple years ago, there was a specialist supplier of HDPE sheeting in Brisbane, but that was largish quantities, and I think it may be hard getting to them before they close down for Christmas.

Thanks. Russell.

stevo81 · #2 19th Dec 2011, 02:42 PM

Hi Russell

Recently i have tried to make a different shade of blue usnig 2 different shades of blue pearl ex, havent turned any of it as yet but it looks to be one colour not 2 different colours mixed together.

There is a few different suppliers for thick cutting board but it is fairly expensive stuff. I'll send you a PM with some contact details for the suppliers my work uses for cutting boards, they also sell to the public.

Good luck with your colours

dj_pnevans · #3 20th Dec 2011, 11:39 AM

You can mix colour as I have done up to 3 colour in one mix. You can even mix paint with pearlex just try it.
David

BoomerangInfo · #4 20th Dec 2011, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dj_pnevans

You can mix colour as I have done up to 3 colour in one mix. You can even mix paint with pearlex just try it.
David

Yes I know you can put multiPle colors in, but I meant to blend two different colors into one new one.

Stevo81 says he's done it, so I'll give it a shot and see how it comes out.

Thanks. Russell.

dai sensei · #5 20th Dec 2011, 01:56 PM

Yes they can be combined to form new colours. All pearlex is the base (the raw material) plus pigment bonded to the base. The base gives you the swirling pattern, not necessarily the colour. So as you add them together the pigments blend like any other pigmented product. The base can be bought in bulk from the make-up industry, sorry I have forgotten the name, but that is where the pearlex product originated from.

I got some base a while back to try and used it combined with dyes and pigments to come up with my own colours. I was experimenting with flouro, glow in the dark, and heat sensitive pigments. That is also how I made my red pearlex, a colour not available comercially yet, although a new distributer in USA was working on it.

The biggest problem with the base is that it is not neutral, but a pale pearl white type colour, so mixing normal red pigments gives you pink. It is very close to the "Pearl White" pearlex you can buy.

Cheers

joe greiner · #6 21st Dec 2011, 03:34 AM

Around here, and possibly in Australia, 1/2 gallon and gallon jugs for milk and juice are made of HDPE, somewhat squarish. I cut out the flat sides and laminate them to thicker pieces, up to about 1/4" (6mm) so far. I place a stack between two 1/4" thick sheets of aluminum. The stack thickness is about 50% greater than the target. I place a stack of washers, about 10% thicker than the target, to allow for cooling shrinkage, in each corner. All this goes into the oven, with about 20 lbs (10 kg) of lead or bricks atop. Set the oven to 350F (~85C); cook for a few hours; then allow to cool for several hours. The Al sheets should be very clean. Cooking spray helps release.

UHMW is the poor man's Teflon, and HDPE is the poor man's UHMW. It makes an excellent bearing material for linear motion.

Although the color changes slightly, I've been assured (niece is a chemical engineer) that there's no significant change in chemistry.

Cheers,
Joe

BoomerangInfo · #7 21st Dec 2011, 08:46 AM

Thanks for the Pearl Ex info Neil.

Interesting you mention luminous. i picked up some luminous powder from Brnes yesterday to try out. It's kind of expensive, so it's more for trial to see how it works, and as a show off piece if it does work, as you'd have to charge a pretty penny to cover the cost.

I'm also sourcing some bulk Pearl Ex too, which I hope will arrivetoday, so I'll have plenty to experiment with and see what I can come up with.

Joe,

That's a rather clever use of milk bottles. So the heating bonds the individual pieces well enough that they don't de-laminate later?

We were in the Reject Shop yesterday (cheapy discount store here in Qld) and lo and behold, they actually had a couple of the old HDPE cutting boas about 10mm thick. i grabbed 2 of them @ $5 each.

We also use those large 200l blue barrels used industrially, cut up as tree surrounds in our garden. Hence I have a couple of the bases waiting to get 'recycled' and decided to try and cut one up and see if I can from a box from it. The walls are about 4mm thick. The two main problems are the fact it's not quite flat, so I'm not sure whether heat and/pressure will make it reform permanently (given you are using both, I guess it should be possible) and then the ever present problem of trying to get the edges held together in the box form, so it doesn't leak. I'm thinking silicone sealant may be the way to go.

Thanks. Russell.

NewLondon88 · #8 21st Dec 2011, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BoomerangInfo

I'm also sourcing some bulk Pearl Ex too, which I hope will arrivetoday, so I'll have plenty to experiment with and see what I can come up with.

try coastalscents.com and see if they ship to Australia. Grab a pound of the
Ultra-Silk. You can add pigment to it and get swirls of whatever color you like.
A pound of that stuff should last you till ... how old are you now?

and it'll be cheaper than buying those 1/64 oz. bottles..

BoomerangInfo · #9 21st Dec 2011, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewLondon88

try coastalscents.com and see if they ship to Australia. Grab a pound of the
Ultra-Silk. You can add pigment to it and get swirls of whatever color you like.
A pound of that stuff should last you till ... how old are you now?

and it'll be cheaper than buying those 1/64 oz. bottles..

Thanks Charlie.

I had heard of that place before, but hadn't checked it out much. I can get Pearl Ex at similar prices, but there is an interesting range to select from there that may be worth trying. The problem with mixing your own of course is repeatability, but it's great for one-offs

Russell.

dai sensei · #10 21st Dec 2011, 10:02 PM

I get mine from Coastal Scents, no problems with deliveries to here in Aus

. If you order the larger quantities, they come in plastic bags instead of jars, so even cheaper delivery. I use old Pearlex jars, vegemite jars etc to put them in.

You may have missed out already, but every now and then they have a 30% off sale, members of the IAP site normally give you a heads up. I try to order then

BoomerangInfo · #11 21st Dec 2011, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dai sensei

I get mine from Coastal Scents, no problems with deliveries to here in Aus

. If you order the larger quantities, they come in plastic bags instead of jars, so even cheaper delivery. I use old Pearlex jars, vegemite jars etc to put them in.

You may have missed out already, but every now and then they have a 30% off sale, members of the IAP site normally give you a heads up. I try to order then

OK cool, I'll keep an eye out. I'm about 2 years behind on IAP posts

My bulk Pearl Ex did arrive today, so I have plenty to play with for now, just in time for me to work on a large blank order thank goodness. Plus I'll be offering it by the gram on my web site in plastic bags, a lot cheaper than the small Pearl Ex bottles as soon as I can get the listings up.

Russell.

joe greiner · #12 22nd Dec 2011, 12:02 AM

Haven't had any problems with delamination, Russell. Seems to be hot enough to fully bond the components. In the piece with the masking-tape arrow (don't remember what the arrow was for - possibly "grain" direction if there is any), the melt drooped over the edge of the Al and captured an imprint of the oven rack.

Regarding curved to flat, plastic "memory" could defeat the effort. For correction, I'd build the stack with curved components in opposition to one another so that the memories counteract each other. Residual internal stress would eventually relax via creep. Tempered glass behaves the same way, but without relaxation.

The cooking temperature was a wild guess, could probably be hotter without drama. Also consider kitchen oven thermostats seem to be calibrated with a yardstick and a piece of chalk.

Use adequate ventilation to avoid hazard of outgassing.

A 25W soldering iron can be effective in welding most plastics including nylon and HDPE. I have a separate one dedicated to that.

Cheers,
Joe

BoomerangInfo · #13 22nd Dec 2011, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joe greiner

The cooking temperature was a wild guess, could probably be hotter without drama. Also consider kitchen oven thermostats seem to be calibrated with a yardstick and a piece of chalk.

A 25W soldering iron can be effective in welding most plastics including nylon and HDPE. I have a separate one dedicated to that.

Cheers,
Joe

Yeah thermostats are a joke aren't they? Trying to get the Pizza oven I use for my Polymer Clay at the right temperature is a joke.

Regarding the soldering iron, if that works for me, that could be a life saver. Does it not make a mess of the soldering iron though? Does it clean up OK once it cools down, or does the plastic not melt onto it?

You're a bundle of good ideas Joe, thanks a lot.

Russell.

joe greiner · #14 23rd Dec 2011, 12:14 AM

Of course it makes a mess. That's why I use a separate one for plastics. But it's a cheapo, that you might find as a prize in a box of cereal. Not really, but usually less than $10. It cleans up by scraping off the residual plastic.

It takes a deft touch to make a good puddle; re-work to smooth with the side of the shank. One of my mates recently repaired a nylon fluid reservoir for his antique Porsche this way - saved a lot of $$$.

Practice on some scrap.

Cheers,
Joe

BoomerangInfo · #15 23rd Dec 2011, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joe greiner

Of course it makes a mess. That's why I use a separate one for plastics. But it's a cheapo, that you might find as a prize in a box of cereal. Not really, but usually less than $10. It cleans up by scraping off the residual plastic.

It takes a deft touch to make a good puddle; re-work to smooth with the side of the shank. One of my mates recently repaired a nylon fluid reservoir for his antique Porsche this way - saved a lot of $$$.

Practice on some scrap.

Cheers,
Joe

Right. I have an SMD rework station, which has a hot air gun. I tried that yesterday, hoping it would be a lot cleaner than an iron, and while it was potentially working, it was ssslloooooowwwwww. I managed to get one corner of a scrap piece joined, but it was on teh very surface only, so it didn't take a lot to snap it off again. Also, the heated area swelled the plastic.

I might put this technique on the back burner until I've used up the last of the cutting boards that I can screw together first, and revisit when I'm desperate

Thanks. Russell.