Thread: Aaaah! epoxy casting resin!

I've used Valspar Clear casting resin for these things, it works fine.

hi, i have used a product called 'ht9000' made by international. who make a wide range of marine/boating type paints and finishes. ht9000 is a 2-pack clear resin, which can be poured into cracks and holes, i havent tried using it in a syringe before, but i dont see why you couldnt , as long as you worked quickly enough.

Thanks WormWorm & Ironwood
I take it that this stuff is readily available say from yacht chandlery places?
Will check it out tomorrow. Where did you guys get your kit?
Ta A

If you're getting bubbles, hit the mix with a hot air gun. This will also lower the viscosity.

I'd suggest using a potting resin rather than a casting resin if you need less viscosity. I've used a product called POT551 from these guys, with excellent results (have even used it in a hypodermic without a needle) :

http://www.solidsolutions.com.au/vie...poxy%20potting

Cheers,


Justin.

G'day Andrew

I use a casting resin which does not crack when use in thick layers as some epoxy resins will do
You can order it online from here http://www.solidsolutions.com.au/ It is crystal clear and flows into fine fissures and holes really well
The stuff is called D Epoxy Cast 303 Code number is ER303CAS-03000
A trick to use, is to get a heat gun and warm the fissures and holes in the timber before pouring the resin. This will make any air bubbles rise to the surface and pop
Also make sure that any holes or cracks are sealed on the bottom or the resins will run straight out and end up on the floor:mad: which is a bugger to get off
When mixing the resin use a broad paddle and mix it slowly so that you keep the air bubbles to a minimum

Cheers DJ

Are you sure it was a caasting resin? Sounds more like epoxy glue, or perhaps it had a filler in it to thicken it.
I've used Araldite M which is quite liquid.
Djstimber is quite correct about it running out through the smallest crack. I seal them with scrap sealed on with hot melt glue. You can also build up a dam with hot melt, and overfill the voids. This gives an allowance for slight shrinkage. You can hit the resin with a hot air gun after filling to bring any air bubbles out.

Thanks DJS & Alex5
sounds like the job
thanks Andrew

Hey Justin
tell me, this POT551 from SS, did you have any problems drawing up into a syringe at say room temperature?
SS have said this is the go though I am just a bit cautious about viscosity.
Any assistance greatly appreciated A

DJSTimber suggested heating the cracks & such with a hot air gun prior to pouring the resin to get the air bubbles to the surface. Sounds like a great idea with the exception that I was going to seal the holes & cracks from underneath with duct tape or similar.
You can imagine what would happen, the tape would just go eeerrrr and wilt and drop.
You guys got any good ideas to what would be an optional choice to plugging from below. (ply cover in vasoline?)
It is also imprtant that when looking through the fissures vertically that one can see transparency right through so using foam or some other form of stopping is not really the answer.
Please realise youre dealing with an amateur here!
Any thoughts greatly appreciated

Hey Yabbyman,

No problems drawing into the syringe. Note that I didn't use a needle on the end of it - just sucked it up through the nozzle part. I guess you'd call the syringes medium size - from memory about 15mm in diameter and about 50mm long, so the bore on the nozzle was not huge but not tiny either. If you have reasonably large holes to fill you can just pour directly from your mixing cup/pot/whatever.

Don't get too hung up on the viscosity, because it has a downside too, being that if it's too thin it'll settle down into the hole you're filling and not dry flush with or proud of the surface. With the POT 551 I found that it helps to sometimes build a small dam around the surface, say with a bit of blu-tack. Either that or top up the hole again after your initial fill.

Remember that the epoxy starts to cure from the moment you mix parts A and B. At a point in time it will become too viscous to work with (especially to draw it up in a syringe).

Re. your concerns about heat. I agree with regards to heating up the timber beforehand, but if you're hitting the epoxy after it's poured to get bubbles out don't worry, because a short burst of low speed hot air will do the job. You could also press something up underneath against the tape such as a lump of wood or metal, this will act as a heatsink and prevent the tape from heating up. Maybe a layer of tape, then a small panel taped over the tape ?

I'm not sure how much the POT551 is affected by temperature, but I give it 48 hours plus to harden before working it with tools etc. I find that scrapers work best to take off the bulk of the material, then the drum sander or the orbital to finish off.

Cheers,


Justin.

P.S stay right away from using vaseline or any kind of petroleum based oil product on your timber. It'll seep into the grain of your workpiece and stuff up your finish. Unless your finish is the same petroleum based oil finish !

G'day Yabbyman

I use old ice cream containers cut up for the bigger holes or a heavy thick plastic bag backed by a board clamped on, if the plastic is melting you are putting to much heat into the timber
For the small holes I use glass or carpet joining tape which is avaible from most hardware stores, it sticks well and takes the heat from the heatgun and resin well
Most other tapes won't stick when the heat from the resin goes off
Don't use a hairdryer on the resin as the air velocity is higher than a heatgun

Cheers DJ

Thanks Guys
I think that pretty well sorts out my concerns.
Like the idea of the carpet tape. thanks.
Just got to wait now for the mail order resin and away we go!
Thanks again A