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  1. #16
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    Hi Brett,
    All requirements can be met with West System. resin 105, and fast hardener H205. (there is also a slower hardener if you prefer)
    For a 4.8 litre pack its $135.20 trade.
    This is a very fluid grade so has very good penetration.
    For shallow filling, thicken it with wood flour / microballs, also sold by west system outlets.

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  3. #17
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    Oct 2016
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    Western Victoria
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    AMAZON AU Has an Epoxy + Hardener 50/50 mix.!! "ARTIST RESIN" ABOUT $35 +?? Shipping
    Mix with coffee grounds, sawdust, dyed a pretty colour or not. If timber Not dry, find a suitable
    sized bag, Plastic of course, tip a can of Beer over the timber & seal the bag, Spalting may be
    the end result.!! Keep in a warm environment.!!

  4. #18
    FenceFurniture's Avatar
    FenceFurniture is offline The prize lies beneath - hidden in full view
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    Quote Originally Posted by leecab007 View Post
    All requirements can be met with West System. resin 105, and fast hardener H205. (there is also a slower hardener if you prefer)
    For a 4.8 litre pack its $135.20 trade.
    This is a very fluid grade so has very good penetration.
    For shallow filling, thicken it with wood flour / microballs, also sold by west system outlets.
    I very, very nearly pulled the trigger on West 105 + 206 (slower). For a little less money I purchased yesterday the Platinum 750ml kit. which was $35.60 posted. Will be using it just as soon as it arrives, and will report back.

    However, a question for you Lee, do you use the 301 (?) dispenser plungers with your West epoxy? If so, do you find that they can be left uncapped at the discharge end, and for how long before they get a bit manky? It seems to me that if there is a cap that can be put over it then the contents should be fine for a good long while.
    Regards, FenceFurniture

    COLT DRILLS GROUP BUY
    Jan-Feb 2019 Click to send me an email

  5. #19
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    western australia South West
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    887

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    I use the West System with the fast hardener , you have to be quick. It has a long shelf life , for ongoing projects for small areas transfer to smaller containers and use small syringes to get accurate measurements .

  6. #20
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    Feb 2003
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    back in Alberta for a while
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    Hi Brett

    I've been using the SystemTHREE general purpose epoxy -- which is equivalent to West systems.
    There 3 grades of hardener -- fast, medium and slow -- which roughly correspond to the temperature of your working environment or how quickly you want the mix to "go off".

    This stuff can be thickened with wood flour or synthetic thickeners, tinted with powdered earth pigments or vibrant colours, or with liquid colours.
    The mixing ratio is 1:2 (volume) or 100:44 (by mass).
    The mixing tolerance on the ratios is 10%.
    For small volumes (less than about 40 ml) I use a set of kitchen scales accurate to 0.1 g and weigh the components. For very small volumes (< about 15 ml) I decant the A and B components into large syringes to make dispensing small quantities easier.
    From memory the stuff costs less than $50 CAD per litre if I buy it in 4 litre (1 US gal) containers.
    regards from Alberta, Canada

    ian

  7. #21
    Join Date
    Oct 2017
    Location
    Sydney
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    I have used Bote-Cote which is 2:1 mix.

    https://boatcraft.com.au/Shop/index....510de0eb59cbf4

  8. #22
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    Aug 2012
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    central coast nsw.
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    75
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    I always use the dispensing pumps. They ensure accuracy, save time and are very convenient. No need to cap the spout, you don't get any build up there at all. As the pumps work only at a 5 : 1 ratio, you might be able to use them with one of the platinum's products, as I think they have a 5 : 1 formulae also.

  9. #23
    Join Date
    Feb 2015
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    Strathalbyn South Australia
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    Quote Originally Posted by GEEBEAN View Post
    AMAZON AU Has an Epoxy + Hardener 50/50 mix.!! "ARTIST RESIN" ABOUT $35 +?? Shipping
    Mix with coffee grounds, sawdust, dyed a pretty colour or not. If timber Not dry, find a suitable
    sized bag, Plastic of course, tip a can of Beer over the timber & seal the bag, Spalting may be
    the end result.!! Keep in a warm environment.!!
    My partner bought some of this for jewellery, it goes yellow and stays in a slightly soft state, I could not get it to polish up at all.

    I use west systems, it’s great for light fills and is not intended to be used for deep fills (gets hot as it exothems and bubbles) tint it with coffee, wood dust, alcoholic inks or powders. A mate of mine recommended it years ago, he was a boatman at a college and used it all the time (he forgets a lot of things now, not sure the exposure to epoxy has helped)

  10. #24
    crowie's Avatar
    crowie is offline Life's Good, Enjoy each new day & try to encourage
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    Quote Originally Posted by pach View Post
    I have used Bote-Cote which is 2:1 mix.

    https://boatcraft.com.au/Shop/index....510de0eb59cbf4
    This company has been at the woodwork show for past few years....seems okay!

    The other person to ask is Neil - aka dia-sensei who's a bit of guru on casting and resins....

    https://www.woodworkforums.com/members/6155-dai-sensei

  11. #25
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
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    Glen Innes, NSW
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    60
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    West systems make a more liquid epoxy, or Techniglue make a slightly thicker one. Both can have a powder they sell to bulk up or be tinted various colours. Workability and curing time depend on glue: hardener mix ratio. These are both good products.

  12. #26
    Join Date
    May 2018
    Location
    Adelaide, South Australia
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    Hi, I'm currently filling two redgum slabs which we will eventually put through a woodwizz (or something similar) and join to make a tabletop. We're using Megapoxy 132, which is proving very good. It's sold by Resimax in Adelaide, but there are distributors throughout Australia. It costs about $28/L in 4.5 litre lots, or $21/L in 15 litre lots, and it comes in smaller and larger sizes. It's a 2:1 mix. I haven't done this sort of thing before, so can't make any comparisons. But it flows well, sets crystal clear, and gives a strong bond (I tested it on a 70mm thick piece of redgum with a crack right through it, and then couldn't break the bond with a series of blows with a small sledge hammer). I'm very happy with the results we're getting.

  13. #27
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    Apr 2005
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    Sorry FF I'm on the road and don't check these forums often.

    If you are just filling small cracks and in a hurry then just use the cheapest 2 part epoxy glue mixed with oxides/coffee/sawdust. I get mine from the $2 shop (or similar) at $3-$5 a twin tube. You should leave it at least a few days even a week before sanding to ensure it is hard.

    For larger cracks any of the casting epoxies will be fine. Most are fine for up to 20mm cracks, but make sure you follow the instructions as to ratios of the resin/hardner. Add any powder type colourant or a resin pigment before mixing really well (at least 1min) and leave in mixing cup until is starts to warm (~10min to 0.5hr that also thins it) to ensure reaction has started before pouring. Leave to set for 24hrs (preferable longer) before sanding.

    For big cracks/voids etc use a low exotherm casting epoxy, or cast in max 20mm layers, to ensure the resin does not boil (it doesn't actually boil just bubbles are drawn out of the wood due to high heat).

    Not all casting epoxies are the same. I use Megapoxy HX for all my stuff but it only comes in 4litre or 20litre kits and is a softer epoxy (still hard) that does not polish to a high gloss. It only polishes to a satin and if you want a high gloss it must be coated with something (I use car top coat clear lacquer that is also UV resistant). There are other casting epoxies around that work well, sometimes very hard so they can be polished easily, but then they are more brittle (for woodturning etc) and can crack from heat if cast too thick.

    As for epoxies off the net from Ebay or similar, I stay well clear. Sometimes they are fine, other times they are old stock near their shelf life, or just crap brand (there are many unhappy customers on the net). Polyester Resin (from hardwares etc, resin plus catalyst) it works but tends to shrink and doesn't stick as well, so often multiple casts are necessary. It is the cheapest though, as long as you buy it from a resin supplier and not the hardware, at around the $8-10/litre.

    If you want to cast it, sand it and finish it the same day, then use a Polyurethane resin. Even the slow set goes off in 0.5 hour (max, often you have only seconds once mixed) and you can work it within an hour. Be prepared for big costs though, starting at around the $80/litre mark for clear and slightly less for stuff that sets white.


    Quote Originally Posted by jbffau View Post
    Hi, I'm currently filling two redgum slabs which we will eventually put through a woodwizz (or something similar) and join to make a tabletop. We're using Megapoxy 132, which is proving very good. It's sold by Resimax in Adelaide, but there are distributors throughout Australia. It costs about $28/L in 4.5 litre lots, or $21/L in 15 litre lots, and it comes in smaller and larger sizes. It's a 2:1 mix. I haven't done this sort of thing before, so can't make any comparisons. But it flows well, sets crystal clear, and gives a strong bond (I tested it on a 70mm thick piece of redgum with a crack right through it, and then couldn't break the bond with a series of blows with a small sledge hammer). I'm very happy with the results we're getting.
    Megapoxy make quite a few epoxies but the best for casting river tables is the HX, as it is a clear ultra thin low exotherm epoxy and designed to cast with stuff not necessarily completely dry (e.g. wood unless you oven dry it). Even though a low exotherm epoxy I still coat the edges to be cast with a coating of the epoxy first (and let set) to ensure any heat does not draw out any additional bubbles from the timber. The 123 being a 1:2 mix will be harder and polish better but be careful of exothermic reactions and not cast too thick.
    Neil
    ____________________________________________
    Every day presents an opportunity to learn something new

  14. #28
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    Currumbin Valley, Qld
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    Hi Brett, try Techniglue with some dye if needed. Works a treat!

    Cheers David

  15. #29
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    May 2018
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    Adelaide, South Australia
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    Thanks Neil, I should have mentioned we've only put the epoxy in in layers of 10-15 mm at a time. Occasional bubbles have responded well to a heat gun.
    Cheers,
    John

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