Thread: Epoxy resin finish, the how to

Originally Posted by vgod

personally, i think a high tech Pepsi can works better, but i am biased.

vgod

Just don’t use a Styrofoam cup or paper. I did not put much thought into my mixing vessel the first time I used epoxy so I just used a Styrofoam cup. Epoxy creates heat as it cures, and in sufficient quantity it produces a lot of heat. My first batch liquefied the cup I was mixing it in. I still have a hard and shiny pool on the garage floor 3 years later.

I have been under the weather for a couple of weeks, just can shake this bug. So I have not done much else. I have been trying to polish some blades to put in some scales with mixed results. A metal polisher I am not.

At any rate. I went looking for more epoxy to do a dozen scales. The hardwood store had it in pint quart and gallon jugs. Unfortunately, it was adhesive epoxy. So I thought I would mention this tidbit. If you want to try epoxy, you cannot use adhesive epoxy meant to glue stuff together. It sets way to fast and most do not dry clear. You need furniture finish epoxy, bar top finish, table top finish, finish glaze coat epoxy etc… Not all epoxy is created equal. This is a very slow setting epoxy which gives the air bubbles time to rise out and the resin to level out before it cures. I have to do more looking to find a fresh supply. What I had was 3 years old and the resin was starting to granulate. Once I have a fresh batch I plan on making a big production run and do at least a dozen different types.

I am also thinking of trying an inlay. I have been snapping up WH Morley clover brand razors. Once I get a dozen I thought of trying the nice red bloodwood with a green 4-leaf clover inlay in the scales, if I can find something that is the correct size and tasteful. Get that Irish spin working, but that is what I get for marrying a red head green eyed Reilly many moons ago.

Pins are what concern me. I have never pinned before but kilowattkid has so I will be relying on him for guidance. I have seen the Dovo pin kits and have mixed feelings about them. They will work, but something a little nicer would be nice. I also need to cut some wedges for the scales, not sure how thick or what angle to cut them either. Making the scales is the easy part.

Anyone have any recommendations, and I know there are pinning threads out there, I just need to search.

Try AC Moore they had it in up to 1/2 gallon sizes!

Subscribing to this thread!

Thanks for the info Dave. I am diving into my first sets of scales soon and I have no idea what I'm am doing yet. I have less of a clue on getting pins and washers so I'd be interested in where you find the hardware.

v/r

Allen

I got a famowood crystal clear glazecoat kit from lowes. one pint each of hardener and resin for $20.

http://www.eclecticproducts.com/GlazeCoat.htm

That is what I used. After a few years the resin started to crystallize which is bad so I tossed the last few ounces. But it has held up on my kitchen table nicely over the past few years. It should stand up to the light touch use a razor will get.

Originally Posted by mongrull006

I got a famowood crystal clear glazecoat kit from lowes. one pint each of hardener and resin for $20.

http://www.eclecticproducts.com/GlazeCoat.htm

I've also subscribed to this thread!

I've spent rather more time this morning than I should have looking into where these resins can be sourced in the UK and I've found that Envirotex Lite and Crystal Sheen, apparently suitable two-part resins, can be bought here: http://www.clarke-coatings.co.uk/envirotex.html

Rustins also do a Plastic Coating which a lot of people use for this sort of thing, although I came across someone saying that it's not an epoxy one (dunno if that's right or not), which is probably more commonly available (it seems to be popular with people who are putting finishes on musical instruments).

I'm going to be giving this a shot tomorrow...

One more question: Are you able to clean out and reuse those measuring cups, or do you have to get new ones for each pour? I got a couple of little glass shot-glass measures on the hope that I could somehow clean and reuse them...

Josh

Originally Posted by KingOfMalkier

I have an idea that may help if you don't have a drill press and are worried about the bit dancing around. DISCLAIMER: I most certainly have not tried this, it's just an idea.

Use a small drill bit and drill the holes before applying the epoxy. After you've applied the epoxy use a toothpick to remove the epoxy from the small hole before it dries. When you're ready to drill after drying, you'll have a pilot hole. I don't know how this would work in practice but it was just something that popped into my head while I was reading.

Or just use an awl to mark the position of the holes. It will dimple the epoxy just enough to help the drill bit bite where you want it to.

OK, so I'm impatient. I went ahead and gave it a shot on some nice canarywood scales, and it looks really good. I didn't have the scales level enough, so I wound up using six teaspoons of epoxy for one set.

The glass jars cleaned up OK with just dish detergent.

The long cure time is kind of a pain with this finish, but if it saves a lot of time messing with sanding and stuff, it'll totally be worth it.

I pre-drilled the pin holes, as I always do, and it looks like the epoxy is dripping through them. They might clear on their own; we'll see.

Josh