CASTING ACRYLIC

[oddcoach]

Hi all
Does anybody have any sources of supply for acrylic resin. I want to try casting some parts.
the part needs to be clear when I'm done. Also impact resistant
Thanks in advance
John

[jseiler]

Dunno if this would work for you, but I've ordered from them, and they are pretty nice people. Doing a search here as well turns up quite a few people who have also found them good.

www.smoothon.com (http://www.smoothon.com)

[davidallen]

Smoothon is good so is McMaster Carr.

If they have what you want, Smoothon is cheaper.

McMaster has a wider selection but if you only need a pint or some special formula they may be a better choice.

[Brady Watson]

John,
Doing bubble-free clear castings is a challenge. The recommended method involves placing the mold & resin in a pressure chamber at @ 70 PSI. This forces the bubbles into suspension much like a soda in a bottle. Some resins (like polyester) give relatively bubble-free castings at the expense of having a sticky face that needs to be post cured in an oven. Any way you slice it, bubble-free clear castings are no walk in the park. The majority of the clear resins are seriously toxic as well. Do your research...

-B

[mthomas]

Brady - are you sure about the pressure comment? I thought outgassing chambers were negative pressure (under vacuum) to aid in releasing bubbles.

John - a possible alternative to acrylic would be a very clear, low viscosity epoxy. The advantage over any of the ester resins is less fumes, less toxic, etc. Contact John Greer at www.jgreer.com (http://www.jgreer.com) and see if his Clear Casting Resin would be suitable for your application. John is one of the most knowledgeable in the business, and provides wonderful customer service even on the smallest of orders.

[jhicks]

We have been working with Envirotek Lite epoxy.
http://www.eti-usa.com/
Its used for crafts and bar top finishes. not for outdoor use and not for single pours thicker than 1/8" per layer. But one evacuates the bubbles with a propane torch which works great.
They also have other resins for outdoor applications
tech support at Enviro tek is Melissa 707-443-9323 and she also tells they have colors, other casting resins, and referred me to a company called Jaquard has casting resin additives called PEARL X plus additives for some pretty neat finishes.
http://www.jacquardproducts.com/support/projects/proj0013/

[Brady Watson]

Michael,
Yes. 100% sure about the pressure. Read the tech docs on clear resin casting.

Jerry,
That stuff is great for thinner castings, but all epoxies cure by exotherm which will greatly distort in any thickness worth casting...which is bound to be over 1/8" thick.

If somebody's actually cast a bubble-free clear casting over 3 or 4" thick, I'd like to hear their success story & how they did it. If it's a small part you can put it in a paint pot to pressurize it...if your model and mold are larger than a paint pot...then what?

-B

[oddcoach]

thanks to all. i'll let you know how i make out
john

[mthomas]

Ahh, ok Brady now I know what you were referring to - you're talking about Pressure Casting. I was referring to Vacuum Degassing. Both have their place - choose based on your equipment at hand, requirements, etc.

The following references a doc that may be useful: http://www.lacotech.com/DegassingEpoxyPolyurethane.pdf

[Brady Watson]

Michael,
You were not off base by mentioning vacuum degassing. Many mold rubbers and resins benefit from the process...however it has been found that it has little affect on clear casting resins. There's a good site on the web with a pictoral comparison as it relates to clear casting that I just stumbled upon a week or 2 ago...now I just need to find it!

-B

[spacecrazy]

Hello,

I'm looking for someone in the LA/Orange County area to do some molds and embedding of material in a clear resin for me. I have templates of the molds I want made and I have some of the resin material, but I just don't have the time to do it.

Thanks, Ray 714-625-1029

[carl_huff]

What about limits on how thick each pour can be? Is there any resin (whether colored or clear) that allows you to pour an inch thickness at a time? What do you do if you are looking to cast an item 4 by 6 inches?