My first Resin Casting

[KKingery]

OK - I just finished pouring my first casting for a pen blank. Somehow, I don't think it will turn out very well. How in the world do you get the swirls, etc???? After adding the color, it just seemed to turn into that color. Do you add the color right before you pour it into the mold and just swirl it a little? Help!

 

[KKingery]

Help - somebody? Surely someone can give me some insight!

 

[DCBluesman]

Ken--all I have to show for my "swirling" efforts are a lot of ugly blanks.

 

[btboone]

Ken, you might need to wait a bit longer in the process, and it takes using the pearlized filler to get the different chatoyant reflections. Swirlage will occur when the pearlized stuff can stay in the position you left it when it's near gelling stage. I had a nicely swirled blank, but mine didn't cure on the inside. I probably didn't mix in enough catalyst.

 

[PenWorks]

Ken, I pour the resin in my cup, stir in the catylst, then stir in the dyes, at least a couple of minutes of stirring for each, pour in my mold, stirring occassionally every 5 minutes watching for the right monement before it gels. Ussually takes 15-35 minutes depending on the mix. Then make my swirls and hope it stays. Just looking at the cast will give you NO CLUE how it will turn out. You have to turn it. The luster dyes make more of a swirl effect.

Look at page 5 of this thread, the casts look nothing like the final results.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2827&whichpage=5

Anthony

 

[KKingery]

Ah....yep, I don't think I did it quite right! Well, it's a learning experience just like anything else....Thanks Guys!

 

[timdaleiden]

Anthony,

You have shown some great examples of your castings, and provided some links to previous posts; why not take it to a higher level? The next time you do some castings, take some pix, and write up a tutorial, submit it to Jeff, and share it in a PDF??? The final outcome is really cool.

Originally posted by penworks
<br />Ken, I pour the resin in my cup, stir in the catylst, then stir in the dyes, at least a couple of minutes of stirring for each, pour in my mold, stirring occassionally every 5 minutes watching for the right monement before it gels. Ussually takes 15-35 minutes depending on the mix. Then make my swirls and hope it stays. Just looking at the cast will give you NO CLUE how it will turn out. You have to turn it. The luster dyes make more of a swirl effect.

Look at page 5 of this thread, the casts look nothing like the final results.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2827&whichpage=5

Anthony

 

[Gary]

Anthony, I second Tim's suggestion. Post it here as a tutorial...it could be your legacy![]

But then I would suggest you take it to a magazine like Woodturning Design. It would make a great article!

 

[PenWorks]

Thanks, but that article has allready been done. If you go to the Yahoo Penturners site, click FILES, open folder SPECIAL TECHNIQUES, go to PR Instructions by Jay Pickens, dated 12/6/03.

It is a short 2 page PDF file that explains the whole thing, with photos. That is the set of instructions I followed. Worked good right out of the gate.

What didn't work for me, was the great looking copper molds I made, they are in the trash, along with several other attempts to cast covered snake sking tubes. I got side tracked with the casting, but that was suppose to be a simple thing and not rocket science , but have failed at every attempt. Some things you can get to work and other things don't.

Good Luck.

Anthony