need advice for casting first blanks

[redfishsc]

Howdy all, the semester here at the Seminary is nearly over and the summer heat is on the way.

Time to start playin'.


My sis just got a new job as a rookie real-estate agent (something she'll kick hiney at). She wants me to make some pens of their company colors--- basically Corvette Yellow. I'll probably make her half a dozen or so (by the way, she has 28 sales reps in her division.......hmmmm maybe she'll be a good pen rep).

I have read the tutorials and I'll be casting them in 1/2 PVC pipe since I'll be making slimlines (could I use a smaller diameter since I drill with the collet chuck?).



My main Q's are these.

1) Is PR the most useful resin (cost effective/durable?). Where is the best place to get it? Seems like I remember Mesquite Man or Rifleman-- one of you dudes--- that made this killer cigar pen out of something other than PR resin.

2) For a nice hot yellow color with some pearl colors, where would you buy the colorants?


Also, if casting a mutli-color swirled blank (like red, white, blue) what's the best way to swirl the colors up?


Thanks for any advice!

Matt

 

[MesquiteMan]

Matt,

Yes, I do use a different resin than most. I use Alumilite Clear urethane resin. It is a fair amount more expensive but it is a 1:1 mix and I don't have to worry about how many drops of catalyst to use based on conditions. As a result, all of my cast are perfect and usable. I can cast a complete blank that is not at all brittle in 15 minutes due to the speed that Alumilite sets. Also, it does not have the offensive odor that PR has and is nearly impossible to shatter while turning.

I buy it 10 gallons at a time and will never use PR due to the overwhelming benefits of Alumilite. There are a lot of folks, however, that use PR. I assume mainly because it is less expensive per ounce. If you need cheap resin and don't mind having to fiddle with the number of drops and waiting on it to cure and don't mind the smell, then PR may just be right for you. It is not for me.

I can not really answer the rest of your questions since I really only do embedding of materials, mainly cactus skeleton.

 

[LostintheWoods]

I don't have any casting experience at all, but I painted for many more years than I care to recall--everything from Wayne street sweepers to Mickey Mouse phones (yes, really!) to computer cabinets and medical equipment to Andrew Antennas (the ones with the lightning bolt). Anyhow, in my experience, yellow did not respond favorably to pearl finishes. The pigment is so similar that the pearl is just about lost, and trying to use different colors of pearl just tends to change the color of your yellow. Don't know why that is, but it happens. Might be different with casting, since its a much thicker substrate. Good luck!