Problems casting with Blue pigment

[ToddMR]

So here is a picture of a blue blank I was working on this morning that I had cast. I used Blue pearl-ex powder. Is blue one of the more transparent colors when cast? The tube was painted blue, but alot of it came off when inserting the tube. It was my stupidity trying to continue on, however there is A LOT of clear areas in this. I wanted to get input. Should I use oil paint or some other kind of blue dye that will work better? The tube painting I know, but the thing that worries me is how much brass can be seen which means, that much painted tube would be seen. Input is very much appreciated on this one. I stir the heck out of the powders when I do them and this is the only color I am having this issue on.

Thanks!

 

[glycerine]

So here is a picture of a blue blank I was working on this morning that I had cast. I used Blue pearl-ex powder. Is blue one of the more transparent colors when cast? The tube was painted blue, but alot of it came off when inserting the tube. It was my stupidity trying to continue on, however there is A LOT of clear areas in this. I wanted to get input. Should I use oil paint or some other kind of blue dye that will work better? The tube painting I know, but the thing that worries me is how much brass can be seen which means, that much painted tube would be seen. Input is very much appreciated on this one. I stir the heck out of the powders when I do them and this is the only color I am having this issue on.

Thanks!

View attachment 58598

Did you use the translucent dyes as well as the pigment powder? I usually use both and use plenty of powder!

 

[ToddMR]

No, I have just been using the pigment powders. I don't have any liquid dyes, just some oil paints. Maybe that's it, me not using enough powders. I only do 2 1oz cups when pouring. For blue I normally do 1 1/2 ozs total and the 1oz of a secondary color. I didn't know if adding black or some other more opaque color would help.

 

[Brooks803]

definitely need to add more powder. Adding black can help, but it'll darken the blue considerably. Some powders are more translucent too. I don't know much about all the pearlX colors, I've only used 2 or 3 of them.

 

[BSea]

Did you reverse paint the blank? When I have a blank that is somewhat transparent, I paint the tube, the inside of the blank, and tint the epoxy. That still doesn't guarantee that you won't get some brass showing, but it will improve your chances.

 

[ToddMR]

Yea I had but my concern after the paint came off the tube was all the clear areas in the cast. Think I am going to try adding more pigment this time. Thanks everyone.

 

[sbell111]

1. Add more pigment
2. Get some dyes
3. test fit your tubes to see if they are going to go into the blank without scraping the paint off.

 

[Craftdiggity]

That looks to me like it just wasn't mixed all the way. Even if you don't use enough powder it should be the same all the way through. The only time something like that happened to me, it was because I hadn't mixed the powder all the way through. I also paint the inside of the blank rather than the tube and I am real careful sliding the tube in.

 

[DurocShark]

Not enough powder. You'll get the hang of what it should look like before you add the catalyst.

I use popsicle sticks to mix (small ones for mixing in dixie cups, tongue depressors for my big bowls) and test the look of a new color by pulling the stick out of the PR and checking what it looks like against the wood when a bunch has dripped off. The thin layer left on the stick is pretty thin, so you get an idea of what it would look like on a El Grande cap, or other really thin walled kit.

I'm a fan of reverse painting the holes instead of painting the tubes. The paint seems to adhere better. Remember, though, that you need to either bake the paint or let it set for at least 24 hours to get a full cure of most enamels. If it's not cured, you'll end up with wrinkles, peeling, and so on, after gluing the tube in. CA glue is harder on paint than epoxy. I prefer epoxy primarily for that reason. They both take about as long to cure anyway...

 

[jason_r]

A couple other thoughts:

1) Adding pigment will increase opacity, but will (in general) decrease chatoyance.

2) Check out my resin color library . Even if your exact pigment isn't there, the information on amounts to add should help. As always, new submissions are welcome.

3) I put my pigments into the resin and then put the cup into an ultrasonic cleaner for several minutes (before adding catalyst). This does an incredible job of breaking up clumps of pigment and really improves not only the consistency of the color but I believe lets me use less pigment.

For example if I'm doing black, when I first mix it and then pull out the stick to check, I can see the wood between blobs of color. After a couple minutes in the ultrasonic, the stick just comes out with a smooth sheen of black on it. Just make sure you scrape down in the corners as the vibration also encourages settling.