Alumilite Delaminating

[stevenpetry]

So, recently picked up a pressure/vacuum pot to start casting. My current project, which prompted the purchase, is a bunch of decal pens for our SWAT team. I had been using precast carbon blanks, turning them down, and then a good layer of CA. The problem there was the water slide decals were not giving consistent results, and the CA finish makes for some incredible room for error with as many layers as I was adding to build the blank back up. So I decided to try to recast them in alumilite and use labels instead of water slide decals.

The labels looked great, and we're much easier to deal with than the decals were. After application to the blank, I hit them with a few thin coats of CA to seal them and then cast them in alumilite. They were in the pot at 40 psi for an hour and came out looking spectacular. I let them sit for a day, but when I checked them I noticed the alumilite was delaminating across the whole blank, mostly from the labels though. What worse is I can flex the blank a bit and watch the delaminating spread.

So what's going on here? Should I ditch the precast blanks and use bare carbon to make my own blank? Also, one of these casts is over an acrylic blank and it's doing the same. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[its_virgil]

Alumilite is not the best choice for casting labels, snake skin or other similar materials stuck onto the tube. In fact, you have learned it doesn't work. Polyester resin is the way to go for clear casting tubes with labels, skins or other things on the tubes. There was a similar thread in the last few days or so. Also, alumilite does not bond to other materials when casting over acrylic blanks as you mentioned.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

So, recently picked up a pressure/vacuum pot to start casting. My current project, which prompted the purchase, is a bunch of decal pens for our SWAT team. I had been using precast carbon blanks, turning them down, and then a good layer of CA. The problem there was the water slide decals were not giving consistent results, and the CA finish makes for some incredible room for error with as many layers as I was adding to build the blank back up. So I decided to try to recast them in alumilite and use labels instead of water slide decals.

The labels looked great, and we're much easier to deal with than the decals were. After application to the blank, I hit them with a few thin coats of CA to seal them and then cast them in alumilite. They were in the pot at 40 psi for an hour and came out looking spectacular. I let them sit for a day, but when I checked them I noticed the alumilite was delaminating across the whole blank, mostly from the labels though. What worse is I can flex the blank a bit and watch the delaminating spread.

So what's going on here? Should I ditch the precast blanks and use bare carbon to make my own blank? Also, one of these casts is over an acrylic blank and it's doing the same. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[stevenpetry]

Thanks. I'll try to get my hands on some PR and give it a shot.