Corian (Handle) Ice Cream Scoops

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dachshund1

dachshund1

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Lexington, KY, USA
I've got a ton of Corian and other solid surface materials, and decided to mock up and turn some ice cream scoop handles. Being dense and very heavy, Corian actually suits this application pretty well - where weight, leverage, etc. are advantageous. It *should* also be dishwasher safe. I'm still kind of in the testing phase - been using CA glue to bond the lapped surfaces of 2" x 9" ripped pieces (most of my stock is ~ 9" x 9" tiles). So far, no visible seams or adhesive failures. Polishes up beautifully; dulls the tools pretty quickly, though. ;) I'd appreciate any guidance from those who've been down this road. It's a work in progress. Terry
 

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Looks really good. I think however if put in dish washer the heat will cause the seam to fail. Might want to West System marine epoxy as it tuff stuff to the elements.
 
Once the adhesive has proved out , my next experiment would be to make the scoop itself from Corian . It won`t conduct heat or cold at the same rate as metal , so should reduce the need to warm up the scoop to stop the ice cream from sticking to it . That is my personal problem with the scoops .
 
Nice idea. Have a cabinet and countertop shop in town. Need to see about getting some Corian.
Hint: sink cutouts can be used for all kinds of things as router table tops, cutoff saw stand on old gas grill, lathe on old lathe stand. AMHIK.
 
Dieseldoc said:
Looks really good. I think however if put in dish washer the heat will cause the seam to fail. Might want to West System marine epoxy as it tuff stuff to the elements.
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Thanks for the suggestion. I kind of figured my choice of glue might be the weak link. There's seems to be some debate as to whether epoxy or CA is the preferred adhesive for solid surface material. For pens, it may not matter much; for other implements that might see more strenuous use, however, the CA may be less resilient over time.
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1080Wayne said:
Once the adhesive has proved out , my next experiment would be to make the scoop itself from Corian . It won`t conduct heat or cold at the same rate as metal , so should reduce the need to warm up the scoop to stop the ice cream from sticking to it . That is my personal problem with the scoops .
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That's an Intriguing idea. Unfortunately, constructing an actual scoop from Corian is well beyond my pay grade. ;) However, I do believe that solid surface materials can be heat molded. This may be the ticket for forming a scoop.
 
I did a pizza cutter out of corian along with a bunch of wood ones. They didn't have a ferrel and the corian one ended up breaking. The wood ones have all survived. I you'll the users to never put the handle in the dishwasher but to unscrew the cutter and wash it separately.
 
SteveJ said:
I did a pizza cutter out of corian along with a bunch of wood ones. They didn't have a ferrel and the corian one ended up breaking. The wood ones have all survived. I you'll the users to never put the handle in the dishwasher but to unscrew the cutter and wash it separately.
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Most people use the DW to same time. Example: Friend of my wife put her cast iron skillet in the DW and couldn't figure out why it rusted.
 
SteveJ said:
I did a pizza cutter out of corian along with a bunch of wood ones. They didn't have a ferrel and the corian one ended up breaking. The wood ones have all survived. I you'll the users to never put the handle in the dishwasher but to unscrew the cutter and wash it separately.
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Just about all of the handmade kitchen utensil kits I see for sale stipulate hand-washing - so that's good advice, Steve. (My intent has been to simply give these to friends, but I don't want to gift something that's poor quality).

FWIW, I do attach the scoops using a stainless knurled ferrule; however, it's the integrity of the actual handle itself I fear may not survive repeated (high heat) dishwashing cycles.

We have been using one Corian scoop that's successfully been through the dishwasher numerous times, but always on the top rack and in an older machine with a faulty heating element. As an experiment, I've asked our neighbor to run one through her newer unit on the sanitized "autoclave" cycle; I'll report back on the results.

Regardless of the outcome - and despite the fact I've yet to have a CA blank fail during turning - I intend to try some type of marine epoxy, as has been suggested. Even so, the goal of making a "dishwasher safe" version may be sheer folly.

Terry
 
FatPat said:
I'm curious to know which grade of CA has given you the best results when laminating the corian .
Thin, Medium or thick ?

Pat
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Hi, Pat.

Cosmetically, I've had good results with thin or medium; I haven't tried the thick, though it should work. Structurally, I've only had one blank come apart during drilling; it was glued together using thin CA - which may not have been sufficiently applied. Remember - too much is better than too little.

However, as has been discussed, the long-term structural integrity of CA in this particular application hasn't been rigorously tested - and I can't vouch for how long (or if) it might survive repeated cycles through the dishwasher (for example). I would think handwashing would pose no issues for CA glued handle blanks.

I follow the sanding/lapping procedure for Corian shown in the video below - followed by a quick cleansing wipe with rubbing alcohol:

Captain Eddie Castelin - Prepping Corian

I recently glued up one blank (one scoop handle blank requires 4 1/2" ripped Corian strips) using System Three T-88 epoxy. It's a thicker adhesive - and takes much longer to cure - but also appears to offer a relatively seamless result. I'm hoping it MAY offer a truly dishwasher safe option.

Hope this helps. Please share your own experiences - I, too, am still learning.

Terry
 
Wouldn't recommend putting the Corian in the dishwasher. The water yemp and drying temp will probably cause the adhesive to part company. Only takes a minute to hand wash the scoop. One might want to use it before you fire up the DW. My wife ruined a nice maple cutting board doing this. However, it makes great pen blanks!
 
Woodchipper said:
Wouldn't recommend putting the Corian in the dishwasher. The water yemp and drying temp will probably cause the adhesive to part company. Only takes a minute to hand wash the scoop. One might want to use it before you fire up the DW. My wife ruined a nice maple cutting board doing this. However, it makes great pen blanks!
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Yeah, that's my biggest concern: I'm not sure any adhesive, when used on Corian, would hold together over repeated heated (DW) drying sessions. Too bad Corian can't be obtained in solid 2" thicknesses; would alleviate having to use glue at all. I also agree: handwashing one item shouldn't be onerous.
 
dachshund1 said:
Yeah, that's my biggest concern: I'm not sure any adhesive, when used on Corian, would hold together over repeated heated (DW) drying sessions. Too bad Corian can't be obtained in solid 2" thicknesses; would alleviate having to use glue at all. I also agree: handwashing one item shouldn't be onerous.
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And it can be used again...immediately! My favorite ice cream? Cold!
 
PreacherJon said:
Those look great. Same size blanks ought to make really good shaving brush handles.
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I had the same idea. As it turns out, a 9" x 9" piece cut into four 2" strips (for the scoop blank) will yield just enough left over material for a shaving brush, a razor, and a shaving stand. Corian, IMHO, is a great material for projects other than writing instruments; I've turned Corian pens and, while I love the look and feel, I'm not wild about the "carry" weight. As always, YMMV.
 
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