Alumite Question

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PTownSubbie

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May 15, 2009
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I have been casting with Polyester Resin for some time but I want to get into some Worthless wood and my attempts with PR have not been extremely successful. I have had to work hard to get good bonding between the PR and the wood even under high pressures so I am thinking of transitioning to Alumite for WW castings.

What do you find successful as additives to Alumite for coloration and pearl affect?
 
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I use pearlex and coastal scents pearl and mica pigments, gives a nice effect. Unless you put a lot the resin will be pretty transparent. I like the effect but some like it more opaque.
 
Alumilite dye, or any oil based paint, some types of powder dyes, and pearl ex. Alumilite is perfect for worthless wood.

I have used paint to color the PR in the past. This was not the easiest to mix in a timely fashion and get a smooth appearance. Then I found PR pigments and they were so much easier to mix in the PR.

My question is: How easily does oil based paint mix into the Alumilite? Can you mix the dye colors to make secondary colors within the Alumilite?

Do you mix your colors into part A completely prior to mixing in part B based on open time?

BTW, I just ordered some Alumilite.....it is on!!! I hope it is not a ton more difficult than PR.
 
I have used paint to color the PR in the past. This was not the easiest to mix in a timely fashion and get a smooth appearance. Then I found PR pigments and they were so much easier to mix in the PR.

My question is: How easily does oil based paint mix into the Alumilite? Can you mix the dye colors to make secondary colors within the Alumilite?

Do you mix your colors into part A completely prior to mixing in part B based on open time?

BTW, I just ordered some Alumilite.....it is on!!! I hope it is not a ton more difficult than PR.

I am just a newbie in alumilite as well, but from my understanding and what I was doing is mix part a & part b then when fully mixed, add your stuff then.

I am trying to get the pearl look as well, bought some pearlx and hopefully have time over the weekend to play more with the worthless woods.

I understand you can mix it fully then pour a little into another bottle to mix two different dyes into.
 
I usually mix all of my colorant into part A, then add part B. Alumilite gives you a lot less open time than PR and i want to be sure to get the color well mixed into the resin before I add part B so it's not using up my open time to mix the two parts together, than mix in colorants as well. Now since you mix equal parts of each side you need to add more colorant than you would think to part A as the color will get diluted when you add part B otherwise your resin will be more transparent (if using clear resin and powdered pigments).

I have gotten good effects by adding a small amount of a different color powdered pigment to the mixed resin just before I pour into the mold. I just give a few stirs to incorporate it into the resin but not mix it in well. This can give streaks of color through the blanks but less pronounced than swirls of a different color resin.

When I do 2 color casts I measure the two cups of part A, mix in the colorants then mix in part B to both as quickly as possible and pour. It helps if you can have someone help you so you don't waste too much time mixing and the resin set up in the cups.

And as much as I say you need to mix fast, I mix the two parts together for at least a minute, scraping the bottom and sides to ensure it is fully mixed together. You can see when they're fully mixed if you don't add any colorants but it is hard to see with pearlex or other colorants mixed in.
 
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