Best casting resin for turning?

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Ulises Victoria

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Oct 11, 2011
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Monterrey Mexico
Hello all. I have been using several casting resins to cast and turn blanks, with mixed results. Some bought locally and some not.
Some of them blow at the ends, some others seem to chip instead of producing nice ribbons. I know that some of you will say that my technique is wrong or my tools are not sharp enough, but, setting that aside:

Who sells, in your opinion, the best quality resin for crystal clear castings and/or colored blanks casting? or...

Where do you buy your resin and why there?

Thanks in advance.
 
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I don't know which is best, but I prefer alumilite. It can be a bit more work to get a really nice shiny finish on it, but it's great stuff.
 
Depends on several things

If you are looking to do embedded castings, Alumilite is reportedly harder to use and get bubble free in the short open time. Others seem to not have an issue.

Alumilite can be finicky to mix. Ratio has to be pretty much spot on and you have to mix thoroughly or your Water Clear might come out Opaque White (yes, it has happened to me several times, small pours are more likely to do this as the ratio is so important). Turns better than PR by far. $80/gallon in the 2 gallon kit from Alumilite.

PR can be brittle and chippy if you use too much catalyst or otherwise heat it too much. Slightly longer open time and less expensive. Fumes are a killer for me. Flammable. Chemical content will melt some plastics. About $40/gallon from USComposites

What I use:

West Systems Epoxy 105 with 207 special clear hardener. Open time is about half an hour, big plus for clear casting. No fumes that I can detect. Non-flammable. I've never had it be anywhere as chippy as some PRs. Mixing is pretty forgiving, and they have metered pumps that make it fool proof. More expensive - 5.8 gallon kit runs about $120/gal, smaller kits are more from WestMarine.
 
I use both alumilite and PR...alumilite turns like a dream...to get even close to the same experiance with PR I cut the MEK drops in half and let it cure muck longer. It just makes it a little less brittle.
 
I've only been using PR...easier to get because it's found in retail outlets. I've turned both and I must say that Alumilite is great to turn!!
 
Asking which is best is like asking which is better, Ford or Chevy! For doing tube in casting, I would go with PR. For doing embedded items, it would be Alumilite. I don't do tube in casting because I won't use PR! The smell is too much for me and I find it more finicky than Alumilite.
 
watch_art said:
You've had alumilte MELT??? How on earth?
Click to expand...

:biggrin: I should have been more clear, all resins are essentially plastic polymers with varying degrees of hardness. I prefer hard materials that are less affected by the heat and pressure of turning and I've found epoxy and polyester resins fit that role nicely.

it's all a matter of preference. :wink:
 
Vince_Hoffmann said:
watch_art said:
You've had alumilite MELT??? How on earth?
Click to expand...

:biggrin: I should have been more clear, all resins are essentially plastic polymers with varying degrees of hardness. I prefer hard materials that are less affected by the heat and pressure of turning and I've found epoxy and polyester resins fit that role nicely.
it's all a matter of preference. :wink:
Click to expand...

Ahh, OK. Cause one of my "grandiose" ideas once was to melt some different color alumilite strips I had and mix the colors together to make blanks. I put them in a Teflon pot and applied some heat...nothing, then some more heat...nothing...then some MORE heat...nothing. I could smell the pot burning though. So I took one of the strips out of the pot and held it to the flame and no melting...but then poof, fire! It went from resin to ashes with no melting in-between, and it stinks pretty bad too.

Oh, yea, back to the OP, I prefer alumilite.
 
I think most all of the pros and cons have been states above and these people know what they are taking about. There are many variables involved which will help guide you to what type of resin you want to use like the size of your cast, where you cast, time involved, objects casted, what your trying to achieve, personal casts or resale and funds available. I use both but mostly I cast with PR because thats what works for me and what Im casting, but I prefer to drill and turn Aluminlite because its less brittle not to mention the turn around time involved from start to finish. I started with hobby lobby resin and have tried several since. My advice, try a few and see what works for you and the task at hand. Good luck!
 
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