Clear Resin ?

[Ken Hill]

I turned a nice piece of cherry yesterday and it has a very deep void. It is roughly 1/4 deep and 1.5 inches long in a V shape. It does not make it to the interior of the bowl.

I CA'd the interior of the void and if it all makes it through drying I would like to use something inside the void that could be seen, similiar to a feather in a pen blank.

Anyway, I assume casting resin but wasnt sure how it would work on such a void. Tips & suggestions helpful.....

[Russell Eaton]

Could you fill it with clear epoxy?

[Ken Hill]

I sure could, I wasnt sure though if it would offer the same visability to an item or items placed inside the void. I do not believe the void will cause any issues towards structural integrity so holding power isnt my main intent.

[Russell Eaton]

I think the biggest issue is to keep the bubbles out of the fill. I have heard of using epoxy before. I think on pens they use clear similar 41 or something close to it. I know that Rockler has a small cast kit. I think a couple of the craft stores do as well. Not sure of the price.

[Todd Bin]

I think Epoxy is the way to go. If you want it to be clear then you need to get the really slow curing stuff. It is called mirror coat. Woodcraft sells it. Rockler probably does too. It is the stuff they use on the top of bars. It is self leveling and cures in 24 hours. I have used it before and it works great -- Not cheap though.

~Todd

MirrorCoat.jpg

[Steve Vaughan]

A couple more options - I recently filled a crack with some epoxy colored with sienna tinting (a dark brown color). It mixed well with the epoxy and hardened just fine. Another possibility is to mix in brass key shavings with the epoxy...might look really good on the cherry.

[David E Keller]

I think bubbles would be the main concern. If I were in you shoes, I'd try to bribe Alan Trout to cast it for me. He's got a mongo sized pressure pot and a world of experience with doing just what you describe. My understanding is that feathers are particularly difficult to cast without bubbles. I hope to see it finished!

[John Keeton]

Consider the background - will the dark background of the void provide clarity to what you are wanting? Should you lighten/color the background of the void to enhance your effort? Just something to consider prior to the attempt to fill.

[Ken Hill]

Not really intending feathers, just used that as an example but always a possibility. I was thinking a bear claw or tooth.......

[Ken Hill]

Consider the background - will the dark background of the void provide clarity to what you are wanting? Should you lighten/color the background of the void to enhance your effort? Just something to consider prior to the attempt to fill.

Void is dark, tooth polished would really stand out. Claw would blend in I do believe....but that is something to really keep in mind!

[Ken Hill]

A couple more options - I recently filled a crack with some epoxy colored with sienna tinting (a dark brown color). It mixed well with the epoxy and hardened just fine. Another possibility is to mix in brass key shavings with the epoxy...might look really good on the cherry.

Aaron Wingert does some incredible brass inlays, and it would look good if I can do it haha. I have a few mushroomed bullets that were recovered, wouldnt that be interesting.....

[Dan Hintz]

Void is dark, tooth polished would really stand out. Claw would blend in I do believe....but that is something to really keep in mind!

Put a thin layer of brass/resin in the void first, let dry, then add more resin with the claw. Nice background that will make the claw stand out.

[Ken Hill]

Dan, you might have found yourself a project LOL

[Alan Trout]

Depending on the size of the void it may be able to be cast or not. The resin I use needs a little mass for a proper exothermic reaction. If you can take a picture I am more than willing to give you my thoughts on it. I am much more a visual kind of person. If I can see it I might have a suggestion.

Alan

[John Terefenko]

Not sure what you are doing but I do know something about resin. I cast my own pen blanks alot of times and do use a clear resin called Silmar41 It is abit expensive. Another resin used is sold at Michaels and other craft stores called Cast-N- Craft resin. To avoid bubbles I always heat my resin 125 degrees for about 6 minutes. I makes the resin thinner. But the thing here is when you add the catalyst you need to work fast because you now have started the heating process that much sooner. Good luck and look forward to your project.