Alumilite Clear

[Paul hd]

Hi All. Happy New Year to everyone.

I would like to know if anyone has sourced Alumilite Clear in the UK.

I have bought the Alumilite Amazing clear cast and I don't like it.

Look forward to hearing from you

Regards
Paul

 

[fingwe]

Hi Paul,

There is no one who sells it in large quantities...Nigel Lawton does do the small packs, but looks to be out of stock at the moment.

I contacted Alumilite in the USA to find out how much it would cost to ship larger quantities to the UK, but the cost was prohibitive. They did suggest that I contact some of their suppliers in the UK, to ask if they would order it for me and get it shipped with their regular orders, which could have worked out cheaper. I didn't pursue this, as I wanted to be able to order when I wanted, rather than have to fit in with their scheduled orders.

In the end I've just been using clear polyurethane resin, which is available from numerous suppliers over here. It is expensive, but not as expensive as importing Alumilite, and I can order it when I like. I've tried several different ones, and they're all pretty similar when cast - some of them have longer work times than others, so just pick the one that works for you.

 

[fingwe]

Forgot to add, yes, Amazing Clear Cast is epoxy, not polyurethane like Alumilite Clear.

 

[Woody]

There you go in 7.5 Liters and smaller if required
Alumilite Amazing Clear Cast Resin 7.5 Litres - Metal Clay Ltd

 

[fingwe]

There you go in 7.5 Liters and smaller if required
Alumilite Amazing Clear Cast Resin 7.5 Litres - Metal Clay Ltd

Unfortunately, that's Alumilite Amazing Clear cast, which is an epoxy resin and not really suitable for pen blanks. It's Alumilite Clear which we've been trying to find, which is a polyurethane resin.

 

[Dalboy]

If it is the same as Polyurethane is this any good I have ordered from there before and always had a good service

 

[fingwe]

I've tried both the Polycraft FC6600 Slow Set and the Polycraft Opti-Cast 100. Both are water clear and work well. The resulting casts are very similar - the main differences between them is the pot life. I will say that the resin blanks are very difficult to polish, but I understand that this is the same with Alumilite clear (I've never used it, so I can't directly compare). I always use a vacuum chamber when casting, but not a pressure pot, so I'm not sure what results would be like if done differently.

I've also tried Polytek EasyFlo Clear. It's an amber transparent resin. Again, it produces a nice blank, in fact I prefer it to the two above, as it polishes up much better and easier. The issues with it are obviously the colour cast, but also the fact that it has LOADS of air bubbles. You definitely need to use a vacuum chamber or pressure pot - however, it only has something like a 2 minute pot life, so you don't get much time to mix and degas (I can just about manage it when doing a one colour cast, I wouldn't want to attempt it with 2 colours).

 

[Paul hd]

There you go in 7.5 Liters and smaller if required
Alumilite Amazing Clear Cast Resin 7.5 Litres - Metal Clay Ltd

Thats the problem Woody.
I put in a search Alumilite Amazing Clear and that's what comes up and I bought the 470ml pack. As I'm new to this I didn't realise that there is also an Alumilite Clear. Thank Heavens I didn't go for the 7.5L deal.

Hi Paul,

There is no one who sells it in large quantities...Nigel Lawton does do the small packs, but looks to be out of stock at the moment.

I contacted Alumilite in the USA to find out how much it would cost to ship larger quantities to the UK, but the cost was prohibitive. They did suggest that I contact some of their suppliers in the UK, to ask if they would order it for me and get it shipped with their regular orders, which could have worked out cheaper. I didn't pursue this, as I wanted to be able to order when I wanted, rather than have to fit in with their scheduled orders.

In the end I've just been using clear polyurethane resin, which is available from numerous suppliers over here. It is expensive, but not as expensive as importing Alumilite, and I can order it when I like. I've tried several different ones, and they're all pretty similar when cast - some of them have longer work times than others, so just pick the one that works for you.

Hi Melanie,
Great info, Thanks very much.
I will ask Metalclay if they can get it in stock. In the meantime could you let me know what clear resin you use and who do you get it from.

Many thanks
Paul

 

[fingwe]

Hi Paul,

I have tried several clear resins, most of them are detailed in my post above - those are all from MB Fibreglass, that Derek linked to above. I've also used PolyOptic 1410 from Mouldlife. They're all more or less the same, so just go for the one with the pot life/price/size you prefer.

I've spent the past 6 months researching the different resins out there, trying to get the best solution so, if you have further questions, feel free to ask.

 

[Penpal]

Thanks for the discussion from this request I found it helpful for many reasons.


Peter.

 

[Paul hd]

Hi Melanie,
OK, I will take a look at those links.

On another subject. What Vacuum chamber and pump do you use? and your thoughts.

Many thanks for your time.

Cheers
Paul

 

[Bammer]

Unfortunately, that's Alumilite Amazing Clear cast, which is an epoxy resin and not really suitable for pen blanks. It's Alumilite Clear which we've been trying to find, which is a polyurethane resin.

Pretty sure it IS suitable, and I bet a lot have used it .. I know I have and I know Woody has.

View attachment 32388

Amazing Clear Cast

 

[Bammer]

Not amazing clear cast but Epoxy Resin

View attachment 32389

 

[fingwe]

I stand corrected!

How did you get the finish on it - I couldn't get mine to polish up well at all?

 

[fingwe]

Hi Melanie,
OK, I will take a look at those links.

On another subject. What Vacuum chamber and pump do you use? and your thoughts.

Many thanks for your time.

Cheers
Paul

Paul, I use an Easy Composites vacuum pump - they don't seem to do it any more, but it's the one in this video .

I have a small perspex type chamber. It's too small to put the moulds in, but I tend to degass the resin prior to pouring into the mould (also prior to mixing the 2 parts, if I'm using something like pearl ex to colour). ie. I mix Pearl Ex into Part A, degas that. Mix part A and part B, degas again. Pour into mould.

 

[silver]

Not cast anything for quite a few years now, but used to use PR rather than Aluminite

This is where I used to get my supplies. Still very good apparently.

Water Clear Casting Resin - East Coast Fibreglass Supplies

 

[Bucks]

Whoops! I've just spent £170 on the 7.5l Alumulite Amazing clear thinking it was the same Alumilite clear, looks like I'll have to be doing more research & seeing about sending this back to Metalclay, good job I hadn't open till it yet.

 

[wm460]

Pretty sure it IS suitable, and I bet a lot have used it .. I know I have and I know Woody has.

View attachment 32388

Amazing Clear Cast

Cant complain about the results.

 

[Paul hd]

Paul, I use an Easy Composites vacuum pump - they don't seem to do it any more, but it's the one in this video .

I have a small perspex type chamber. It's too small to put the moulds in, but I tend to degass the resin prior to pouring into the mould (also prior to mixing the 2 parts, if I'm using something like pearl ex to colour). ie. I mix Pearl Ex into Part A, degas that. Mix part A and part B, degas again. Pour into mould.

Thanks,
I have seen a 5L combo from Sealavac, seems like it will do for me.

Whoops! I've just spent £170 on the 7.5l Alumulite Amazing clear thinking it was the same Alumilite clear, looks like I'll have to be doing more research & seeing about sending this back to Metalclay, good job I hadn't open till it yet.

I'm going to give it another go. I found out that I have to measure by volume instead of weight. Then it should be left to cure for 72 hrs which is a bit of a pain. I must admit even if I get good results I think I will try another product or get the Alumilite that I wanted in the first place with a much quicker cure time.

Pretty sure it IS suitable, and I bet a lot have used it .. I know I have and I know Woody has.

Amazing Clear Cast

Hi,
That looks nice.

 

[Bucks]

I've just organised a return for mine & am looking into alternatives