Etewaf
Active Member
Hey guys. I'm having a bit of trouble. I recently built a vacuum chamber in order to try and make bubble free casts of the Lady Gillette used for the Jedi Comms in the Prequel Trilogy. If anyone has tried to mold and cast one of these before, you know those little grips are a pain.
I guess I'm having trouble finding out what steps should be taken and in what order. Should I be degassing the resin before pouring it into the mold? I've heard of people doing it both ways, before and after. I know if you degass while it's in the mold it will spill over, but I'm sure this could be combated with building up a retaining wall around the pour spout. And I know if you pour it into the mold after degassing, you will still trap bubbles during the pour. Should I bump up to one of the smoothcasts with a longer working time to degass both before and after?
How long should it be left in the vacuum? Until it cures? Should the vacuum be released at some point? I've done probably ten or so of these things with varying degrees of success depending on what I've tried. So I'm curious what you guys have tried, and I would be appreciative of any nudges in the right direction.
Thanks,
~Spencer
I guess I'm having trouble finding out what steps should be taken and in what order. Should I be degassing the resin before pouring it into the mold? I've heard of people doing it both ways, before and after. I know if you degass while it's in the mold it will spill over, but I'm sure this could be combated with building up a retaining wall around the pour spout. And I know if you pour it into the mold after degassing, you will still trap bubbles during the pour. Should I bump up to one of the smoothcasts with a longer working time to degass both before and after?
How long should it be left in the vacuum? Until it cures? Should the vacuum be released at some point? I've done probably ten or so of these things with varying degrees of success depending on what I've tried. So I'm curious what you guys have tried, and I would be appreciative of any nudges in the right direction.
Thanks,
~Spencer