mark poulson Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I think danderson is right. There may be something in the mixing cups that's contaminating your epoxy. Like he suggested, mix it in a metal container, like the bottom of a coke can, to see if that makes a difference. Make sure your amounts are correct, because Etex is very sensitive in terms of mixing proportions. 1 to 1 by volume. If it turns out the mixing cups are the culprit, try buying some from Michael's, or go to a Mexican fast food place and "borrow" some salsa cups. Salsa is very acidic, so the plastic cups they use are bulletproof, more or less. As for the lures that didn't set up, wipe them down with denatured alcohol, and see if that gets rid of the slimmy feeling. After wiping them down, you can try lightly sanding the surface, to see if you can get down to a sound layer. If so, you can recoat with a good batch. If not, you're going to have to strip the finish with acetone, and that will probably ruin the paint job, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark berrisford Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 i've had e-tex go off in 10 minutes a few times but the problem was warming it up to much after it being left in a cold garage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTBasser Posted May 27, 2009 Report Share Posted May 27, 2009 If you are mixing small amounts then the only way to do it is to measure by weight. A few drops is the difference between goo and glory or setting too fast and good pot life! Your eye can't detect that - a scale can. I use a triple beam balance that measures in 1/10th of a gram. I eyeball to the 1/100ths. I also use a single mixing cup - a spackle container that I have cleaned and cut so it is only 1" tall. For a mixing stick I have a tongue depressor that I have cut off the rounded ends so they are square. Zero the scale. Put the mixing container on the scale and weigh it. Take that value and add the weight of resin to be mixed and pour resin to the new target weight. Then add the weight of hardener to the total and pour hardener to the new target weight. Mix together as per instructions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickJames Posted May 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2009 (edited) If you are mixing small amounts then the only way to do it is to measure by weight. A few drops is the difference between goo and glory or setting too fast and good pot life! Your eye can't detect that - a scale can.I use a triple beam balance that measures in 1/10th of a gram. I eyeball to the 1/100ths. I also use a single mixing cup - a spackle container that I have cleaned and cut so it is only 1" tall. For a mixing stick I have a tongue depressor that I have cut off the rounded ends so they are square. Zero the scale. Put the mixing container on the scale and weigh it. Take that value and add the weight of resin to be mixed and pour resin to the new target weight. Then add the weight of hardener to the total and pour hardener to the new target weight. Mix together as per instructions. Thank you fir your reply, Please excuse my ignorance:?. So your saying that the mix is not TRULY a 50/50 mix at a small amount by weight? Since the resin and the hardener are measured at two different weights.So obviously the one weighs more than the other, but have the same volume, Correct? Thank you much, Edited May 27, 2009 by RickJames Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danderson Posted May 27, 2009 Report Share Posted May 27, 2009 No disrespect to VT as I am sure that would be more accruate, but I have not had this trouble just using my eye. I just put equal amounts, as best I can tell by my eye, in two cups pour together and mix it. Haven't had any trouble yet except the time I thought you could add extra hardener to make it set up quicker. BTW, it was alot of added hardener. Not just a little bit off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTBasser Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 Thank you fir your reply, Please excuse my ignorance:?. So your saying that the mix is not TRULY a 50/50 mix at a small amount by weight? Since the resin and the hardener are measured at two different weights.So obviously the one weighs more than the other, but have the same volume, Correct? Thank you much, The first line in the chart shows the weight of a full new 8oz. bottles. The resin weighs 44 grams more than the harder. So correct - volumes are the same but weights differ. I make the assumption that the bottles and caps weigh the same on both bottles. Looking at my notes last night I think I weigh the hardener first then add the resin. My instructions above are backwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 The instructions on my Etex bottles says equal parts by volumne, not weight. Same with my Nu Lustre 55 epoxy. The Flexcoat 3cc syringes make this a snap. This is where I got mine. The nozzles are slightly tapered, so you can drill a snug fitting hole (test it first in a piece of wood) that will let you wedge the syringes into the caps, and leave them there when you're not using them. Then, just turn the bottle over while holding the syringe in, let the air bubbles move up, withdraw the syringe plunger to the amount you want to use, turn the bottle back over, remove the syringe, and squeeze it into you mixing cup. I waste very little epoxy now from mixing too much, and the batches are always good. No guesswork. Mud Hole Custom Tackle -- The World's Largest Rod Building Supplier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTBasser Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 The instructions on my Etex bottles says equal parts by volumne, not weight. Working outside (the instructions in the ) box, there is a correlation between mass and volume: density = mass/ volume. If the density is uniform throughout the liquid in a bottle then a given volume will have a predictable mass. Half that volume with have half the mass. Each of the parts of the epoxy have different densities thus different masses per equal volumes. You can measure volume by weight. My method also assumes that the two parts are at equal temperatures. I am just saying that it is easier for me to do small amounts by weight than volumetric measure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHUCKV309 Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I have never had a problem of oily e-tex. But I do something different than what I have read so far here. I put a couple drops of denatured (sp) alcohol in my batch of e-tex. This thins the mix a little more. You might want to try this and see if it removes the oily residue. Just a thought. Oh yeah, my cure time is about 24 hours and I only mix in small batches. Just enought to cover 20 -30 jig and spinnerbait heads. Hope you find a cure (no pun intended). Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickJames Posted May 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Thanks guys for all the replys. I just finished adding a duplicator to my lathe. So when I spin some more lures out I will give you a heads up on the results. Im thinking (hoping) I just had a bad batch of etex. I did recoat the oily lures with the new stuff but ended up with the same results. So Im hoping its only because of the old etex. Its weird..the lures almost seem wet, like they sweat, even a day later.. lol I dunno. I wish I could show you guys. In the meen time I also bought 5 large D2T. lol Thanks again, Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
