capecodsmallie Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 I was pouring a smoke color batch today. The first half of the pour came out great. The second half ended up with a darker smoke than the first half. Not sure what the problem is. Any ideas? I'm thinking it's the plastic itself. I'm using LC 536. Think I'm going to try some calhoun next. If my memory serves me correctly,I remember some of you saying that it can withstand heat better than LC plastic. Is the calhoun harder than the LC536? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 I'm no expert,but...I find that I sometimes have to lower the temp a bit as the plastic depletes from the pot. Maybe it overheated a bit because of that and discolored the plastic? Did you use heat stabilizer? JD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercury Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 If you were using a HOT POT, JD has your answer. The lower the put gets you will have to lower the temp. Heat stabilizer may help it, But is not a cure all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtrs5kprs Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 stabilizer and temp adjustment will take care of it. on the lighter colors always use stabilizer, and try to run thru the plastic as fast as possible...longer heating increases the chance of them changing color on you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capecodsmallie Posted February 29, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 I use a pot. I added stabilizer to the mix . I even tried adjusting the temp. The only problem with that is if I turn the dial a hair too much the plastic has a hard time pouring out. I'm going to give the calhoun a shot and see if I still have problems. Thanks for the advice guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 When did you add your black color? Double check your first batch and make sure there isn't tiny "flecks" of black in the baits. This will sometimes happen when you add black before the plastic starts to gel. The color will actually "separate". There's a chance that the problem might be your first batch instead of the second. A consistent "smoke" only works for me when I add a well-mixed black as the plastic is gelled. This is something to look at only if you find that you didn't overheat the batch. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthworm77 Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 Derrick, I think it is definately the heat adjustment to the depleting plastic and the stabilizer. I've been pouring with Calhoun from Del, for a week and its better than the LC goo I've used in the past.....much better.......worlds better. I sold a ton of trailers this weekend at a seminar to some guys who regularly buy my products and they noticed the difference right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downstream Posted March 9, 2004 Report Share Posted March 9, 2004 I like to use the pots for my pouring, but found that the temperature control was not adequate. I have modified my pour pots to control the current flow to the heat which is a more accurate method than the standard thermostat that comes with the lee pots. The mod was easy using a standard lighting dimmer switch and I can give you more details if you are interested. I have posted this info before so you can do a search also. the other method that seems popular is to use a microwave to heat. I use this to bring my plastic to the orginal first heat up, but then transfer to my pot for easier controlled pouring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
