BJohnstone Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 I went online, looking for something that was both UV stable/non-yellowing and would rival the hardness of D2T. I found this website. http://www.crystalclearepoxy.com/shop/uv-poxy-clear-for-casting/ Has anyone out there tried this out? If so, can you post your results? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 I haven't used it but it looks like another "pour-on" bar-top or decoupage epoxy, the most popular of which here on TU has been Envirotex Lite (aka ETEX). If so, it will probably require at least 2 coats to build a film thick enough for bass crankbaits, more if you fish for toothy critters. If you want a thicker epoxy that will cover in one coat, you might check into UV stabilized Flexcoat or Nu-Lustre. Epoxies with UV inhibitors cost more, of course. There's no free lunch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 It sounds a lot like Etex although I can't remember if Etex has UV inhibitors in it. The quart size was the smallest amount I saw available and at $47 seems pretty expensive to me. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJohnstone Posted November 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 I've never used E-Tex, how hard is it, versus D2T or ACC? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 To me, all properly cured epoxies have similar hardness. Several years ago, the big issue on TU was D2T versus ETEX. D2T is popular among bass bait builders while ETEX is favored by many musky bait builders. D2T is a thicker, one coat epoxy glue. ETEX is a thinner slow cure pour-on epoxy that contains some solvent. JMHO, ETEX tends to be more transparent and may be somewhat more impact-resistant than D2T. The downside is that ETEX usually requires multiple coats to form a thick enough clearcoat. ETEX is available at craft shops like Michaels in pint sizes. There are different "knacks" to getting a great topcoat with different epoxies. Search through the posts here on Hardbaits and the member supplied Tutorials for tips on each. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Bob hit it on the head. D2T is a glue. It's designed to set up hard, strong, and rigid, with no flexibility, which might allow a joint or some embedded hardware to creep. Etex, and other decoupage epoxies, are designed for covering large wooden surfaces, like bars and table tops. Since wood expands and contracts with temperature and humidity changes, those epoxies are designed to remain flexible enough to move with the wood. They typically have longer hardening times, and require at least two coats to reach the same thickness as one coat of D2T. When I used Etex, I would usually put on three coats, turning each 12 hours between coats on my ferris wheel lure turner. The search for the "perfect" topcoat is the holy grail. I hear they're bringing back Harrison Ford and Sean Connery to do the sequel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
