Talk Composites - The Forum for Advanced Composites
Back
Login
Register
Login
Register
Home
»
Easy Composites Ltd Technical Support
»
Easy Composites Ltd - General Technical Support
»
Surface requirement for mould making
Surface requirement for mould making
Post Reply
Like
4
Surface requirement for mould making
View
Flat Ascending
Flat Descending
Threaded
Options
Subscribe to topic
Print This Topic
Goto Topics Forum
Author
Message
Makerbot
Makerbot
posted 9 Years Ago
ANSWER
HOT
Topic Details
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 8,
Visits: 126
Hi,
I am planning on making some car panel moulds, can you tell me if I can make the mould from panels in primer or do they need to be painted?
Thanks
Reply
Like
4
Reply
Hanaldo
Hanaldo
posted 9 Years Ago
ANSWER
HOT
Post Details
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 2.5K,
Visits: 28K
I think you guys are misunderstanding how a primer works. Primers don't absorb anything, they are non-porous. In fact any material that absorbs anything is a poor substrate for top coating. Primers improve the adhesion of paints yes, but that's because of the way that paints are formulated. Top coats need to be formulated to have qualities such as good gloss retention, durability and colour holdout. These qualities often mean that those paints have a reduced ability to adhere to substrates. That's where the primer comes in. Primers don't need to be able to hold a gloss or have good durability, so the formula can instead focus on qualities like good self-levelling and good adhesion to substrates. So they simply help adhesion by being an interface; they bond well to the substrate they are being applied to so that the topcoat that goes on top doesn't need to. Don't forget that to get paint to adhere to primer still requires meticulous preparation. It's all due to the fact that top coats typically have poor adhesion qualities.
The ability to mould off these surfaces is somewhat unrelated. A fully cured 2k primer will not absorb Easylease or any other chemical release agent. Chemical release agents are essentially extremely thin resins (paint is also a resin) that have been desolved in a solvent. When applied to the surface, the solvent evaporates and leaves the resin behind. Keep in mind that there are a few semi-permanent release agent systems that are actually a 3-step system: primer/sealer/release. The primer is there to improve the durability of the polymers that are being applied on top of it, it doesn't mean that anything and everything is going to stick to it.
Where you will come unstuck (pun intended) with 2k coatings is if the tooling gelcoat softens the coating that it is applied to. Once the coating has softened, the film of chemical release agent is compromised and you will get sticks. This is just as likely to happen with a 2k topcoat as it is a 2k primer, it simply depends on the compatibility of the paint and the gelcoat and how well cured the coating is. This is why you should always test the products that you intend to use together - not all coatings are made equal. Polyurethanes tend to have good chemical resistance in general, but some are better than others. A good way to test is to polish up your coating to the standard that you desire, and then wipe it with a powerful solvent like acetone or MEK. If the surface dulls, then it's because the solvent softened the coating and I would not recommend proceeding with the tooling gelcoat. If the solvent flashes off the surface without affecting the finish, then you can be reasonably confident that the gelcoat won't attack it. Personally if I am using a new product for the first time then I always like to do a little test with the gelcoat that I'm using as well, just for piece of mind.
Reply
Like
3
GO
Merge Selected
Merge into selected topic...
Merge into merge target...
Merge into a specific topic ID...
Open Merge
Threaded View
Threaded View
Surface requirement for mould making
Makerbot
-
9 Years Ago
Professionally sprayed primer from a 2 pack system will usually be fine once fully cured. You should...
Warren (Staff)
-
9 Years Ago
[quote][b]Warren (Staff) (21/01/2016)[/b][hr]Professionally sprayed primer from a 2 pack system will...
Makerbot
-
9 Years Ago
I mould from primered surfaces (2 pack) and I find the primer takes a sprayed coat of PVA release...
FLD
-
9 Years Ago
[quote][b]FLD (21/01/2016)[/b][hr]I mould from primered surfaces (2 pack) and I find the primer...
Makerbot
-
9 Years Ago
If possible I allways avoid primer/bondo and so on to make a mould of...I always topcoat it or...
matthieutje65
-
9 Years Ago
[quote][b]matthieutje65 (22/01/2016)[/b][hr]If possible I allways avoid primer/bondo and so on to...
Makerbot
-
9 Years Ago
Been looking into this recently and do not recommend fill in any way as it comes out of the part and...
VVS
-
9 Years Ago
[quote][b]VVS (26/01/2016)[/b][hr]Been looking into this recently and do not recommend fill in any...
Makerbot
-
9 Years Ago
I think you guys are misunderstanding how a primer works. Primers don't absorb anything, they are...
Hanaldo
-
9 Years Ago
Actually primer is porous. Thats why they require a top coat as a color and protective layer. You...
kidpaint
-
9 Years Ago
I do believe people have long confused the hygroscopic nature of some primers with porosity. Just...
Hanaldo
-
9 Years Ago
Hanaldo, Very well put, your advice is always on the ball. You are an asset to this...
The Fibreglass King
-
9 Years Ago
Post Reply
Like
4
Similar Topics
Post Quoted Reply
Reading This Topic
Login
Login
Remember Me
Reset Password
Resend Validation Email
Login
Facebook
Google
Explore
Messages
Mentions
Search