By moonpie - 9/26/2019 4:35:37 PM
Having made about 8 medium sized carbon fibre parts now, I am less sure of release agent approach than when I started. I spent a year of part time plug making to build my most recent plug, coated it with 5 coats of easy-lease and on demoulding it destroyed the plug and severely damaged the mould. I have had one successful easy separation from a mould on the smallest of my parts and that was using meguiars wax x 10 coats.
Easy-lease just doesn't ever seem to work for me and when I've asked about problems with it I'm told it's got a shelf life (of what I don't know) and even in a sealed tin it goes off - bad news given the price it is and the lack of confidence that induces when using it!
What combinations/approaches can I use to get the best release when resin infusing using the uni-mould system and epoxy? Can I lay down some P120 sealer on the moul sand then add easy-lease on top or even PVA? If I look at Meguiars gold, PVA, P120 and easy-lease, what combinations give the best part release based on your experiences please? Grateful for any advice as this is a complex mould and I can't afford the time to go back to the start...
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By Rich (Staff) - 9/30/2019 2:16:31 PM
You still require a release agent; the S120 is a surface is a sealer and does not add any release properties. When you do use S120 to restore a mould that has previously been used though, it's vitally important to remove *any* traces of release agent from the mould. Normally, this requires completely flatting back the mould surface with something like a 1200 grit paper. If you don't do this properly and there are any traces of release agent left of the mould surface then the S120 will be unable to stick to the mould and will fish-eye away or delaminate.
As for which release agent, its personal choice but would usually be used along with a Chemical Release Agent like Easy Lease. I note a few posts about Shelf-Life; it is worth noting that Chemical Release Agents are hygroscopic so whilst we could never recommend exceeding the shelf life anyway, it is worth pointing out that if left without the lid on or if used repeatedly in humid environments, you can decrease the shelf life further.
As with the S120, this is a very short shelf-life product at only around 6 months and as with the chemical release, ensure the lids are on tightly between uses.
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