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Epoxy Resin Projects Anyone?

Chaznsc

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I see a lot of these on Youtube, and I find them fascinating. That said, the price of this stuff is outrageous, yet I see guys pouring gallons of the stuff.

Anyone here into it?
 
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Ron_J

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I've used it a little...routed my granddaughters name in a toy box I made her, then filled it with colored epoxy. Like you said, it isn't cheap.

I'd like to do a live edge / epoxy table at some point, but way too many irons in the fire right now.
 

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niget2002

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I used some to fill in knots on a pine desk top I made for my office. I dyed the resin a reddish color. It came out looking pretty good but the color wasn't as effective as I had hoped.

You can buy smaller amounts of the resin for small projects on Amazon.
 

machsnell

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Subscribed.

I have a stone countertop in garage that is thermal faced and it's too rough and hard to clean. Instead of grinding I am going to epoxy it.

I am worried about the vertical faces most.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
 

alfazer

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I used to see embedded coins and bank notes in clear resin on rough table tops, but now it all seems to be bright greens and blues instead of clear.
 

Skiff Builder

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Just used some of the boat supply to coat a small table top. Not poured because of bark edge. Rolled on 3 coats.
 

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Danno1

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Repaired a rotted threshold with WEST System. The tan is epoxy mixed w wood dust to fill in the rotted areas. The clear on the wood is neat epoxy over fiberglass cloth. The wrinkles are from the saran wrap I put over while it cured.


.
 

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MoonRise

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I've used it a little...routed my granddaughters name in a toy box I made her, then filled it with colored epoxy. Like you said, it isn't cheap.

I'd like to do a live edge / epoxy table at some point, but way too many irons in the fire right now.

That toy box looks pretty nice Ron. :thumbup:

You -do- have the anti-slam lid supports in there, right?


slight thread highjack:

Box joints done with a table saw or did you use a jig with a router bit? Have an upcoming project to do with a LOT of box joints and don't think the length of my boards will be easy or even possible to do on a table saw.
 
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Chaznsc

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That toy box looks pretty nice Ron. :thumbup:

You -do- have the anti-slam lid supports in there, right?


slight thread highjack:

Box joints done with a table saw or did you use a jig with a router bit? Have an upcoming project to do with a LOT of box joints and don't think the length of my boards will be easy or even possible to do on a table saw.

I agree on that box, holy cow!
 

Kaizen

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I bought a gallon of west marine and activator for a slab table I have to do at some time. Watching the big pours you see on YouTube makes me shake my head. Some are cool but a table with 20 gallons poured is crazy.


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Ron_J

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That toy box looks pretty nice Ron. :thumbup:

You -do- have the anti-slam lid supports in there, right?


slight thread highjack:

Box joints done with a table saw or did you use a jig with a router bit? Have an upcoming project to do with a LOT of box joints and don't think the length of my boards will be easy or even possible to do on a table saw.

Thanks. I made one for each of my 3 grandkids when they were born. Something that I hope they will use for years to come.

Yes, they all have torsion hinges. They are the cat's azz. A little pricey, but I highly recommend them.

I made a jig for the box joints.

Here are some pics of the other 2 box's. The one for Falynn was fun. The inlay is purple heart cut into yellowheart.
 

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signcrafter

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I bought a gallon of west marine and activator for a slab table I have to do at some time. Watching the big pours you see on YouTube makes me shake my head. Some are cool but a table with 20 gallons poured is crazy.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

20 gallons for a table? I've done bar tops 48' long and think that was only 5 gallons. Must be one hell of a table if it took 20 gallons of epoxy to cover it. It either all ran over the edge or is one super thick coat of epoxy which isn't recommended.
 

Kaizen

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20 gallons for a table? I've done bar tops 48' long and think that was only 5 gallons. Must be one hell of a table if it took 20 gallons of epoxy to cover it. It either all ran over the edge or is one super thick coat of epoxy which isn't recommended.



Those guys up in Canada. It was a conference table if I remember right. Big. I believe they pour in one shot. Think they have a cold table or something that slows it down. They use it for the actual table not just sealing. So embedding a slab in epoxy type of stuff


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ShaunieG

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I bought this big old mahogany slab and was thinking about turning it into a table or an island. My wife wanted to do epoxy originally, but after she read this blog on the Caesarstone website, she changed her mind. Now we're thinking to use the mahogany slab for the tabletop and quartz for kitchen countertops.
 
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MatBirch

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Filer, Idaho
I see all the videos too. Honestly, at first, I thought it was really cool, but now I feel it's really getting overdone. The "river" tables, turnings using any kind of stuff encapsulated... Still cool, and you gotta admire the work, and the time, but I think many of those things are going to quickly wind up in attics, yard sales, etc., as they are be kind of "dated" quickly.
 

Voi

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I have a neighbor who sells slabs I got two 8' slabs of Cottonwood and a 7' slab of Red Elm for $120 total.

The Cottonwood had some small cracks so I filled them will black epoxy and made a short run of live edge countertop at our cabin. It contrasts nicely with the modern look of our cabin and is cheap enough I won't think twice about moving onto something else once it's outdated or I'm sick of re-waxing.

The Elm had some much more significant cracks from bark pockets and were also filled with epoxy and it's now a corner bench. In both cases the epoxy is just an accent and used to prevent throwing away large amounts of fall off if I had attempted to mill them into boards.

I'll look for pictures later.
 

dcg9381

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I see a lot of these on Youtube, and I find them fascinating. That said, the price of this stuff is outrageous, yet I see guys pouring gallons of the stuff.

Anyone here into it?
Depends on what you mean. Epoxy has been getting more expensive, but if you're doing things like counters - in terms of price epoxy is pretty competitive versus $50/sqft for many of the granite or related products.

I still see custom wooden boats essentially hand laid, then coated in epoxy.

Most of my use is wood protection/repair.
 

Voi

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I have a neighbor who sells slabs I got two 8' slabs of Cottonwood and a 7' slab of Red Elm for $120 total.

The Cottonwood had some small cracks so I filled them will black epoxy and made a short run of live edge countertop at our cabin. It contrasts nicely with the modern look of our cabin and is cheap enough I won't think twice about moving onto something else once it's outdated or I'm sick of re-waxing.

The Elm had some much more significant cracks from bark pockets and were also filled with epoxy and it's now a corner bench. In both cases the epoxy is just an accent and used to prevent throwing away large amounts of fall off if I had attempted to mill them into boards.

I'll look for pictures later.

I can't find any recent, higher quality pictures.

Slabs when I first bought them.

thumbnail (12).jpg

I had to rip two edges off of the two cottonwood slabs in order to do a weird, angled glue up for the depth I needed. I took some of the fall off and made a bread board end of sorts.

thumbnail (13).jpg

Cracks filled with black epoxy. I think I used some inexpensive "Danish Oil" (really a thinned varnish) and some wax for the first summer. I'll probably sand it down and use a tinted catalyzed wax this winter.

cottonwood.jpg

Sorry for the mess.

thumbnail (2).jpg

I can't find better pictures of the bench. It's what you see when you first walk in the cabin. These pictures taken before final thickness sanding.

thumbnail (8).jpg
thumbnail (9).jpg

Here is the epoxy after and did a practice sand to 220 grit and wiped with mineral spirits.

thumbnail (1).jpg
 

ShaunieG

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My wife changed her mind again said that she found an epoxy countertop guide that we both can do on the mahogany slab for the tabletop. What tips and preemptive measures can you give us before we get started?
 

Voi

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My wife changed her mind again said that she found an epoxy countertop guide that we both can do on the mahogany slab for the tabletop. What tips and preemptive measures can you give us before we get started?

This is for a table and not a countertop that will need to be scribed against a wall, into a corner, etc.?

In either case make sure the slab is dry. If it's a countertop that will be scribed really make sure it's dry.

What role will the epoxy play? Top coat? Gap filler? Both? Does the job require a form to contain the epoxy?
 

yeldogt

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My wife changed her mind again said that she found an epoxy countertop guide that we both can do on the mahogany slab for the tabletop. What tips and preemptive measures can you give us before we get started?
You may be mixing things up here.

Most of the epoxy people use with woodworking is to fill the defects ... not to cover the whole project. Most people use a commercial finish for wood counters in a kitchen. Few theories there as well -- some like to just oil others like more of a finish. Anything can scratch ...

Flooding w/ epoxy is tricky .. that's a whole other look and the strength is still dependent on the wood type. The last time working with a slab counter I used a two part that's used on floors .... rehabbed the old writers cabin on my property.
 

JAL74

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Michigan
Hello All,

First time poster, long time lurker. I do epoxy resin furniture and table tops. Currently working on farily large 'river' bar top. Here are couple of pictures of it (Not finished, still lots of sanding, assembly and finish to apply), but you get the idea. The epoxy resin is expensive, but there are different types for different applications. So depends on what you need, mainly there is deep pour epoxy (most expensive), shallow pour, the flood coat type for finish work. Use the right stuff for you application and select a quality brand like liquid glass or West sytems and you should be good. Mix exactly how the instructions tell you. Make sure you pour in the correct temperture per manufacturers instructions and use fans to cool the epoxy if doing large deep pours.

IMG_0917.jpg
 

ShaunieG

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This is for a table and not a countertop that will need to be scribed against a wall, into a corner, etc.?

In either case make sure the slab is dry. If it's a countertop that will be scribed really make sure it's dry.

What role will the epoxy play? Top coat? Gap filler? Both? Does the job require a form to contain the epoxy?
If we're gonna continue, it'll be both.
 

Grimpala

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20200826_160838.jpg20200826_160828.jpg

I've shared these before, but this is a desk the wife and I made using flood coat epoxy to cover ~50 year old freight carts from the local Sears warehouse and a tanker desk. Took us about a month and ~4 gallons of epoxy to cover the top. I used 3/4" ply as the base, the wood is ~7/8" and the edge banding is 2"x1/8" that I bent with a torch. The epoxy is 1/8" - 3/16" thick across the table and other than a few holidays here and there turned out really nice and clear.
 

Voi

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If we're gonna continue, it'll be both.

Are there any cracks or gaps that go all the way through? What will the deepest pour be? How much volume would you guess.

Also, will this project need to be contained in a form for the pour? Or will it just be contained cracks/gaps?
 

Voi

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20200826_160838.jpg20200826_160828.jpg

I've shared these before, but this is a desk the wife and I made using flood coat epoxy to cover ~50 year old freight carts from the local Sears warehouse and a tanker desk. Took us about a month and ~4 gallons of epoxy to cover the top. I used 3/4" ply as the base, the wood is ~7/8" and the edge banding is 2"x1/8" that I bent with a torch. The epoxy is 1/8" - 3/16" thick across the table and other than a few holidays here and there turned out really nice and clear.

Did the edge banding act as a lip to catch the epoxy? Or did you do a flood coat that rolled over the edge and then sand and edge band?

Nice work.
 

Voi

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Oct 10, 2010
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Western South Dakota
Hello All,

First time poster, long time lurker. I do epoxy resin furniture and table tops. Currently working on farily large 'river' bar top. Here are couple of pictures of it (Not finished, still lots of sanding, assembly and finish to apply), but you get the idea. The epoxy resin is expensive, but there are different types for different applications. So depends on what you need, mainly there is deep pour epoxy (most expensive), shallow pour, the flood coat type for finish work. Use the right stuff for you application and select a quality brand like liquid glass or West sytems and you should be good. Mix exactly how the instructions tell you. Make sure you pour in the correct temperture per manufacturers instructions and use fans to cool the epoxy if doing large deep pours.

IMG_0917.jpg

Love it. I hope you keep us up to date on the progress. Picked out a finish yet?
 

Grimpala

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Did the edge banding act as a lip to catch the epoxy? Or did you do a flood coat that rolled over the edge and then sand and edge band?

Nice work.
The banding acted as a dam. We left the metal raw and then hit it with a clear coat before the epoxy. I found some bronze screws that look similar to rivets and used those every 12" or so to hold the banding on.

The desk comes apart in four main pieces with two support legs under the far corner. The tops weigh ~150# each so this is a very solid desk, which is what I wanted. I sit at this thing 8-10 hours a day and the kid is at it after that, I didn't want flimsy particle board and the original tanker top was too small, so we made our own.
 
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