I'm having problems getting the Diamondite finish to cure. I applied Diamondite color preserver and let dry overnight. I measured 1/8 tsp of activator to 1/4 tsp base mixed well let set for a couple of minutes then applied to guide wraps. I let the rod turn overnight still tacky. I put a halogen light source about a foot or so from the wrap raising the temp to about 100 degrees. Left the light on for about 1/2 hr. Checked it after several hours still tacky. Let it rotate overnight still tacky. The weather has been overcast cool and humid. The rod is rotating inside my house temp between 65-73 degrees. Could the problem be caused by the humidity? Does the light source need to be incandescent? Pleas help???

Any suggestions to remedy this problem? I am thinking of lightly hitting the wraps with acetone; if the wrap dries I will cover with Rod Smith epoxy.

Dennis Scott

Dennis I also use spoons and Diamonite. The smallest spoon I use for any finish is 1/4. I had a mix like you describe decided I must have gotten the bottles mixed up on the mix. Any heat source will work and no to the humidity. I would keep the acetone or any solvent away if you plan to recoat over the top. Bummer - but I seriously doubt the problem is the Diamondite.

Bill the reason I might wipe the wraps with acetone; because acetone is recommended for cleanup per the instructions that came with the product.

Acetone is fine for clean up of things that are hard surfaced like spoons or brushes - any left will evaporate quickly and there will be none left. If you apply it to partially cured finish it may mix in with the existing product and not evaporate causing furthur contamination. Other casting resins applied over the top will come in contact with the underlying surface containing excess acetone and the results will be unpredictable. You are the only one that can judge what your definition of sticky is - if your are talking about a partially cured resin where only a finger print can be seen when mashing down then a second coat on top may work - if it is soft and you can move it around with a toothpick it may be best to strip and start over. Good luck.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/26/2008 05:54PM by Bill Stevens.

If it's just tacky and not goo just recoat with a correctly measured
& mixed batch and all will be fine.

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

Raymond I tried to re-coat, but it still remains sticky. I am going to test a piece of scrap diamondite couple hours of cure time then acetone clean with alcohol followed by Rod Smith epoxy.
If this works I will apply the procedure to my sticky wraps.

Dennis

I've been experimenting a bit with Diamondite. It definitely is different than epoxy. On the first rod, I had a problem with the material staying soft, but it eventually hardened. I was using syringes, and I think the activator, being pretty thin, "blew out", and I didn't have enough.
I learned yesterday to be careful with the lightbulbs. I let one get a little too close to the turning rod, and a million bubbles instantly popped up. From now on, I think I will just let it harden without any extra heat.
I do like the way it goes on though, and the long pot time is great.

Never use a solvent as the last step in any cleaning procedure. Never wipe your wraps with Acetone. I doubt this is your problem, but it certainly isn't going to help anything. "Clean Up" refers to the cleaning of the brush or spatula afterwards.

Always mix enough of the parts so that you allow yourself some decent margin for error. It is more cost effective to use a little more now, than to have to recoat or even strip the old off, rewrap and refinish. My bet is that you used such small portions that your ratio was off by enough to upset the cure.

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As has been said here many times (not the least by Tom), you need to mix at least 1/3 more than you think you'll need to make sure you get the parts even and also to make sure you get a complete mix.

It takes a lot more care to get two 1cc parts to mix properly than it does to mix two 3cc measures of each part. Yes, pot-life will probably catch up with you. Yes, for the average rod layour, you'll probablky not use about 1/3 of the stuff you mixed. But the quality of your finish will be "right", and you won't have to spend all that time trying to fix problems like this.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

I finally put the rod dryer and rod in my den and used a portable heater to get the temp up to 80 degrees. I also put a 100 watt incandescent lamp to each wrap for about 1 hr. It finally hardened. I am think my problem may have been the very high humidity the last few days along with cooler temperature. I don't know if the light halogen light source I started with was a problem, but I switched to the incandescent bulb per the instructions. I think I need to play around with Diamondite some more to figure out the do's and don'ts.

Dennis

I finally put the rod dryer and rod in my den and used a portable heater to get the temp up to 80 degrees. I also put a 100 watt incandescent lamp to each wrap for about 1 hr. It finally hardened. I think my problem may have been the very high humidity the last few days along with cooler temperature. I don't know if the light halogen light source I started with was a problem, but I switched to the incandescent bulb per the instructions. I think I need to play around with Diamondite some more to figure out the do's and don'ts.

Dennis

Heat is what speeds the cure, so any type bulb that puts off a good deal of heat is what you want.

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