[Sara Cas]

How long do you wait after pouring your resin into a mold before adding alcohol ink color?
I did an experiment with varying times to see what would make the color look best. I did not add any alcohol ink to the resin before pouring into the mold. The molds which I added the AI to the pour just minutes after pouring and up to thirty minutes after, have still not cured after 2 days. The ones in which I added the color 30+ minutes after pouring into the mold were first to cure and de-molded perfectly. I am using the SuperClear resin for casting. I have read that a cold room can effect it and my room may be a little too cool…but would that still be the cause if half of them have cured? I want to do resin petri effect next so want to make sure I get the timing right and preserve my supplies. Thank you in advance!

[Katherine Swift]

Hi Sara,

This sounds really perplexing! In my experience with using the super clear resin and alcohol inks, too much ink in one spot can make the resin cure sticky or not at all. I wish I had an easy formula for you to follow, but unfortunately, I don’t. For me, the times that I see the alcohol start to pool on the resin surface and not move (down or sideways) is when I’ve had sticky problems. This is also made worse if the mold is thin.

I’ve always added the ink immediately after pouring and haven’t had any problems assuming I don’t use too much ink.

Warming the resin and the room might help in this situation. I describe how to warm the resin here: https://resinobsession.com/resin-frequently-asked-questions/at-what-temperature-should-i-be-mixing-my-resin/

[Author]

Posts