[Damon]

Hi folks,

I’m working on my first diorama, which includes a sea section. It’s my first resin pour and unfortunately things didn’t go as planned 🙁 The model is cylindrical: half painted XPS, half resin. I’d created a cylindrical mold from thin acrylic sheet and used silicone along the sides of the XPS to keep the resin from flowing around it. That seems to have worked. I tried to seal the bottom of the mold with hot glue, and that failed after I’d completed most of the pour, draining resin from the project. You can see the holes it has created and the silicone dikes I created to contain the flow.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/dMvTEysdMG2vLh4v7

I figure this can’t be saved and I’ll have to start a new diorama (I don’t mind too much, I want to use transparent pigment anyway). Question is, will this type of mold work if I seal it with silicone instead of hot glue?

Thanks in advance!

[Katherine Swift]

Hi Damon,

Silicone will work better, but that’s a lot of weight you’re working with it. Expect that you’ll still have some leakage, but hopefully less than the hot glue.

[Damon]

Thanks, Katherine! I’m also noticing it’s eaten into the XPS foam (noticeable above the current surface of the resin). Could this have been prevented with ModPodge? Not sure if its a purely chemical reaction or the heat that’s generated…

[Katherine Swift]

Did you use a slow-curing resin?

[Damon]

Good question. It looks like I got the wrong resin to begin with – tabletop not deep pour. Well, this has been quite the learning experience…

[Damon]

I also didn’t do multiple layers. I just YOLO’d into all the noob mistakes, didn’t I? 😀

[Katherine Swift]

Hi Damon,

A deep pour resin is better for a project like this. You’ll have A LOT fewer bubbles and it will cure slower, producing less heat. This is the one to use: https://shop.resinobsession.com/collections/resin/resin-obsession-deep-pour-resin

[Damon]

Thanks, what’s the room temperature (range) for proper curing?

[Damon]

For the resin you recommend, I mean

[Katherine Swift]

Low 70s F is idea, but with a pour that big, you’ll have to be ready for overheating. This article will help: https://resinobsession.com/resin-resin-resin/epoxy-table/

It’s not exactly what you want to do, but the same concepts apply to what you’re making.

[Author]

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