stop loss bags

[joe zarnitz]

purpose of split on end of cap-----tks,joe

[roger wiegand]

Split? Sometimes plastic caps can break, especially if cranked on tight. Some folks on Amazon have complained of this with these bags and caps. Hasn't happened to me yet. Unless I misunderstand what you mean, there is not supposed to be a split. Time for a new cap, probably.

[Richard Casey]

Same here, I am a little bit heavy handed and I am still using the 1st bag and I have run out of caps. Replacement caps are not available over here.
Rgds,
Richard.

[John K Jordan]

Same here, I am a little bit heavy handed and I am still using the 1st bag and I have run out of caps. Replacement caps are not available over here.
Rgds,
Richard.

Do you have access to a gas supplier? Instead of stop loss bags I have a tank of nitrogen gas. Displacing the air in the original finish container with nitrogen (or argon) will make the finish last "forever". It keeps oxygen away from the finish. The method does need a tank and a regulator but it is so clean, quick, and effective.

JKJ

[Dwight Rutherford]

Same here, I am a little bit heavy handed and I am still using the 1st bag and I have run out of caps. Replacement caps are not available over here.
Rgds,
Richard.

PM your address and how many caps you want, I’ll send them to you.

[Reed Gray]

I knew a turner years ago who used to use old plastic bags from the wine boxes. Surprised that they were able to patent it.... Must know the right lawyers... Any collapsible bag with a lid on it would work.


robo hippy

[Richard Casey]

Do you have access to a gas supplier? Instead of stop loss bags I have a tank of nitrogen gas. Displacing the air in the original finish container with nitrogen (or argon) will make the finish last "forever". It keeps oxygen away from the finish. The method does need a tank and a regulator but it is so clean, quick, and effective.

JKJ
Good points John, one of my friends uses Bloxygen, works okay.


PM your address and how many caps you want, I’ll send them to you.
Dwight, thanks for your kind offer, PM on the way.
Rgds,
Richard.

[John K Jordan]

Good points John, one of my friends uses Bloxygen, works okay.


I used Bloxygen for a while and it works well. The problem is the incredible cost for the amount of gas you get. I suspect it's the most expensive argon per cc on the planet.

JKJ

[Richard Casey]

I used Bloxygen for a while and it works well. The problem is the incredible cost for the amount of gas you get. I suspect it's the most expensive argon per cc on the planet.

JKJ
That's interesting, how does Argon, being lighter than air push it out? I do have the giant Argon bottle for my Ally TIG welder. More to think about.
Rgds,
Richard.

[Timothy Thorpe Allen]

Argon is not lighter than air.

[roger wiegand]

Argon is about 1.7 kg/m^3, air is about 1.2, so argon is considerably heavier than air. Xenon would work even better, it's up around 5 kg/m^3, but I expect it is expensive.

[William C Rogers]

I tried the can and results were not 100%. Maybe operator error, but with the cost I went with the bags and so far 100% success. I haven’t broke a cap YET. There are alternatives to stoploss. I use the bags found in the camping section at Walmart. However they are not clear, but work. I did find some clear ones on Amazon that also work.

[John K Jordan]

That's interesting, how does Argon, being lighter than air push it out? I do have the giant Argon bottle for my Ally TIG welder. More to think about.
Rgds,
Richard.

Richard,

As reported, argon is actually heavier than air. It's nitrogen (that I currently use) that's lighter than air, but not by much since air is mostly nitrogen. I use nitrogen since I happened to have an extra cylinder in the shop a few years ago. I put a regulator and plastic tube on it for use with finishes (and other uses).

I'm not concerned that nitrogen is a bit lighter than air since I purge with enough to replace the air - I put the tip of the tube near the surface of the liquid and let the gas run a bit depending on the volume, lay the lid on top then pull out the tube and quickly close the lid. I will probably drag a spare bottle of argon down the hill and switch to it when the nitrogen runs out.

I haven't had a can of finish go bad since I started using nitrogen. My best proof: TruOil is notorious for starting to thicken fairly quickly after opening. I don't use it often so several times I found my bottle completely solidified when I wanted it. At least two years ago I purged two opened containers with nitrogen and they are still completely liquid today!

I found this table of gas densities which might be interesting:
https://theengineeringmindset.com/density-of-gases/

Bloxygen uses pure argon now, but the can I bought a bunch of years ago is a mixture of nitrogen, argon, and carbon dioxide.

425501

Perhaps argon works better or was cheaper than the mix. I also read that CO2 can react with certain finishes so that might have been one reason.
Some info (and hype) here, including their reasons for not using other methods:
http://www.bloxygen.com/frequently-asked-questions.html

Bloxygen worked very well for me when I used it. What I didn't like was the cost.

BTW, some gas cost info, from this reference, https://www.chemicool.com/elements/nitrogen.html:

Nitrogen: 4 cents per 100 g
Argon: 50 cents per 100 grams
pure Xenon: $100 per 100 grams!

I don't know if these prices are current or how they relate to what I get at my gas supplier. I do know that in 2014 prices for welding gases when up 9-12% due to increases from the raw gas suppliers.

JKJ