Measuring & Mixing Epoxy

[jonathan snyder]

Hi Folks,

I bought a small package of System 3 Epoxy. Instructions say it must be mixed in a precise 2:1 ratio.

How do you folks measure small accurate amounts, & what do you mix it in.

Thanks
Jonathan

[David Wilson]

You can go to a drug store and purchase graduated cups. I had some about the size of a shot glass. Get 2, 1 for resin and 1 for hardner.
Don't get them mixed up. You can clean then up with DNA They will last a long time. Also get some clear plastic cups to do the mixing in.
Use popsicle sticks to do the mixing.

[lou sansone]

is the ratio by volume or weight?
if by weight, you will need a scale
lou

[David G Baker]

I buy the disposable plastic cups that restaurants use for tarter sauce, etc. They are approximately one ounce, cheap, and semi-transparent. I use two for the measuring and eyeball the ratio. If you need a larger size, they are available as well.
David B

[John Huber]

For smaller amounts than the previous posts, I use the caps from soft drink bottles. If you crazy glue an ice cream bar stick to the bottom, you have a handle and can dip the epoxy components from the can. This is easier to control than trying to pour small amounts. After one use, I toss 'em.

[Eric Mims]

I just buy super cheap clear plastic cups, small size, like 100 for a $1. Put one in another, use a graduated cylinder or other measuring device to fill the inside cup up a known amount with water. Use a marker to mark on the outside cup the different measures. Now anytime you want to measure, just throw a new cup into the marked cup. But it's hard to control precisely if you're only mixing a very very small amount.

they will certainly melt if epoxy is left too long..don't ask how I know.

[jonathan snyder]

Thanks Folks!

Ended up using measuring spoons, But I like the idea of graduated cups for larger amounts. I will have to check the drugstore.

Thanks again, Hope everyone is enjoying the holidays.
Jonathan

[Ronald Coates]

One other idea... I use system 3 quite often and the mix ratio is pretty critical. After a mishap or two, I ended up using 3ml syringes. I bought them online. I got 100 or so for $20 and I use one at a time. Epoxy first then hardner then stir with the syringe. All in a dixie cup.

[Cody Colston]

I use West System epoxy and purchased the pump dispensers. An equal number of pumps for resin and hardener is the correct ratio, be it one or one hundred.

I use Dixie cups for quick glue-ups but if the epoxy is going to sit in the container a while, then a larger container extends the working time by spreading out the mixture and reducing the heat.

Small Tupperware containers are good and the epoxy does not stick to them.

[Ed Tubridy]

Lee Valley has 100 30 cc plastic cups with graduation marks in both metric and imperial measure. Item 56Z82.02. The trick is getting the right amount in the cup :)

[Rick Gibson]

Know any nurses? The wife spent a week in the hospital last year and every time they brought her meds each pill would come in one of those little plastic cups . Each cup holds 1 fl. oz and they were graduated in tbs., drams, fluid oz and CC. They don't reuse them and just toss them. The wife asked if I wanted them. After taking a look I said yes. Next thing I know she has a couple nurses saving them for me and I have a stack of about 100.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

I just squirt it out onto some glossy paper equal size clumps is plenty good enough for me.

[James Carmichael]

To get a precise mix when backing wooden longbows, I use two equine syringes from a local feed store. Works great, very precise, clean, and keeps the two components completely separate.

[Joe Spear]

lou sansone,

The ratio is by volume. That's a good question, though: if by weight, it would matter if the two parts were of significantly different densities. It would also be a real pain to have to weight the stuff.

[Dave Anderson NH]

I did the mix of epoxy on scraps of cardboard, wood cutoffs, and almost every other kind of shop scrap for years. I finally got smart. Lee Valley sells packages of 100 mixing cups for about $3 made from clear plastic and with marked graduations on the side. These are exactly the same thing doctors offices and hospitals serve you your pills in. They work very well and are so cheap that you don't feel guilty throwing them away. I also use them for mixing small amounts of dye, shellac, toners, and all kinds of other shop use.

[Noah Katz]

You can get caulking sized tubes of epoxy for bonding in concrete anchors at building centers.

The tube is split down the middle all the way to the nozzle, so it automatically comes out 50/50.

[Hank Walczak]

I use the plastic containers from Crystal Lite drink mixes for most of my glue needs whether it's PVA or epoxy. Just my .02

Hank

[lou sansone]

Lou Sansone,

The ratio is by volume. That's a good question, though: if by weight, it would matter if the two parts were of significantly different densities. It would also be a real pain to have to weight the stuff.

we use many different types of 2 part materials at my day job and they are all mixed by weight rather than by volume. it is actually a much more accurate method and I think easier to do, provided you have a good triple balance scale.

[Joe Spear]

Some of you may have heard about the Big Dig problems in Boston. Last summer a six-ton ceiling panel in one of the new highway tunnels came loose and fell on a car, killing a woman. The panels are held up on bolts that are set in drilled holes in concrete and supposedly anchored with epoxy glue. One of the six or eight problems they found--either with the design or the execution of it-- after the accident was that the epoxy may not have been mixed in the proper proportions.