cheaper option than alumilite for casting

[joe zarnitz]

does anyone know of something else---tks,joe

[Harold Balzonia]

I primarily use "total boat" epoxy resin. Easily found on amazon or direct from Jonestown distributors. It takes a while to cure and to be able to de-mold compared to alumilite, but I'm not usually in a hurry. I use it because it has a longer pot life so if I need to mix more, I can still pour it on top of the original batch. Splurge for the pump dispensers.... it makes everything easy to mix exactly right.... no messing around with scales.

it is cheaper than alumilite but not by a significant margin. I don't know what makes epoxy resins so expensive, but it seems to be virtually the same cost per gallon regardless of brand (west systems, alumilite, total boat, bar top, etc....)

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[Brent Wells]

What are you planning on casting? There are options but those can change depending on what you are casting. If something is thick like a vase or peppermill you run into heat issues and it can crack when curing. If you are casting pen blanks then there are many options out there. If you did not want to cast with alumilite you also have polyester resins and epoxy. Shipping is where a lot of them get you.

cheapest I have found is silmar 41 from www.uscomposites.com /poly resin
liquid diamonds - turners warehouse and etsy /epoxy
Royal Palm - facebook Jason Burr, I think he just started a website epoxy

There are some epoxies you can get at hobby lobby with 40% coupon like cast n craft or easy cast both epoxies. Poly resin Silmar 41 is cheapest I have found but has bad odor you can not cast in your house. The epoxies I listed are odor free, but will only be slightly cheaper the alumilite.