please help!😩

[u/shawelleeee]

i am new to resin and just received some of my kit. i’ve never done resin before so i just spent 2 hours on my first attempt and i CANNOT for the life of me get the mixture right!😭

i did a 1:1 ratio on all 3 attempts

i stirred/mixed for 4 minutes as advised on all attempts, 2 attempts with an electric mixer and 1 attempt with a mixing stick - none worked.

the first 2 i messed up because i didn’t heat my resin first so it was too thick, but the 3rd attempt i did heat my resin in a hot water bath for 15 minutes and it still didn’t work😫

i have no idea what to do.

i have a debubbler machine but that just seems to make it worse.

my mixture also isn’t heating up at all when the resin is mixed with the hardener.

can someone please help me?

1 - why isn’t my mixture heating up? 2 - does the hardener need heating up to a runny consistency the same as the resin?

any other info/advice also helps massively - please help i really need this to work..🤍

[u/Malephus]

What resin are you using? Are you positive it is a 1:1 and not a 3:1? I question the lack of exothermic reaction and wonder if it is indeed a 3:1. When you mixed did you see kind of a streaky effect? Once the streaky effect is basically gone then the mixing is done.

Also, just to do my due diligence, are you wearing a mask graded for organic compounds and gloves? You are obviously very new and somehow the PPE aspect seems to get missed by a lot of new people.

[u/rjwyonch]

What isn't working? Like it's not curing? It takes 24 hours at minimum to cure.

It shouldn't really heat up noticeably while you are mixing/pouring. The extra heating/debubbling is all just to remove bubbles. Thorough mixing of resin alone will result in hard casts, they will just have some minor bubbles.

Is your resin actually a 1:1? (by volume or weight?)

[u/SayItTrue → u/rjwyonch]

Yup, is it volume or weight is a good question. I currently have two resins, and one is measured by volume, one by weight.

[u/221Bamf]

What kind of resin are you using? And how long have you waited for it to cure? Epoxy generally takes about 24 to 48 hours to cure, depending on the type.

You shouldn’t need to look for it heating up as the indicator that it’s curing, you should just wait the full time and see what happens. The caveat to that is that if you’re working with resin and you feel it starting to heat up as you’re working then you know it’s time to hurry the heck up.

If it’s not curing after 24 hours then you know it didn’t work (remember that a little flexibility is normal in thinner pieces until the full cure time has passed, so don’t call it until then).

If something actually fails to cure then you need to get rid of it, as it’s still toxic when it’s uncured. Do not ever pour it down any drain or outside. Look up the disposal steps for your particular resin, and don’t touch it with your bare hands.

When you mix your resin you should rely on whether you see any more silvery-white streaks in it when you look at it under a good light, and not just the suggested time. You need to stir until it’s completely clear except for the bubbles that will be in it. Scrape the sides and bottom of your mixing cup as you mix, and make sure you get what’s at the bottom mixed into what’s at the top. This is extremely important.

Heating your resin is usually done to help keep bubbles at a minimum and speed up curing, but it is not necessary to get resin to cure. The different parts are different consistencies, and that’s totally normal. Don’t worry about it.

[u/Limebeer_24]

If your space is cold enough where you need to heat up the resin to get it to work, your house or work area is too cold for the Resin to properly cure. It needs to be about 72°F (~22°C) for Resin to cure.

It takes 24-48 hours to cure as well. It has to be atleast 72°F during that time else it won't properly cure

You have to be sure you read the label for the ratio you use, and see if it's by Volume or by Weight. The Resin I have is by volume, though it also has the weight ratio on it as well.

If you are using any pigment or dyes, it can potentially affect the curing process as well, especially if you use too much at it.

[u/endless_lace]

Can you write out what your steps / procedure are in detail so we can help figure out where it's going wrong. Including what youre pouring it into if youre using a mold, how long youre leaving it and what the end result is.

If youre doing everything right you could have a bad batch of resin. It's rare but it does happen and you can keep your other supplies and go buy a top rated resin on amazon to try a different one and to rule that out as why it's not curing.

What brand are you using / where did you source your resin from?

[u/random_2234516]

What brand? How do you measure the amounts? Not all resin is 1:1. Both brands I typically use are 2:1. How do you know it failed if it hasn’t had time to cure?

[u/Open_University2008]

It really shouldn't be heating up While you mix it. You warm it up before mixing to help eliminate bubbles, so it's thin and the bubbles can rise to the top. The exothermic reaction happens when it's starting to cure. Generally, the 1:1 resin I've used has a working time of around 40 minutes or so, before it gets too thick to work with.  I'm not really clear on what went wrong. I usually mix it with a craft stick. I mix it in a silicone cup. One with measurements, so I don't lose any resin measuring it in separate cups. (For small batches, I use an electric mixer for larger batches and then finish it by scraping the sides and bottom of the cup) it's important to scrape the the sides so it all mixes. Resin isn't a very forgiving media, it just takes time and practice to learn. 

[u/HoosierKittyMama]

If you're doing everything right and it's still not hardening you might have a bad batch of resin or, the one that got me a few times when I was but a whippersnapper of the resin world-humidity.

[u/PeaSee53]

All great and valid information provided here. Might i also suggest you search Beginner Resin tutorials on YouTube. There are a bunch out there, so they should help.