Epoxy recommendation?

Lorien

Lorien

Nose to the Grindstone
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Hi,
I'm about to get going on a hemp wrap, and would like to use a light, clear epoxy which will soak into the hemp without making it all plasticky.

No doubt there have been threads devoted to this topic, but I cannot find them:o

Any input and/or advice would be greatly appreciated:)
 
Most epoxy glues will stay tacky for months. Use a "casting resin" epoxy available at hobby stores. It will dry crystal clear and very hard.
 
What I currently use which does not show epoxy at all (unless you use multiple coats) is West System 105 Resin and 207S Hardener.

Pricey if you're gonna do only a few blades, but works well and very low viscosity for great impregnating the cord/hemp.

You can try the 30 minute DEVCON Epoxy and thinned down with some acetone to see how that works. only like 4 bucks instead of the 60 bucks or so for the west system stuff

Stay awake from the 5 minute stuff as that is PLASTIC VILLE.
 
wow, thanks guys!
The wonder of the internets:thumbup:

Anyone use naturally procured sealant?
 
If you have some spar varnish handy, try it on a test sample piece. 2 - 3 coats should give you the feel you want. I soaked a leather washer handle with it, gave it 4 coats allowing at least a couple hours in between coats and the washers increased in hardness and decreased their leatheryness with every coat. After 4 coats, the handle is rock hard.

The spar varnish will change the color some, making it slightly yellow.
 
The fast drying devcon will work just fine, you can thin it with acetone and apply it to the wrap. I've never had it take more than a day or so to dry. Fiberglass resin will also work - if the hemp is a very light color the fiberglass resin may leave a light tint.
 
Lorien said:
Hi,
I'm about to get going on a hemp wrap, and would like to use a light, clear epoxy which will soak into the hemp without making it all plasticky.

No doubt there have been threads devoted to this topic, but I cannot find them:o

Any input and/or advice would be greatly appreciated:)
Click to expand...
John White is probably the guy to ask about epoxies other than the standard stuff as he is a boat builder.
 
Gorilla Super Glue. Cuts Hours off your build time. Why take 4 hours to do a handle when you can do the same handle in 1 hour or less. I will never go back to Epoxy.

Whoops never post to thread at 2 am.
 
First if you want to learn about, and how to use epoxy, purchase the West Systems book , or use the library.
Second the faster an epoxy goes off, it is not as stong as a longer timed hardner .Typical epoxy does not leave any feel exceprt hard. True clear eopxy can be had by using Tap Plastics medium hardener and resin. Tap has four steps of hardners , West System three. Epoxy takes about 24hrs to cure. It will continue to cure for up to 30 days, but can be used in a couple of days. Second coats should be done before 24 hours.
The strength of epoxy can be enhanced by using powerded additives. Carbon fiber, cotton , micro ballons , ultra strength to 15%. The list is very long.
Remember they build large Yachts with this product and wood laminate, hence WEST System wood epoxy saturation tecnique.Oh the larger the amount mixed, the faster it goes off.

Take care
Floyd
 
BlackToe Knives said:
Gorilla Super Glue. Cuts Hours off your build time. Why take 4 hours to do a handle when you can do the same handle in 1 hour or less. I will never go back to Epoxy.

Whoops never post to thread at 2 am.
Click to expand...

I was actually thinking about trying Gorilla super glue, but I was concerned that it might discolor the wrap or make the handle too stiff. Have you had any of these problems?

This may be a stupid question, but how do you make sure that the glue does not come into contace with your underwrap material?

Thanks!
 
jdm61 said:
John White is probably the guy to ask about epoxies other than the standard stuff as he is a boat builder.
Click to expand...

great suggestion:thumbup:
 
I settled on a marine oriented spar varnish.
Thanks for your help guys:thumbup:
 
so far so good. It's glossier than I had in mind, but that will likely wear down with some use. It's not thick so it soaks in great. It doesn't smell terrible either.
One thing I hate about epoxy is the smell. If a knife handle smells like epoxy, I want nothing to do with it.:thumbdn:
 
wen your handels dry how about a pic sound like something im thinking about blaktoe id like to see your glue coat as well gunsto
 
Lorien said:
so far so good. It's glossier than I had in mind, but that will likely wear down with some use. It's not thick so it soaks in great. It doesn't smell terrible either.
One thing I hate about epoxy is the smell. If a knife handle smells like epoxy, I want nothing to do with it.:thumbdn:
Click to expand...

How many coats did you put on?
 
sure I'll put up a picture later on.

I applied the varnish to the hemp wrap after wrapping, and just one application where I made sure the hemp was totally saturated. Used a qtip to apply. There probably isn't much point in applying more, since it will just sit on the surface of the first layer. But we'll see how things go, I can always do another application. I don't want to lose the texture of the hemp because it's really nice.
I initially soaked the wrap with danish oil a few weeks ago before going to varnish. I don't know yet if that was a good or bad idea, I guess time and use will tell.
 
Oh, I see. I bet the danish oil did more or less the same thing an extra coat of varnish would have done. In my experience with the varnish, one coat doesn't do much in the way of hardening a fabric but second and third coats will progressively harden it. I experimented with small swatches to see if it would make micarta but no go, or at least I didn't take it past the first coat as it didn't look like it would be worth the time if it would take several coats.
 
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