Black Epoxy

Thanks Cynthia, for the article. It was a very interesting read.... I didn't even think of Aniline dye. I don't have any but may go to the hardware store to see what they have any Ritz dye, maybe in powder form. Not to worried about structural strength as it is to fix a pendant for my girlfriend.

@ Bill,

When Norm added the black epoxy to the Mesquite, it filled in and looked just like the rest of the dark brown to black mineral streaks. Here on the island we have Keawe (kay-ah-vay) which I found out is Mesquite! It was brought over a very long time ago! It really thrives well in the desert area of the Kohala coast here on the Kona side of the big island. Makes me want to learn how to use the lathe I bought about 6-7 years ago! LOL
 
When Norm added the black epoxy to the Mesquite, it filled in and looked just like the rest of the dark brown to black mineral streaks. Here on the island we have Keawe (kay-ah-vay) which I found out is Mesquite! It was brought over a very long time ago! It really thrives well in the desert area of the Kohala coast here on the Kona side of the big island. Makes me want to learn how to use the lathe I bought about 6-7 years ago! LOL[/FONT]

Please do! Some of the Mesquite looks absolutely gorgeous when turned. I'd start with something a bit softer and easier though, it turns like iron! It grows different in Hawaii than it does in Arizona - a lot denser thickets

I remember some locals selling Keawe at the farmers market to tourists for $10 for a little tiny jar of chips as "special hawaiian Keawe BBQ smoking wood". For all I know they were just repackaging Mesquite from the store (actually pretty sure that's what they were doing). We got a laugh out of it anyway.
 
Black-colored epoxy is my favorite filler material on turned pieces. I prefer it over coffee grounds, turquoise, or brass key shavings. I've used India ink, TransTint, and finely-crushed charcoal to make clear epoxy black. Beware using the India ink, though. I had one case where I used too much India ink and the glue never completely hardened. (You could still dent it easily with a fingernail 6 or 7 years later.) My favorite, though, is to simply use black epoxy. I've used something like this, although the packaging was a bit different:

http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1382310
 
lots of good information and some good links! I called all around but couldn't find either of the epoxies that the links lead to. Nobody sells dye, I didn't follow up on the Ritz... I did find a charcoal briquette!! I just have to figure out how to grind it to a smooth enough consistency to mix with the epoxy. I almost used the Krupps coffee grinder but my girl friend put her foot down on that idea :D....

I was thinking too, that when I go into Kea'au to check my mail tomorrow, I'll swing into Ace and see if I can get a dab of black pigment for the paint mixing machine. I don't need even a 1/4 teaspoon for what I'm doing..

Thanks for all the help!!

PS... Ryan, you've got "da local kind brahdas all figured out"!! LOL
 
I've used pencil lead. It's probably graphite, but I just ruined a pencil against a piece of sandpaper over a sheet of paper to collect it. Mix up your epoxy, add the pencil dust, and mix again. Comes out pretty dang black. Black enough that it doesn't show up readily when I'm fixing the exposed carbon fibre trailing edges on my dagger boards and rudders on the boat.
 
I use black Inlace Dye to mix in epoxy to repair small cracks in wood turnings. I usually mix two clobs about the size of a nickle and just add a little color using a bit on the end of a toothpick. It don't take much and I doubt it has much effect on the strength of the epoxy.
 
I am wrapping up a project that uses almost a quart of epoxy filler - and I used carbon black as the color - a tiny amount of powder in the epoxy. Probably the same as pencil lead or finely ground charcoal.
 
I have not seen a shelf life limitation, nor do I expect one since the separate materials (resin and hardener) don't dry or degrade when dripped on the side of the bottles - they stay remarkably like the materials inside the bottle, even open to the environment.

Starting at this link you should be able to find the technical specs (which I found interesting the first time, but way too much info for casual use) http://www.systemthree.com/store/pc...&ProdSort=19&page=2&idCategory=11&viewAll=yes

I got a small scale from Amazon for about $7 which was extremely helpful. Most of my batches started with 0.1 to 0.5 ounces of resin (0.22 ounces of hardener). I mixed in the clear plastic cups (about 5 ounces) used at parties, so I could see that the color was dispersed. See http://www.amazon.com/American-Weig...UTF8&qid=1418483970&sr=8-3&keywords=aws+scale
 
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