Official Luthiers Forum!

I decided to try out polyester finish, and since I have a Chemcraft dealer in my area, that looks like the way to go, based on Mario's success with this product. My big question regards the Isolante sealer. The dealer quoted me a price for the sealer hardener of $300 per gallon!! That is not including the price of the Isolante itself.

Mario, is this in line with what you are paying? Are you using an alternative hardener? Have you tried any other sealer with the Reslack polyester?

I think I recall that Rick is using Waterlox as a sealer under the McFaddens polyester, so perhaps I should try an experiment with that. If you read this Rick, how long do you let the Waterlox dry before shooting the polyester?

I also have to buy the MEKP and cobalt in gallon sizes, as that is all that is available through them. At least those items should have a very long shelf life.

Thanks in advance for any advice,
Brook

Yup, that's about right.... We never said this was a cheap finish system.

Rick uses Waterlox on the wood, but then seals that with the McFadden rosewood sealer, which is their version of the barrier. Isolante is Chemcraft's barrier. No way around them....

You can buy the MEKP and cobalt from any fiberglass supply place in smaller amounts. No need to buy their gallons, and in fact, I'd be paranoid of having that much MEKP and cobalt in the shop!

A plus for the Chemcraft system is that their Isolante is ready to rock after like 1/2 hour or somesuch, whereas the McFadden product needs 24H. Might not be a big deal if you're using the catalyzed stuff, but it's pretty awesome if you're using the UV.

_________________
Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

What's the shelf life for the hardener and sealer? How many guitars can you do with a gallon? Our local supplier for Chemcraft said the factory burned down and they weren't stocking it anymore. Any truth to that?

_________________
Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com

there are other companies that sell isolante and polyester finishes.
Try Ilva,they make a lot of their products in quarts.
james

_________________
James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

Any truth to that?

First I hear of it. I just purchased new supplies 2-3 weeks ago.... I highly doubt that even a fire in -one- factory would make them quit the business, anyway....

Thanks for the info Mario. Just buying a few ounces of cobalt and MEKP will save me a lot of cash. If you check this thread again, can you tell me what strength of cobalt and of MEKP that you are using. I don't have the Chemcraft data sheets yet. I see cobalt in 1% and greater. Some of the MEKP is shown as 50%...

Brook

Just ask the tech guy a Chemcraft for the specs needed; he'll know! Me, I forget <g>

I tried to get some ChemCraft here, and the local distributor was so lame I just gave up. I'm happy enough with the McFadden stuff, and so I have no pressing need to change.

The rosewood sealer hardener (they call it the resin) is very hygroscopic, and so I blanket the stuff with Bloxygen whenever I pour some off from a can. If you let it absorb moisture from the air, it will go bad pretty quickly. Ditto doing that with Waterlox.

I get the cobalt from McFadden, but I buy MEKP from Fiberglass Hawaii here in SC. It's really pretty cheap by the gallon, and surprisingly, we do go through the stuff.