What non foundry project did you make today?

I put my moulding bench to use since it's got a marble top on it.
This is a marble tombstone from a forgotten cemetery on the back of our business property.
I discovered the cemetery last fall and started cleanup on it. Only four of the 15 stones that I've found so far are standing.
This one was the worst, being pushed over by a tree. I need to remove the tree, stump and all, to see if the bottom piece is there.
This is my first go at repairing a stone. Not perfect, but I can touch up the rough spots if I find the rest of it.

 

Nice job on the repair. I doubt you're looking for accolades on the cleanup, but you're getting them from me anyway. If youre so inclined and want to go one better, find a Boy Scout whose looking for his Eagle badge to help you.
I say that because a boy did exactly that in a town nearby and not only earned his badge but resurrected a treasure in his town.
Pete

 

I had thought of that but the problem is, my time to work on it is very limited.
I brought this stone home to repair it because of the complexity of it. Epoxy a piece, let it sit overnight, repeat.
This is what I'm dealing with. There's 5 of these on YT.

 

Very nice job! And a very kind and generous thing to do! Good on ya!

Denis

 

I finally decided to do something with this soft maple chip I've been storing in the shed. It's from the stump of a tree I had cut down about 5 years ago. After the tree men felled the tree they made a through cut closer to the ground and left it about 9" thick. I'm not sure why they did that but I'm sure there was a reason. I left it outside off the ground for a couple years so parts of the center got a little punky but not too awful bad. After I got my new shed a couple years ago it put it inside, so it's pretty dry now. I'm going to cast my girl's family coat-of-arms and family name and inlay them. The Irish seem to like that. Then I plan to encapsulate the entire thing in a thick epoxy and set it up in the flower bed next to the barn easel-style.
I'll most likely want to paint the aluminum prior to coating with epoxy. I've never used epoxy coating before and I know it won't be a cheap date so I need to do some homework on things like application, compatibility with paint and background stain, etc. so I get this right the first time.

Any tips would be appreciated.

I made a leveling jig and frame for my router and took it down to just under 7". I decided my 20x30' workshop didn't have a sufficient layer of dust coating everything so I did it inside. Problem solved. I did have all of my machine tools covered however.

Pete

 

We made a 'Penny Table' (glue pennies to the top of a coffee table) and coated it with Bar Top Epoxy. Pretty easy to use, self leveling, use a hair dryer to release any bubbles.

https://www.amazon.com/bar-top-epoxy-resin/s?k=bar+top+epoxy+resin

 

A SUPER SUPER clean environment is really important with that thick epoxy stuff. It will grab stuff floating in the air big time. And you're right, it's not cheap. Lots of work.

 

Don't be tempted to try it with clear PU resins. They are much more 'outdoor' stable but they will find and extract the tiniest percent of moisture in the wood and turn into an incurable foam! I found out the hard way!

 

I made some progress over the last week. My petrobond has gotten pretty weak and it was a tough pull to begin with so I lost some details on the left side of the shield. I'll clean the lines up a bit with an engraving pen before painting.
Peedee, I'm wondering if I can perform the epoxy coating and then use the PU over it? Only 2 concerns: $ and delamination.




Pete

 

The question of polyurethane over epoxy seems to come up on wooden boat forums.
http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthread.php?190380-Polyurethane-top-coat-directly-over-epoxy

Some of the “better” brand name epoxy makers might be able to tell you how their specific formula will work. It looks like most folks (not all though) recommend a primer and then PU. Even if the manufacturer gives the go ahead, I’d sure try a test piece to see if there is good adhesion and no bleed through.

Denis

Edited 7am PDT

 

Unless the epoxy layer is UV stable it will still yellow under the PU coat. I used clear PU on a wood model, it was sealed well I thoughtbut it still managed to find moisture in the wood and ended a big mess of foamy crap! Not sure if epoxy or polyesters would be available to suit the application, my knowledge is a little lacking on those.

Edit, that is looking nice!

 

Thanks for your replies. I get from some of epoxy mfgs that an initial thin coating/coatings of the same coating product is sufficient as a primer and to fill holes and bring things up to level before the big pour. I also understand the areas that I'm describing as punky (read rot) will require special attention. Apparently I'll be making a commitment once I begin the project as there's limited windows of coating and recoating time. Although they have definitive answers about how and what you can cover up, they can only give recommended guidelines about what you can put over the top of it. They recommend you test. That's fair but not hugely helpful for obvious reasons. I'll read some more and then get busy.

Pete

 

I chickened out on the epoxy. Too expensive and too hard to repair in case of failure. I went with spar varnish instead. At least it won't be to hard to sand off and repair later. Sorry about the glare in the photos. I just couldn't shake it. I put 8 coats on both sides. 6 coats of gloss ( 'cause I had nearly a gallon of it ) and 2 coats of satin to knock down the sheen. The punky end grain sucked that stuff in like a sponge. I had about 4 coats on it before things started to smooth out. The castings were primed with selfetching primer from a rattle can, painted with acrylics and coated with shellac. The castings are just set into the cavities into the picture. I'll use gorilla glue to stick them in and then go over the whole thing with one or two more coats of satin. That should seal them in and dull the castings a bit.
I'm headed to my friends junkyard on Saturday to find materials to fabricate the stand for it. I'm thinking of wrought iron railing or sections of wrought porch post, but we'll see what I can come up with.



Pete

 

There ya go pete. It looks good. That epoxy is uber expensive now. Probably why we dont see much of this stuff anymore with half an inch of clear on it. I remember back in the late 70s/early 80s every bar and wall clock was covered with it.

 

I made the second shelf! It only took me 5 months haha. I'll be painting it soon. This one sits over a 55gal drum which will hold purified rodi water for the fish. Super duper excited. It holds 3 tanks. I may make a 3rd stand later but I need to measure the gal between the tanks to be sure everything will fit.


And here is a pic of the first one.

 

Nice work. You've come along with your welding and fabricating skills.

Pete

 

Haha thanks. I was thinking that too while welding last night. My welds look a lot more even and nice than before. It only took me 9 years of welding at a hobbyist pace to get here and many home made machines and tools lolol.