Solarez UV Cure Clear Casting Resin (4 Oz) ~ for DIY Jewelry, Hobby, Craft Decoration Making - Crystal Clear Solar Cure Molding and Casting Resin That Cures in The Sun or w/UV Lite

I ordered a 4 ounce bottle of this to use as a sealant on a heavily painted resin project and while I'm happy with it overall, I did encounter a few issues. The bad first:After about 5 minutes of working, the resin poured from the bottle began to cure in the dish I was using, though I was working in the darkest corner of the carport. It became thickened and clumpy, spreading gelatin-like blobs over my work that couldn't be picked off, so they had to be sanded off and re-glossed after curing. Working outdoors is a must, as is a vapor-filtering respirator, because the fumes are horrid. So strong, in fact, that I could smell the resin through the bottle as soon as I opened the package it came in. I keep it tightly closed, wrapped in plastic and tucked inside an airtight zipper bag for storage in the house, and even then I occasionally catch a faint whiff when I move past the shelf in my workshop.Furthermore, despite being "non-yellowing" resin, sunlight exposure over the course of a few days did give my control samples a definite amber tint. It's minor enough that it won't ruin a project, unless you need it to be absolutely crystal clear, but it's hard to find a truly non-yellowing resin--it is what it is.I also encountered some issues where the resin separated from my project (which was coated in acrylic paints, indoors, and had only been handled with gloves) and created a snowflake-like pattern on the underside, which eventually turned into a clouded, raised bubble. I think I will be able to pick these off, as their strength seems to be compromised compared to the rest of the resin, so maybe it was the result of contaminants in dish or brushes I used? Hard to say.But that's all the bad. Now for the good points.The resin is extremely easy to use, pouring either with the nozzle my bottle came with, or doing what I did for most of the project, pouring the resin into a dish and then applying it to my shaped pieces with a foam brush. It went on thick but smooth and did not appear to be prone to dripping or running. It cured relatively fast, given how dark the pieces I was covering were, which does influence cure times; using UV only to cure, it took about 15 minutes for a complete non-tacky cure on a near-black finish. Still speedy, compared to other options.Once cured, it sands well and can be polished back up with superfine grits of sandpaper. Re-coating sanded pieces with more resin also eliminates sanding marks, or you can use acrylic gloss for a quick fix. I saw no bubbles in my brushed-on finish, which is superb compared to other resins I've used, and I didn't notice any seam lines or marks where the resin was applied in layers, unlike the clear 2-part resins I've used in the past.It's also incredibly durable, as I immediately managed to accidentally drop one of my cured pieces 4 feet onto concrete, and it was fine aside from a little scuff mark that was easily buffed out.It is less picky about being applied over water-soluble materials (such as my acrylic paints) than other UV resins I've used, which goes a long way to making it a real winner, but the best thing I've noticed is that it isn't influenced much by extreme humidity--something extremely important for me, living in an area where a "dry" summer day is close to 70% humidity.Though I have more projects I intend to test this resin with, I've been extremely pleased with the results, and strongly feel its good points outweigh its issues. It's an excellent price for the amount of material you get and the glass shine can't be beat.

I've worked with many materials to cast small or medium-sized parts for model assembly, and this stuff is my favorite. For most parts you can fill the mold directly from the bottle without worrying about mixing proportions or rushing because of short pot life. Molds can be made from modeling clay or other materials and no heating of anything is necessary. The best quality of the stuff is that the liquid is thin enough to flow nicely into the corners and recesses of molds and pick up even minute detail without trapping air bubbles that ruin the casting. I used it to replicate clear headlight lenses for a model car and it beautifully reproduced the tiny scribed lines on the lenses. Since it dries clear you can make parts that otherwise are very difficult to duplicate. I use it in a ventilated paint booth and the odor is therefore no issue. I "flash" cure the parts using a small UV flashlight that I found for a few bucks on Amazon, but I found that leaving the parts under a fluorescent light overnight eliminates any slight stickiness and provides assurance that the parts are fully cured. The finished parts can be sanded or filed if necessary. Be careful to cap the bottle as soon as possible after dispensing the resin, and store it in a dark environment (the bottle itself is opaque, but just to be on the safe side I store the bottle in an outer container that is also opaque). I expect that this will be my "go to" material when I need to mold small items, since it is far superior to 2-part resins, epoxy, or plaster.

I make a lot of jewelry and most of it is with resin. I am unsure on what application this resin would actually work with and maybe I need to do more testing on my end, but with what I have tried, just didn't give the results I was hoping for.In the past, when I have used UV resins, the tend to react to alchol based inks from a inkjet printer, even sealing them with Mod Podge would still create an issue between the resin and the image. This doesn't, it cures with no reaction. But upon receiving this, opening the package for the first time, the smell was extremely overpowering and I had not even opened the container, which WOW, this is VERY strong. I don;t feel comfortable using this without being in a ventilated area.But now to the nit and grit, when this cured, it left ripples in the top. I tried this on the ink paper, then wax paper. I even tried to see if I could use this in a mold and upon removing the mold, the Resin was not fully cured, it was a small amount and just a light coating, but dissapointing. I use a UV Nail light that I have used for my other UV resinsThen my final test was in a small skinny glass tube with twisted wire inside, and the resin pulls away from the wire. I will post pictures to show what my experience was with this. BUT the product does cure crystal clear. I know some people who make cabachons, you end up sanding your surface anyway to give it a shine, this product would be amazing for that. Or sealing polymer clay (which I haven't tested it on) but only if you plan on sanding your surface. I did purchase their doming resin, hoping this will be a better solution, we shall see.

This didn’t cure well under UV light and I left it under the light for 5 minutes. The surface had a bit of a texture when it cured. If you aren’t super picky about that then this might be ok stuff for you. For my jewelry, that’s not ok though. It smells toxic so use in a ventilated area. Also, don’t try popping the bubbles with a torch because this stuff will catch fire.

I bought the 4 oz bottle, it arrived very quickly and I was very eager to try it and compare it to some other resins. I'll get right to the pros and cons.Pros:- low viscosity at room temperature- no bubbles in the bottle, so there's little to no bubbles in the final product (if you're not mixing it with anything)- cures hard, is clear, and is easy to work withCons:- tiny amount of shrinkage. It seems to shrink about half a centimeter at Most. It hasn't been a problem so far.- the odor!!! I was prepared for some smell, but a few fans and open windows didn't cut it. I simply work with the garage door open now, and move it out into the sun when it's time to cure. Seriously, wear a mask, inhaling too much of it burns.The odor doesn't stop me from using it, but be aware that proper ventilation is needed. Its better to be safe than sorry!Awesome resin.