# cleanest way to make micarta



## Geko

i watched a lot of videos on how to make micarta. and in the most its a big mess.

i put all the clever tricks that i found in a small video on how i do it now.

and thats the result.






to use polycarbonate like CanH8r do, makes it even better.

special thanks to mr.email afleveren.

have a nice day,

geko


----------



## Greavous

rather brilliant id say! thanks for sharing.


----------



## Charles

But hey .... If I do it your way, then I will not have the joy of having all that guck on my hands, and I will miss the sweet smell of acetone as I try to clean up the mess!!!!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Very nice video ... thanks!!!!

Cheers ..... Charles


----------



## Mister Magpie

Geko,

Thanks for the information. Do you use a formula to determine the amount of epoxy mixed?


----------



## carboncopy

Thank you for the tutorial!


----------



## leon13

That's so brilliant ! Thanks you are a real genius !
And a good video to
Cheers


----------



## Geko

hey guys,

im not brilliant or a genius. i just put the different ideas of other youtubers in one video.

my goal was to make a short and easy to understand video.

@magpie

no formula. i just use a really slow drying resin.(12h time to work) first time that i made micarta it was not enough, mixed some more and remember on my bowl how much i need.

cheers


----------



## rockslinger

Nice! That is certainly a clean way to do it! :thumbsup:


----------



## colinz

Well done really good info, l liked it a lot, Thank you.


----------



## Peter Recuas

Thank you very much!
This is the kind of things I appreciate more than any award, if we all shared more rather than compete this wonderful forum would be much more crowded.

Cheers . . . Overfrog


----------



## Viper010

Thank you for posting that Geko! That certainly looks like the best way to do it. I must give this a try some time. ????


----------



## CanH8r

Awesome!


----------



## TSM

Nice and neat! This is definitely on my list of things to try.


----------



## Amarsbar

Has anyone tried a 100% micarta slingshot?


----------



## mark22c

excellent! thanks for that. have been wanting to make some of my own but put off by the mess


----------



## Metropolicity

Amarsbar said:


> Has anyone tried a 100% micarta slingshot?


I know Peppermack makes micarta slingshots all the time.

I have one of his paper micarta core ones and he makes burlap ones too.


----------



## Devoman

Very nice! I am surprised at the plate on the bottom. Reason stands to suggest that it would somehow weld its self in / on there. Wax paper is amazing if you use the right stuff. Thanks for the video, I enjoyed it very much.


----------



## kwinpr

That was great...thanks for sharing!


----------



## silenceater

Thanks for the great information


----------



## Macfz777

Will someone post the video url please? There's an empty space where it should be in Geko's post. Tried viewing from mobile and pc still nothing...


----------



## kwinpr

Macfz said:


> Will someone post the video url please? There's an empty space where it should be in Geko's post. Tried viewing from mobile and pc still nothing...


Can you see it now?


----------



## Macfz777

Yes that worked, thanks kwinpr!


----------



## Geko

hey guys,

i´m back in action.


----------



## Macfz777

Nice stuff there Geko


----------



## kwinpr

Looks good!


----------



## Beanflip

Some day, I will do this. It looks awesome!


----------



## John Jacob

So cool, I keep watching it for the groovy music. Oh, and the awesome demonstration.


----------



## Geko

thank you guys.

i enjoyed to make this video and im happy that you like it.

cheers, geko


----------



## Macfz777

Any problem with the clamps creating pressure points in the slab?


----------



## Geko

no pressure points. the wooden boards protect the micarta.

some day i gona replace the boards with some acrylic glas maybe. to get a even better result.

and here a video of what happens to this micarta.






have a nice day,

geko :wave:


----------



## bigron

i watch all of gekos video on you tube,that man knows his stuff :bowdown:


----------



## JohnKrakatoa

Indeed he does, subscribed too  TY Geko!


----------



## leon13

thanks for showing again kickxxx videos ;-)

cheers


----------



## AZshooter

I`ve been watching your videos for many years...and I always learn something new!...Good Stuff!...Phil


----------



## lunasling

Yup I don't see it ether


----------



## lunasling

Excellent tutoral but could not determin the

formula of the media you used can you be more explicet ?


----------



## lunasling

How much resin and how much hardener is used ?


----------



## JohnKrakatoa

Just use the formula on your epoxy product......each is different

And try to post less...


----------



## lunasling

JohnKrakatoa said:


> Just use the formula on your epoxy product......each is different
> 
> And try to post less...
> 
> post less ?
> 
> Ok not a problem i wont be bothering you any more .


----------



## devils son in law

I think maybe Luna was asking about the quantity of resin/hardener used in the process shown on the video. I assume he knows enough to follow the instructions provided with the 2 part epoxy he would be using.


----------



## JohnKrakatoa

Luna dont be butthurt. You can post , but posting 3 posts after each other is a bit much.

Even the overall quantity of the resin depends on what you are doing and what resin you have I think. So I guess everyone needs to tinker with their process themselves to best determine it?


----------



## lunasling

JK 
My question was directed to the poster of the video not to you,and I will post questions as much as I want unless a moderator says different 
So no I'm not butt hurt as you childishly put it have a nice evening


----------



## Chuck Daehler

I saw this vid some time ago and believe me, that's how I made my micarta magnums from a thick billet of blue jean micarta. Your method saves resin and definitely is the cleanest simplest method. I had to make my billet in two steps however for it was over an inch thick and by the time I got about a half inch of it done the polyester resin started to gel so I had to press then wait over night and do it again the following day to get the 1.2 inches or so thickness I needed for a super ergo pair of frames.

I can't get non stick baker's paper like you used here in bananaland so I used ordinary plastic wrap which releases well and since I was sculpting frames and didn't need an absolutely flat billet, the plastic wrap worked fine for my use. I just put the plastic wrap directly in the container instead of putting a flat piece of plywood wrapped in baker's paper. I had no wasted resin using your method and didn't get it all over my hands and the shop either.

Susi handed me the blue jean pieces as I put them in the resin in the mold, that saved some time, she had one ready as I asked for it, like a surgeon. I had to weigh and mix resin as I went for it was my first time and I didn't know how much it would take, costing time. I don't want to make more micarta but if I did, I'd know now how much resin to mix ONE TIME only and save a bunch of time.

Thanks for posting this vid, I saw it a year ago I think on youtube with other micarta vids which didn't use your method and it looked pretty messy. I used polyester resin, a WHOLE LOT CHEAPER than epoxy and does the same thing. I think I paid $26/gallon for the polyester with hardener (same stuff fiberglass is made of). They sell dyes at the same place to color the resin. I used black with blue jean denim to darken it and make it more subtile...but left an undyed layer in the middle to break it up a bit...it was a nice blue but the black dye didn't make the micarta black, only darkened the blue for I added just enough to darken it rather than try to make it all black.

For squeegees I used thick polyethylene sheet from sun roofing...scraps I got from a project...attached to wooden handles similar to this video's squeegees. They were flexable and really spread the resin well.

John my humble opinion is that if someone forgets to say something and posts three consecutive posts because the forum's time limit after a post (unfortunately) doesn't permit editing, that's not necessarily spamming. If it is constant, yes, but Luna doesn't do this constantly. Just my opinion...not wanting to exchange electrons with you amigo on this subject.


----------



## Chuck Daehler

Polyester hardener is 10% in most cases in most temperatures. I used 8% to give me more time and it hardened fine. Epoxy ratio is different but as said, the containers tell you what proportions to use. For first time users I advise a conservative amount to be mixed in total, you can remix more as you need it but it costs time. Poly begins to gel inside of about 10 minutes at 60degF, faster in hotter temps, slower in cooler temps. When it gels it's no good to use...you have to discard it for it won't penetrate and it gets warm as it hardens...a chemical process called "exothermic" (puts out heat) which causes it to harden all the more faster. Once it gels, it's gone.

You have to allow time to press the composite so you need extra working time to do that. Once it gels, it won't press well to exude all the bubbles and you will have some bubbles.

On one layup I waited too long and it started to gel...I pressed it and sure enough some of the layers retained air and it didn't exude out the sides. So be careful of the time...stop when you are ahead rather than too late. If you need a thicker billet, no prob..press what you have, wait over night or 24 hours, and build on top of what you've made in the mold...it's going to stick just fine. That way you can build up a thick billet as I did, over an inch thick for sculpting mean ergo SSs from. There was no separation...poly is really sticky stuff especially to itself. You can use epoxy but it's much more expensive and doesn't do anything different than ordinary polyester resin used in fiberglass composites.

If you do get a void in your micarta, just fill it with clear 5 minute epoxy with a needle to get it really down in there. Do this after you've rough sanded say to 100 or 150 grit before final sanding. Other than a pattern interruption, this epoxy patch works fine.


----------



## lunasling

A lot of knowledge your imparting my good buddy
Chuck ! And thanks for the back up .


----------

