Cool, thats good to hear. You using resin or epoxy? And I still will buy a set from you just send me a PM when you're ready.

smoothcast 327 resin...

Have some spray mold release I might try...

Ah, that's the stuff all right. That's what I remember from the Jewelry store now. Just didn't remember what it was called.

well, I have it, mostly use it to seperate my molds, never really thought about using it for the buttons. The silicone mold material I use doesn't stick at all to the buttons, and only a few freak occurences have produced buttons with the bubbles on the surface they've all been internal. But hey, I'll give it a shot what the hell right?

Ok Pics of my mods


This show two things, one the blue ring around the button that's kewl the other is the light on all the innards I dislike that, but the camera doesn't show it all that well.
I have an idea that will will defuse the light and block it from showing the innards.

Put electrical tape on the back of the lens. You won't see the internals - just make sure not to cover up the IR thingie.

Nice job on the knob board btw....

Wow, I like it. Thanks for taking the time out to get a picture. A 'magic-marker' style mod would do for the diffuse light, I reckon.
I think I'm gonna have to give it a go, break out the Maplins catalogue!

Cheers.

True, but since I gave the faceplate back to Tim after we tried it out and I don't have any pinholes in my knob yet it isn't a lot of use. One day when I finally get a little free time ...

I'm in. I placed an order for Hulksters kit over six months ago and have received nothing - and I get no response to my emails.

Cheers,

=-C

DIRTY DIRTY DIRTY LITTLE BUBBLES ARRRRRGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!

Got my new longer setting plastic, vacuum pump, got a vacuum chamber set up, used mold release. Got everything set up, pulled a lot of bubbles out of the mix during degassing. Poured the plastics.... waited 2 hours.... and there they were... those little fricking bubbles, the bubbles that won't go away (not as many but they are still there)....

Not sure what to do, I've got a crapload of money invested in this button producing endevour now... and I honestly can't sell them and feel good about it until I can get the bubbles out.

Smoothon technical support said it might have something to do with humidity but I'm doing this stuff in the dryest place in my house... So I'm wondering if this might be regional? That would suck... have one more idea that I'm going to try tonight, which is shake well before using (as printed in the smoothon instructions), measure both parts out... then let it sit (the chemicals involved are very low viscosity, supposedly degassing isn't required) for a long time, then mix, degass and pour.... we'll see...

If this doesn't work I might have some button molds to sell

You can try this and invest more money into the venture

http://r5.us.rmi.yahoo.com/rmi/http://amos.catalogcity.com/cc.class/cc/rmivars%3ftarget=_top?pcd=3368017&ccsyn=15

Can you post pictures of the buttons and these bubbles? Im curious to see how bad it is.

well I would... but I just ordered a new digital camera to replace the one I broke in ireland, so kind of shorthanded on the monitary side of things but I will be able to post a better picture of the buttons soon.

Huh? What exactly is that "Air-Dryr Dehumidifier" supposed to accomplish, other than recirculating humid air (which a basic fan would also accomplish)?

Cheers

What about in-mold degassing?

What exactly is that "Air-Dryr Dehumidifier" supposed to accomplish

It's really just a low-level heater. I't intended to keep air warm enough to keep water dissolved in it (is that the right term?), rather than condensing and causing surface dampness. It's intended for boats and other dank places. It certainly wouldn't reduce humidity, but it would reduce relative humidity. Probably not what's required here and wouldn't do anything useful at all.

What about in-mold degassing?

Just tried that tonight.... bubbles... still, granted cut down just a tad but enough that when they glow, you can see em... I seriously want to help people here with some buttons but damn this is becoming very... very frustrating. I remember talking to Brian he used the exact same materials and never had any issues with bubbles. He mentioned he lived in a less damp climate then I do, I still don't know if thats really the issue but I took classes on molding and casting in college!! I honestly can't think of anything else?
this really blows

Greetings!

How bad are the bubbles? Depending on size / location / distribution, they might give a neat effect when backlit by the LEDs.

Hi Paul.

I thought along the same lines, and would really be _very_ interested to see images of his latest tries.

cu,
sven

I'll post a picture, I ordered this camera, and should be receiving it this week sometime (does anyone know if this is a decent camera, it got good reviews?) But the effect is just a few small black spots in the button... Not really anything cool like "tiny imperfections so you know they were handblown by peasants" or anything like that

Geez, must be frustrating as hell being so close, don't falter now

Have just read the smooth-cast 327 datasheet and sure enough it does mention working in a warm environment and also that moisture may be problematic (but mainly with shelf-life rather than properties)

So, taking that to its limit,.... I know you haven't got a huge amount of time before this stuff starts curing but you could pre-heat the resin and hardener components before you mix (this will reduce the viscosity even more allowing easier de-gassing and also address any moisture issues).

Start off with a 10 to 20 degree centigrade increase and see if your working time is acceptable and of course whether it makes any difference. Also may be worth heating the mould and mixing vessel to match the resin temperature as well as working in a >25 deg C environment.

Anyway, good luck. Sim