picking my infusion resin

General Composites Discussions Products Talk
#1

i’ve been looking at a few and unsure which will provide the best requirements for my needs.

I’m creating doors/dash boards/wing pieces so they need to be pretty stiff, i’m using VIP and carbon so here are my selections. let me know if you have experience, good or bad or if i’m even in the right direction

http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/Product_Catalog/Polyester_Resins/polyester_resins.html

8085 Orthothalic Infusion Resin
Hydrex 100 Vinyl Ester Resin

http://www.fibreglast.com/showproducts-category-Polyesters+Resins+%26+Hardener-9.html

#77 or #90 ??

or their General Purpose Vinyl Ester Resin

#2

Definitely go with the Hydrex 100. Great stuff! Viscosity of just 150-175cps.
But check which version Fiberglasssupply sells. There’s a LV, and HF designations. Pretty sure HF can’t be used with MEKP catalyst.

#3

mmm 150-175 very nice. I dont know about the color of this vinylester though… most i ve seen are ugly dark brown. This doesnt show a lot on the final piece, but if you got some resin gathered in a corner or something…

i’m using an epoxy of 200 cps and it’s very nice, so 150 will be damn thin :slight_smile:

#4

ccp makes a nice infusion vinylester infusion resin called Ivex, viscosity is between 100-200cps. resin is a green color, you do not notice any color difference in the final product. it infuses fast and leaves a nice class A finish

#5

thanks guys!

by far a great help and group here!

#6

Would a good infusion resin have a lower cps rating or higher?
because an infusion resin vs. a wet lay up resin would have a lower viscosity therefore the cps should be lower, so a resin with 200cps might be an okay resin but a resin with 100 cps would probably be the better choice for infusion.

I know We dont always dont a resin that has too low of a viscosity but I was just shoot numbers our for comparison purposes.

#7

Lower viscosity is better for infusion. However, most low viscosity resins are not as strong. When tougheners are added, viscosity goes up.
The Hydrex 100 infuses great and has decent tensile strength. BTW, US Composites VE700 is the same Hydrex 100. (Reichold is my neighbor, and I talk to them occasionally)
The CCP resins often have low tensile strength, which makes them unsuitable for structural components. We use CCP’s Stypol low shrink PER designed for RTM with great results for making short run infused molds. At 125 cps it flows very well (and it has to because of 10min pot life), but tensile strength is only 6,800.
Compare that to a Reichold PER we use that has a tensile strength of 9,300, but viscosity is 450. And just to show how much better VER’s are, a basic one we use for tooling has a tensile strength of 11,800!

#8

TET just backed up my thinking… don’t use vinylester for structural parts such as wings. unless it’s just a beater car cosmetic wing. The ve resin i have used does not saturate the carbon fibers it just encapsulates them.

#9

Actually, we use VER for many structural components. Just need to have a resin with suitable properties.
What I was saying is that attention must be paid to specs other than viscosity.

#10

How can you make a structural VE part. I was under the impression VE does not form a good matrix with the carbon fiber. In other worlds if you cut the laminate the carbon would still be dry, never weted out.

#11

it depends on the CF sizing. Most fabrics are coated for epoxy.
We use tons of VER here, and I’ve never had a problem with it.

#12

So when you trim your ve/carbon parts the carbon is stiff and solid, not stringy?

sorry for the lack of tech terminology… I get by though.

#13

The parts are rigid and just as strong as some epoxies. Post curing and using good resins in the first place makes a big difference.
Common resins available from suppliers in small quantities are usually not good enough. Often times a 55 gallon drum is the minimum, unless a distributor wants to repackage it.

#14

that is a technical term Fast…

haahaa…anyways…the edges always fray, but I have the same problem with epoxy, and even prepreg.

#15

I know this is super old but i just want to clarify in case anyone uses this for reference… I was about to buy 5 gallons of the 700 Vinylester resin, which is hydrex 100 however, there are various versions.

Hydrex 100- 33350 series - Which is what US Composites sells, BUT its 525 CPS…
http://www.expresscomposites.com/pdfs/reichhold%20hydrex100.pdf

Hydrex 100-LV is also 500-600 CPS
http://www.reichhold.com/documents/953_HYDREX100lv3326025.pdf

Hydrex 100-HF IS the correct one @ 175CPS.
http://www.reichhold.com/documents/952_HYDREX100HF3337500.pdf

Im not an expert at the technical data stuff but my understanding is 500cps is like standard resin so this would be very difficult to infuse… Just a precaution in case you’re looking to buy Hydrex 100 VE Resin. I am not sure which version Fiberglasssupply.com sells. So just a heads up before you make a $200+ mistake like I almost did!

#16

You would want infusion that has a CPS of 100-200. So the hydrex 100 would work for those just learning but also it NON PROMOTED. All the resin I used comes PROMOTED.

#17

Thats what I’m finding locally too. No Pails of 5 gal. Only drums and it appears as though that is around $1,500.00 today.

TET, regarding Reicholds Hydrex 100, is there a specific ramp up post cure process you like for your structural VE parts ? I’m getting prepped to load two molds in VE-(yet to buy resin)and was considering theirs unpromoted.

Here is their pdf, but it seems general.

Hydrex® 100 HF 33375-00

CURE
CONDITIONS
Cure initiated with 1.50 cc 46727 and promoted with .3% (wt) cobalt 12% solution. Cured
overnight at room temperature, and post cu
red for 2 hours at 65.5°C (150°F) and then 2
hours at 121°C (250°F). Selection of another ca
talyst would require verification of values
prior to production use

#18

correct on the CPS, but just a heads up once again, do not simply just buy “Hydrex 100” there are VARIOUS versions of hyrdex 100 with different CPS ratings