Cadstat

Cadstat

Well Known Member
Are there any tricks for mixing Proseal? I bought a scale to do the 1 to 10 by weigth. Also do you mix it in a wax cup? I hear it sticks to everything.
 
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Cadstat said:
Are there any tricks for mixing Proseal? I bought a scale to do the 1 to 10 by weigth. Also do you mix it in a wax cup? I hear it sticks to everything.
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Don't use anything that is waxed mixing Pro-Seal or epoxy. It mixes a lot easier when it is warm. I keep my epoxy and Pro-Seal in a temperature controlled hotbox set to 90*. You can buy some nice 16 oz clear plastic food grade containers from Gordon's foods or other restaurant supply store.
 
Paint Mixing Cup

I used the smallest available paint mixing cup from my local auto parts store to mix Proseal in. Weighed it on my postal scale, mixed with tongue depressor or popsicle stick and loaded it into a veterinary syringe. Mixed and used indoors in around 70 deg F air temp.
 
Mixing

On the advice of others (Mr. Dooley), I'm mixing on a ceramic tile. I'm using a putty knife for mixing. I was somewhat disgusted when I went to buy a new putty knife and it was some funky shape, rather than the square cut knives of the old days. I bought one anyway and found the funky shape allowed for better mixing. Who'd of ever thunk it! I've found if I keep the hardner off the tile, I get a good clean mix and don't have to worry about any unmixed hardner making its way to the semco gun. Let the goop dry on the tile and remove with a single edge razor blade and you're ready to go again.
 
Thanks for the pointers. The Pro-Seal is sitting in a little can on the shelf and will be put to use before too long.
 
proseal tips

- I always just weighed and mixed the stuff on little disposable plates. I got it out of the containers and mixed it with craft sticks.

- Don't be stingy with the latex gloves. Change gloves frequently and you will minimize mess.

- Sometimes it is useful to put the proseal into a sandwich baggy with the corner cut off to help apply a line to the target.
 
Weighing the stuff

My wife has an inexpensive electronic postage scale that I use to weight it out. I zero the scale with the paper plate on it (what ever I use to mix it in) to minimize the math. Very helpful.
 
I just finished my tanks yesterday! :D Edit: waiting a few days then doing the leak test. That will tell me if I'm really done?

My advise with Proseal:

Buy the pack of 100 count gloves!

I started the first tank with a 10 pack. Proseal migrates from surface to surface. I underestimated just how messy it is (even after reading all the threads). The 10 pack lasted about 15 minutes and then things like finger tips, tools, parts became gummed up that much quicker.

The next round I started with the 100 pack. Almost every movement I changed gloves and tossed them in the garbage. Mixing and then toss, line-up part and toss, install rivet and toss...etc.

Once I started doing that, everything was MUCH easier and cleaner to deal with. Compared to the mess during the 1st round, the rapid glove change proseal was actually enjoyable... relatively speaking;)
 
gloves were too much of a hassle for me, just MEK your hands clean, unless you do this daily/professionally, you won't die from building a set of tanks
 
For proseal, here's what I ended up liking best (or hating least):

-flexible plastic bowls about 8oz size from restaurant supply store. You can easily peel the proseal out and reuse after it has dried.
-An aluminum stir stick about the size of a tongue depressor made from scrap aluminum. Much easier for thorough mixing. I kept breaking the popsicle sticks. I used the popsicle sticks for measuring out the two parts and then threw them away.
-A good scale with .1gram ability and tare feature. Probably overkill but I really liked being able to accurately measure small quantities. I always knew the ratio was close to exact.
-Lots of 2x2 squares cut from old t-shirts next to a small bowl of MEK.
-Box or two of latex gloves.
-Semco sealant gun. Felt like cheating!
 
I bought a cheap food scale at Walmart and usually measured 30 grams of the base and 3grams of the catalyst at a time and it worked out well. I think I worked a little slower than most but 30 grams was enough to do one rib both sides.
 
Farm Store Syringe

I mixed mine in paper cups, cut down to about 3-inches tall. Used popsicle sticks and tongue depressors for mixing, then ladled into 35cc syringes from Tractor Supply Store (drilled out the opening to about 3/16"). OK as long as the mix is runny and warm.
 
Shelf Life

I've been told Proseal has a shelf life of 6 months...unless you keep it in the freezer when not using it, then it's over 2 years. Seems to be true for me. Just have to remember to take it (both parts) out of the freezer before mixing!

Definitely use gloves and old clothes, MEK is not good on your skin, and proseal does get on everything.

For more exact application, I've mixed it in a small ziploc bag (getting it in the bag can be challenging), then cut off a tiny corner and apply it like cake icing applicator. It helps a bit and works well for placing beads.
 
4 tanks, 1 can

Best tip I ever got for building an RV:

Step one, watch a cake decorating class.

All the other steps:

Obvious things like old clothes & lots of cheap nitrile gloves (multiple pairs before you start; peel off a pair when they get too messy).

Here's the (apparently) best kept secret: quart ziplock bags. Turn one inside out, place it on the scale, zero the scale. Add proseal & hardener in correct ratios, ending up with about a golfball size lump of black & white. Grab the lump by wrapping the bag around the lump; turn it right-side out again around the lump. Squeeze out the air, zip it shut, and knead the lump with a 'rolling pin' (~6" of 1/2" dia pvc pipe). Force it all to one bottom corner, then force it *slightly* away from that corner & snip off the corner. Start decorating your ribs & rivets.

Bonus tip: on interior ribs, if there's a ring around each rivet & a little blob over the shop head, anything more is just extra weight.

Charlie

(Yes, it's 4-1, but this isn't an April Fools post. The title is very close to real.)
 
Shelf Life

I've been told Proseal has a shelf life of 6 months...unless you keep it in the freezer when not using it, then it's over 2 years. Seems to be true for me. Just have to remember to take it (both parts) out of the freezer before mixing!

Definitely use gloves and old clothes, MEK is not good on your skin, and proseal does get on everything.

For more exact application, I've mixed it in a small ziploc bag (getting it in the bag can be challenging), then cut off a tiny corner and apply it like cake icing applicator. It helps a bit and works well for placing beads.
 
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