Need HELP with Foam job

[donald_smull]

I will be cutting out 2" pink foam for a project that I need to get out fast. I will have to glue it up in layers. My question is what glue to use that will set up some what fast so I can sand, and hard coat it. Any and all help will be great.
Thanks,
Don

[billp]

Don,
Most glues work with styrofoam. I've used regular wood glue successfully many times. Epoxies work well also. Gorilla glue has the tendency to expand in the joints so you might want to avoid it. Some of the adhesives used for higher density foams will also work, but if time is the issue I'd go with the wood glue, or epoxy and some localized heat to cure it fast.

[donald_smull]

Awesome Bill Thank you SO MUCH.

Don

[cabnet636]

we recently glued up 4 2" layers with yellow wood glue, absolutly no problems

jim

[propellers]

Water based adhesives require evaporation to cure. Foam not allowing good evaporation will leave areas uncured at the joint. A chemical cure is better such as 5 minute epoxy or if more assembly time is needed a longer cure epoxy. The possible draw back is a hard glue line that usually tears foam when cut. A water based contact cement also works well since each surface is air dried before placing parts together. Do not use a chemical base contact cement, it will disolve the Styrene foam.

[rb99]

Water based contact cement is not good outdoors in my opinion...

RB

[Brady Watson]

Roll on epoxy, laminate & put it inside a heatbox. You can make a quick heat box by setting up a 5-sided foam box with a hole at one end for a space heater & a 1" slit on the other end to keep the heat moving. Temps should reach 160° or so & that epoxy will kick in an hour or 2. Wait overnight to machine to make sure that the epoxy is totally cured in the center.

-B

[dray]

If I remember correctly Brady has done some large scale foam carvings. He can also laser scan in any character and send it back to you in full detail.

[geneb]

what would be a good material to harden the surface of that pink foam?

g.

[billp]

Gene,
Either "Apoxie", or "Magic Sculpt"would give you a weather proof coating. Both have been mentioned here before on the Forum, and I'm sure if you Googled them you'd find numerous suppliers.

[Brady Watson]

Thanks for the plug, Danny. It is true - I have done large scale foam carvings & can laser digitize models in high resolution for scaling up to larger size while maintaining good detail.

In terms of coating foam, there are a couple products out there that I hear work pretty well. One is StyroSpray 1000 by Industrial Polymers & the other is Styrocoat by SmoothOn. Both seem to require specialized spraying equipment. There are also MANY, MANY other coating systems out there - so do your research and get samples. I like the Industrial Polymers version since it is a green product and cleans up with orange oil.

-B

[scottbot]

Another product that will harder the pink foam is Rosco Foamcoat.

[kerrazy]

Just be mindful, that if you use any waterborne materials such as wood fillers or adhesives, ensure it cures, completely before top-coating.
If you do not you will find some serious blisters, forming in a month or 2. It is different then wood, as wood will absorb the moisture where foam will not, and it will cause boils in the finish... Please do not ask me how I know... arrrggghhh!

[dauntless]

I carve almost exclusively blue foam (same chemistry as pink foam, just different company), and in the past have used both epoxy and Styrospray 1000 to bond the blocks together. Now I use Styrospray exclusively, since fully cured epoxy is very hard, and the tool tended to slip past it on shallow cut angles, resulting in ragged part lines. The Styrospray is not as hard, and so machines much better.

Hope that helps.

[donald_smull]

Thank you all so much for the help. I used Pro build epoxy from Adtech Plastic Systems with a fast hardner.It worked great, but I had to wait 7 hours before I could sand it and paint it. Latter today I will post pics of the two pieces I did. And with any luck this week end you might see it in victory lane at Bristol Raceway. (thats if Jr. or Gordon wins.)I will be delivering the project today to my customer. If all goes well it will ship straight to Bristol today. Again Thank You All for your Help.

Don

[donald_smull]

Thank again for all the help guys. Here is a pic of the finished items.
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