Amazing what you find

[Randy Powell]

Here in the rainey and humid Pacific Northwest, one of the various difficulties you run into is paint storage. Metal cans tend to rust and so, long term storage of all those great colors you've accumulated gets a little dicey. Unless you use red a lot, having ferric oxide in all colors is not so great. So, to resolve this, I stopped by the local gorcery outlet on the way home and picked up 3 pallets of famous Kerr canning jars to transfer my paint into. Has the side benefit of being able to tell the color you're looking for through the glass. When you have 24+ colors hanging around, it's nice to be able to tell them apart easily.

Anyway, I started the onerous process of making labels (that includes color numbers in case I want more from the local paint guy and pouring paint into jars. Surprise, surprise. I found some very cool colors I forgot I had. Some were mislabeled on the can. Some were Brodak stuff that I had mixed other colors with or added pearl or whatever and forgot I had. So it looks like my trim color choices just increased.

Now I just have to stop at the store again to get some bigger jars. I have a lot of white, it seems.   

[Bill Little]

Hi Randy,

I have used canning jars forever (we can a whole lot of veggies from the garden!).  You *might* look at puttng a layer of tin foil between the lid and jar.    The rubber seal on the lids tends to deteriorate over the years when exposed to the gases in lacquers.

Bill <><

[Randy Powell]

Bill,

I'm actually using the lids that don't have the little rubber seal. They were selling both kinds. One that had the intergral rubber seal and one that was a metal lid with an inserted seal. I figured that the straight soft metal lid was better. Hopefully the seal around the edge is good enough to keep air out.

[Bill Little]

Randy, the ones with the rubber made in are the ones I am talking about.  Both kinds had the same problem for me.  Dope/lacquer does a number on them after they have been sealed for a while.  I put some in the jars, wiped off the top, tightened the lids and came back a few months later.  The seal had deteriorated somewhat and the paint had thickened.  Nothing some extra thinner didn't fix.  But I checked some jars from a few years ago that I didn't "foil" and the paint is no good.  The rubber used is not very chemical resistant.  That's why I used a piece of aluminum foil as a "seal".  No problems after that.  I have been using them for close to 20 years.

[Randy Powell]

These have no rubber seal. But I like the tin foil idea. I'll certainly use it. 

Hey, I'm not proud, I'll steal ideas from anyone.

[Bill Little]

These have no rubber seal. But I like the tin foil idea. I'll certainly use it. 

Hey, I'm not proud, I'll steal ideas from anyone.

         Just remember, if you steal (ideas) from me, you're getting them from the greatest "Thief"  (of ideas) in the CLPA Event! 

[Tom Perry]

Bill,

I'm actually using the lids that don't have the little rubber seal. They were selling both kinds. One that had the intergral rubber seal and one that was a metal lid with an inserted seal. I figured that the straight soft metal lid was better. Hopefully the seal around the edge is good enough to keep air out.

Randy,

I know you are probably already aware of this tip but I will ad it because I know everyone is not aware of it.

After tightly screwing on the lid turn the jar upside down.  The paint will provide a good seal. 

[Randy Powell]

Tom,

Now see, that's a good idea. And no, I hadn't heard it before. Hey, you never know what you'll hear at this place.   

[Tom Perry]

If any of you have ever used the urathane glues such as Gorilla brand and others and have had the glue skin over between uses I would recommend storing it upside down so the skin is formed on what was the bottom of the container.
                         

[Russell Shaffer]

Thanks, Tom.  I just went in and turned mine over. 

[Bill Little]

Tom P,  Thanks for posting that.  It is an old trick, and I did not even think about it at the time.