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Building Tips and technical articles. => Paint and finishing => Topic started by: frank mccune on February 26, 2024, 12:35:31 PM
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Hi All:
The above says it all. I have four gallons of clear dope that I do not want it to become too thick. Can I add acetone to the dope without any problems.
Tia,
Frank McCune
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Frank,
Your best bet is to get thinner for the material you are thinning. Spruce Aircraft has thinner for Butyrate and Nitrate thinner.
Best, DennisT
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I used acetone to thin dope for spraying. And the answer is, it flash dries too fast and you will never get a smooth surface. It was chemical fine, at least my brands were. However, when I overcoated it with auto clear, it still shines.
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If you look at most commercially available ( hardware stores) lacquer thinner, and then look at the ingredients, most will say "100% Acetone." Many guys have used Klean Strip lacquer thinner from Home depot and such here with good results. Use the search function and read all about it. if you are satisfied after testing that it's OK, treat your gallon containers with a dash, then reseal the lids and store them upside down. Any air will go to the bottom of the can and the liquid inside seals off any other air leaking in.
Type at you later,
Dan McEntee
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I agree, the acetone is very quick to flash. I do, however use it in 2 part clear to get it to flow a bit better. I use a 4/1/1 ratio and it works quite well.
Keep in mind, though, that I have only done this for repairs, and not a large amount of material.
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Frank,
I would not use straight acetone.
You should read this article on lacquer thinner which provides some good background.
https://thefinishingstore.com/understanding-solvents-part-iii-laquer-thinner/
Dave
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Hi Guys:
I will add a bit of acetone to my dope in hopes that it retards the tendency to become thick during storage.
Thanks for all of replies!
Frank
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The cans that usually have dope or thinner in them pretty much suck. They leak regardless of how tight and this allows solvents to escape and air enter. I would reduce any head space in a can and make a additional gasket on the lid. Yellow folder or cardstock works well.
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Something I have been doing for quite some time now for storage is to seal the can in a garbage bag for the larger cans, like gallon, containers, and smaller ziplock plastic bags for my quart of 2K accelerator to guard against moisture getting in. After losing a can of hardener to it turning yellow and not curing, is when I started that. Now I buy my hardener by the quart and really HAVE to be careful with it, but it works.
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One fact more is essential about acetone: it is very hydrophile, when it is high amount in the solved lacquer, dope, etc. during spraying can get too much moisture from the air. It is very volatile, so the sprayed surface gets cool.
Most thinners contains at least 3-4 ingredients: esters (e.g. amylacetate, ethylacetate), aromatics (cyclic hydrocarbons, e.g. toluene)...
Istvan
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If the gallons haven't been opened, I wouldn't do anything to them except store them upside down. I've used lacquer thinner to thin dope with great success, after reading about the Home Depo brand here. But I've never attempted to use acetone. I'm risk adverse as the price of dope goes up and availability goes down.
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If the gallons haven't been opened, I wouldn't do anything to them except store them upside down. I've used lacquer thinner to thin dope with great success, after reading about the Home Depo brand here. But I've never attempted to use acetone. I'm risk adverse as the price of dope goes up and availability goes down.
The next time that you go into a regular hardware store or an auto parts store, just look at the can of their lacquer thinner. A few years ago I went around to several stores near me and bought quarts from them all just to check and test. It knew it would at least be useful for cleaning brushes. Each can I bought just said "Acetone" under the ingredients. And as some one else mentions, I have some other stuff and the Klean Strip that has added ingredients. That's the stuff I mix and thin dope with. I remember when i found out about DuPont 3608S lacquer thinner and it was much cheaper than SIG thinner at that time. Then in different parts of the country, it wasn't available as "3608S"and the last letter was changed to "W" I think. Windy called it out on one of his tapes. So you can have state regulations get in the way of what can or can't be sold. I just bought some from a lady on FB Marketplace. It works very well, has a ingredient listing that reads like Klean Strip, but on the label it is called "Brush Cleaner" and I think that was some one's way of getting around a regulation of rule some where along the line. I sure miss the good old days!!
Type at you later,
Dan McEntee