Thinning Epoxy?

[No_6]

I use a variety of water-clear 5 minute epoxy... the name escapes me at the moment... because I like the rapid cure time, and this particular brand is amenable to sanding, cures very hard and stays pretty clear. Any yellowing is more than offset by the white LEDs I use since they tend towards blue anyhow.

So I've tried thinning it with iso alchohol before, acrylic thinner and even india ink and transparent paints for various effects. Apart from longer cure times, things have gone pretty well, but I've never been able to thin it enough so that it would flow easily or well into windows. I've also found that thinning it with anything turns it yellow.

So am I using the wrong stuff to thin with? Or is it going to turn yellow no matter what? And at what point should you thin? Before or after mixing? Are there ideal proportions?

Thanks in advance.

[kenlilly106]

Have you tried warming it to lower the viscosity?

I've done that with various brands of hardware store epoxies more than once, it works but accelerates the cure time by 50% or more, I haven't had one get hot enough to melt plastic or anything but I've had a few that managed to get hot enough where the leftovers were uncomfortable to hold in the mixing cup.

Ken

[AbsoluteSciFi]

At Maaco, they use what is known as MH-187, MH-186... thinners that REALLY cut paint. But all of the paints used there are two parts, and hardeners are added.