Epoxy resin for restoration of metal sculpture

Jorge Sahione <jsahione [at] yahoo__com> writes

>I am a Monument Conservator in Brazil. I would be grateful to hear
>of any experiences with carrying out repairs to metal sculpture
>(bronze and casting iron) and any suggestions of appropriate epoxy
>resin. ...

C.V. Horie's book, Materials in Conservation, pp. 170-175
(Butterworth-Heinnemann, 1987) has a comprehensive section on epoxy
resins and systems.  On page 171, Horie quotes Tuttle (1983) as
stating that the low viscosity amines cause serious skin
irritation,...are hygroscopic and may cause staining on copper alloy
substrates.  There are a wide range of amines used in epoxy
formulations, and one has to be careful to choose a product that is
compatible with the material to which they are applying it.  I have
used epoxies formulated for use on cast brass and iron, such as J-B
Weld, and have not observed any staining or joint failure. We have
also used an epoxy on an outdoor copper sheet sculpture on the roof
of our state capitol building that was re-gilded, without ill
effects. Abatron has bronze-filled epoxy that might work for your
application.  They have good technical information on their web
site.  You can contact them directly with questions about staining
and interactions with copper alloys.

    <URL:http://www.abatron.com/home019.htm>
    <URL:http://www.abatron.com/cgi-bin/shop/index.cgi?pid=54>

Paul Storch
Senior Objects Conservator
Daniels Objects Conservation Laboratory
St. Paul, MN


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 18:27
                Distributed: Thursday, December 16, 2004
                       Message Id: cdl-18-27-007
                                  ***