15 replies to this topic

[ThePlatypus]

I am a long time club builder but reserve that for April - September so I've never done any builds in the winter.

I know epoxy needs a certain temperature to cure but if I don't have that temperature will it just take longer to cure or will it increase the risk of failure?  Temps right now are in the 40's.

I was thinking one of two things.

Bring all the components in overnight to let them get to room temperature and then do the work in the garage.  I use the Mitchell 510 Quickcure so it cures pretty quickly.

OR

Do the work in the garage and let them cure in my basement although the basement is not heated and temps are probably 50's.

I am trying to build a set for my trip to Miami in 3 weeks so I don't have to build them right this second, I can see if it gets a little warmer in March but I can't have heads flying off during my trip as that will be my only set.

Thanks!

[Howard Jones]

Make SURE all parts and the epoxy is above minimum temp both when you do the job, and in the curing time, but i WOULD NOT use fast drying epoxy, even the one from Michell, on anything else than Putters and temporary demo clubs.

Its simply not that strong as the long cure version, so if you both are at low temp, and use quick cure epoxy, you are in the red zone for losing a club head in play.

If the epoxy is NOT easy to mix, because its to thick, dont do the job.

Edited by Howard Jones, 27 February 2013 - 06:15 AM.

[rodge]

Is there a reason you can't do the epoxy mixing and assembly in your home?

[ThePlatypus]

That sort of fell under option 1.  I would take one club at a time from the house, go to the garage and assemble it then bring it back into the house and grab the next one in line.

[Nessism]

I'd bring the clubs into the house as mentioned, or use the basement and set up a couple of small lamps next to the clubs to heat the air.  Old fashion type light bulbs give off a fair bit of heat, and if you can contain that heat with a dam of some sort, and keep it around the clubs, the air will get plenty hot.

BTW, I'm not familiar with that particular epoxy, but many modern fast cure epoxy products are just as strong as the slow dry stuff.  3M DP 420 vs. 460 for example.

[ronsc1985]

A little basic chemistry may be in order here. The speed of reactions (epoxy cure in this instance) varies approximately by a factor of 2 for each 10 C/18 F change in temperature. This is a two way street i.e. heat it up it cures faster, cool it down it cures slower.

Epoxy curing is an exothermic reaction i.e. it generates heat. For bonding golf clubs the amount of epoxy used is so small the temperature is whatever the ambient temperature is. If you are using a larger mixed quantity as your measure of whether the epoxy has cured you may be fooled as the heat generated by the reaction itself may have sped up the process if the volume was large enough.

[sunbeltgolfer]

I have a workshop in my basement and this time of year it is a bit cool down there even with heat runnining. I don't take a chance on epoxy not setting properly by assembling down there when the temp is down in that 45-50* range. All of the assembly and curing is done in my rec room. Also, I keep my epoxy in a cabinet inside the house during the cold part of the year. Seems to last longer on the shelf with consistent temperature. Almost all of my builds are done with Golfworks tour set epoxy and haven't had any issues when curing at a normal temperature. We keep our house around 65* this time of year and the epoxy cures without any bonding issues. I am not a chemist so I can't say with certainty that curing below 55 or 60 will cause the bond to fail or be weaker. I just wouldn't take the chance.

[Dillio187]

I built a 'heat box' with a 75 watt light bulb as someone mentioned above.  I set my assembled clubs inside it, put the lid on, and come back in an hour to cured clubs.  It works awesome.  The epoxy I use is normal 24 hour epoxy but the additional heat greatly speeds the cure time.

Edited by Dillio187, 27 February 2013 - 09:15 AM.

[ThePlatypus]

The liability issue is what concerns me the most.  I never do this during the winter so I am hesitant.

I built one club which is my shaft demo club and it is curing in the room where the furnace is located.  I need to try the pxi before ordering a whole set of them.

I also ordered a fresh batch of epoxy in case I do the whole set.

Let's see what happens with the demo club...

[hckymeyer]

Just put a towel down on the kitchen table and do your assembly inside.  Do it before bed time and let it cure overnight inside and then clean up in the morning.  Keeps the wife happy for not having golf stuff all over during the day and you will have a warmer temp for the epoxy to cure.

You can dry fit everything in the garage to get your swing weights and lengths correct, just do the final assembly inside and curing inside.

[Socrates]

ThePlatypus, on 27 February 2013 - 09:59 AM, said:

The liability issue is what concerns me the most.  I never do this during the winter so I am hesitant.

I built one club which is my shaft demo club and it is curing in the room where the furnace is located.  I need to try the pxi before ordering a whole set of them.

I also ordered a fresh batch of epoxy in case I do the whole set.

Let's see what happens with the demo club...

Liability?  It's not C4.  No worse than using Elmer's glue to paste your kids projects together.  Epoxy has nothing that is volatile in it and is almost impossible to ignite even with a torch so you have no worries.

If you feel you must do it your garage, use a light bulb or flood light propped up a couple of feet as per what Nessim said.  Use 24 cure epoxy so you can do more than one club at a time.  A lot of hassle for an irrational fear of blowing up your house.

[Shambles]

I test epoxy by mixing a small dot and letting that dot air dry. If it hardens in the expected time, the epoxy is good and can be used on golf clubs.


Shambles

[ThePlatypus]

Socrates, on 27 February 2013 - 10:41 AM, said:

ThePlatypus, on 27 February 2013 - 09:59 AM, said:

The liability issue is what concerns me the most.  I never do this during the winter so I am hesitant.

I built one club which is my shaft demo club and it is curing in the room where the furnace is located.  I need to try the pxi before ordering a whole set of them.

I also ordered a fresh batch of epoxy in case I do the whole set.

Let's see what happens with the demo club...

Liability?  It's not C4.  No worse than using Elmer's glue to paste your kids projects together.  Epoxy has nothing that is volatile in it and is almost impossible to ignite even with a torch so you have no worries.

If you feel you must do it your garage, use a light bulb or flood light propped up a couple of feet as per what Nessim said.  Use 24 cure epoxy so you can do more than one club at a time.  A lot of hassle for an irrational fear of blowing up your house.

By liability, I am referring to the clubhead flying off and injuring someone or worse.  I would hate for that to happen.

[Ri_Redneck]

Dillio187, on 27 February 2013 - 09:14 AM, said:

I built a 'heat box' with a 75 watt light bulb as someone mentioned above.  I set my assembled clubs inside it, put the lid on, and come back in an hour to cured clubs.  It works awesome.  The epoxy I use is normal 24 hour epoxy but the additional heat greatly speeds the cure time.

This! It's too cheap a solution to not use.

BT

[tieta]

ronsc1985, on 27 February 2013 - 08:37 AM, said:

A little basic chemistry may be in order here. The speed of reactions (epoxy cure in this instance) varies approximately by a factor of 2 for each 10 C/18 F change in temperature. This is a two way street i.e. heat it up it cures faster, cool it down it cures slower.

Epoxy curing is an exothermic reaction i.e. it generates heat. For bonding golf clubs the amount of epoxy used is so small the temperature is whatever the ambient temperature is. If you are using a larger mixed quantity as your measure of whether the epoxy has cured you may be fooled as the heat generated by the reaction itself may have sped up the process if the volume was large enough.

Does it increase the risk of failure in the cooler temperature?

I thought it would not affect the bonding as the reaction went slower a bit since it is not extremely cold(below 32F).

[Socrates]

The lower temps greatly slows the cure time.  Once mixed, epoxy will continue to cure unless it gets frozen.  I don't know what the rate is, but it could take a long time.  3M data sheets might show it, but haven't looked for it.  Even at room temp, most epoxy doesn't reach full strength for 48 hours so cold temps could mean days.  Much simpler to add a heat source and get it done in a few hours.