Polishing epoxy resin pieces: polish, wax, and sanding

Have you ever made an epoxy resin piece and noticed that it had some imperfections after de-moulding it? Like not having a clear, shiny surface? Or not having a clear, matte surface with some imperfections?

Before we show you how to fix this problem, you should know that this often happens by using cheap silicone molds that are not made of high-quality silicones, or using molds that are not for resin, or due to some mixing ratio errors or the effects of winter and cold that we talked about how to fix in a second article.

Fortunately, there are very easy and simple steps to fix any defects, and these methods are called refinishing the resin using sandpaper, polish, and wax.

To ensure your resin gives your crystal a shiny, clear and translucent finish.

First of all what do you need?

Preparation:

1. Prepare clean water in a bowl.

2. Dip the sandpaper into the water bowl for 20 minutes before use.

3. Dip the resin piece in clean water for a few minutes, so we prepare it for the sanding process.

4. Get a piece of cloth/sponge.

Steps:

water

Add water to your handmade piece, the water helps to remove the gritty paper particles that are removed from the sandpaper and protects epoxy surface from scratches that will occur in our next step.

Sanding process

Sanding epoxy resin begins with wet sandpaper that you have previously dipped in water. We recommend using sandpaper from P Grit 500 to P Grit 2500.

Starting with P Grit 500, sand carefully in smooth, circular motions either by hand or using an orbital sander.

At the end of each sanding process, we make sure that we clean the piece with clean water from the dust and particles of the selected sandpaper, then we wipe off the rest with a cloth and then re-add the clean water to move on to the next sandpaper number.. 600-800-1000 etc.. .

We continue repeating the above steps until we finish the sanding process using P Grit 2500.

💡 Sandpaper P Grit numbers are an indication of how hard or soft the paper is, the higher the number, the smoother it is. Example: 2500 is the smoothest number, 500 is the roughest number.

Now we clean our piece again and prepare it to add polish to the piece

Polish stage

After covering the piece with polish, we wipe it well again and again with cotton, cloth, or sponge.

💡 Although the polishing process is very simple, you need to be patient with it and take your time to polish the piece and make sure that the product is completely removed from the piece.

💡 Polishing helps eliminate surface scratches, swirls, oxidation and minor blemishes.

💡 You can polish manually using a sponge or using a rotary tool (Dremel) to get the best results, especially for jewelry made of resin and coasters.

 Wax stage

We cover the entire surface of the piece with the wax product and leave it for two minutes until it dries.
Using a new clean cloth (do not use the same cloth you used to polish with polish), we begin wiping and polishing the wax. Although it may appear that you have removed all of the wax compound, a thin protective layer is left behind, which is what we are looking for.. 

💡 Wax helps give the final shiny and transparent appearance, in addition to protecting your piece from sunlight, dust, and other chemicals.

Last but not least, we recommend Blige Oil which adds intense shine to our custom-made pieces and also has a refreshing orange scent!

Thank you again for tuning in, I hope this was helpful and clear.

Please leave any questions or comments below!