air in break after repaired

[john eltoro]

what causes air to show up again in a break after repairing it ???. when i am done repairing a break (star, combo) the repair looks great. the following day or two, i look at the repair and i see black spots believe to be air, in the repaired and fully cured break... any suggestions, tips? thanx

[GlassStarz]

Keep the injector on the ugly ones longer than you think needed and cure under pressure and yes after all that some breaks are like mother inlaws just plain ugly no matter what you do to em.

[glassdoctor]

Add to above post...

If you are using heat (like a bic lighter) to help fill stars, stop it immediately. If you must do this, don't ctop and cure until the glass is completely cooled.

Make sure the break is completely dry before you start.

Maybe just poor quality resin? If you are consistently having this problem, try a different resin and see if it helps.

[dgarza]

this sometime happens to me as well. when this does happen and there is air at the end of the crack is it still just as strong as fully filled?

[john eltoro]

thanx guys, the one about the heat sounds like a real possibility, i never gave that one some thought, but i did try different types of resin and it still showed up on maybe 50 percent of the repairs. i thought it could of been coming in from the pit not filling correctly.

[dgarza]

hey guys, when this does happen and there is air at the end of the crack is it still just as strong as fully filled? I mean can this cause the crack to keep going if a small amount of air is left in? Im asking this cause some of the repairs Ive done I havent been able to fill some cracks all the way to the end with resin.

[gold star wsr]

dgarza,

No matter how good the repair might look, if the resin does not go to the tips of the cracks, it is not properly repaired. It is from the points of the stars that the cracks will run out.

[dgarza]

ok then some of my repairs are doomed! There have just been some stars that I cannot get the resin to flow all the way to the tips of. Ive tried heat and pressure and the only thing i can think of is that I may not be putting enough heat and or pressure on them. Im affraid to go too far for fear of causing it to crack out.

[DaveC]

Dgarza,

I can only speak for myself, but I'm sure that others have encountered stars that, no matter what, couldn't be filled from the "primary" point of impact. Since I am most concerned with structural integrity, I just break out the drill and go to work on the leg of the star from the other end. Do I wind up with another pit? Yes. Do I now have a break that will not crack out? Yes. Structural integrity has been restored and the universe is now safe from alien invasion

[dgarza]

thank you, that was what I was thinking of doing from now on but wasnt sure. I do hate to cause another pit but if its better than leaving air in there then so be it. thanks for your help.