Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I was looking for a large container of resin because I had a few casts to make at one time. I almost didn't buy this one because it has a really small half ounce catalyst compared to 32 ounces of resin and most of the casting resins I see have equal parts resin and catalyst so I thought I was going to have to buy more catalyst to get my money's worth. Turns out that the small catalyst is plenty. You only need a few drops at a time. It doesn't come with mixing cups and stirrers like some of the kits. I learned that styrofoam cups DO NOT work (the casting resin will eat through the foam within a minute) but plastic cups are perfect and popsicle sticks were really cheap at any local store. I did want to point out that this stuff does smell extremely strong. I have asthma and I did have to wear a mask. I also had to move my casts to the garage because the smell was too strong. I made the mistake of doing the casts in the winter so it took up to five full days to dry. They were still smelly so I had to wash the dried casts with soap and water to kill the smell. They still have a bit of an odor but not as strong. I also found out that the plastic top which covers the container can be used as a mold for the resin. I went ahead and used it as well as a secondary mold that I bought separately. I also bought the mold conditioner that is supposed to release the resin from the molds easily. I discovered the the mold conditioner I bought left a bit of a cloudy residue on my casts. It's more obvious in direct light. I learned later that many people said the mold conditioner is not necessary and using baby wipes before pouring or putting the mold in the freezer for a few minutes after drying will release it just fine. The container itself has some simple steps printed on the side but the online directions I searched for are much more extensive and explain how to work with different objects like bugs or jewelry and even how to color the casts. I just searched Castin' Craft Casting Resin Instructions. You could probably search Polyester Casting Resin Instructions or something similar to find help. The instructions also said to go by layers. I didn't understand this and because of the smell of the resin, I decided to mix a large amount of resin at a time so I didn't have to deal with it for very long. I realized my mistake when the bugs I tried to cast kept floating to the top. I made a second cast with a tiny violin and pieces of wood that were supposed to give the appearance that the violin was shattered. All of the pieces also kept floating to the top. This is why the instructions talk about layers. You have to pour one layer, put your stuff in, let it set for a while and then pour a second layer and so on as needed. So, if you are making a mold with objects in it, be sure to follow the instructions and do layers because the objects will float to to the top instead of staying centered. The objects also start to break apart once the resin gels so trying to push the objects back down into the mold doesn't work well. Your cast might overflow as well if you pour too much and start adding things because you're increasing the density. Overall, I really like this resin and it is super strong. It also would've been clearer had I not used the mold conditioner. I should've done it in the summer (since the resin works by a heated chemical reaction and it took up to five days to fully dry in the cold temps). I also should've been in a more ventilated area (again, summer would've been better because I could've opened more windows). I also will go by layers next time like the instructions say instead of pouring an entire mold because the objects will float to the top and get off-center.