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zdw 7 hours ago [-]
This is the most esoteric post I've seen on HN in a while.
How many museum curators who need non-yellowing flexible thermoplastic are there on here?
aejm 5 hours ago [-]
This post has exactly zero relevance to my professional career or personal projects, and this is exactly the type of esoteric content I love about HN!
boppo1 7 hours ago [-]
Oil painter here, this is news to me and if it doesn't dissolve in gamsol this is EXACTLY what I've been looking for for about 2 years.
bfivyvysj 1 hours ago [-]
What's the application?
uxhacker 55 minutes ago [-]
It is used to strengthen materials. For example if plaster has crumbled, or the paint on a canvas has become flakey, or wood rotten, Paraloid B-72 can be used to hold everything together. The issue is that generally it is not reversible. Therefore one should always look at varnishes that can easily be removed and reapplied, but sometimes only Paraloid can hold everything toghther.
card_zero 7 hours ago [-]
I followed the link to flexographic ink, and now I'm wondering whether boutique fine art flexography could or should exist. Like lithography, but more plastic.
uxhacker 1 hours ago [-]
The issue is that it does yellow but after 25 to 50 years. The challange is that it is very difficult to reverse.
On the restoration of my house I allow its use on very specific cases. It very useful for example in strengthening wood that has rotten. Sometimes Paraloid is the only thing that can be used, but it needs to be used with care.
It does not turn yellow, Paraloid B66 does. B72 has a low Tg, 40°C, so it can soften and creep when warm
lollapalooza 47 minutes ago [-]
Didn't really know of the different 9(!) versions of it.
Thanks for pointing it out.
lollapalooza 51 minutes ago [-]
Agreed.
My gf uses it regularly as she's a furniture restorer, finding the definition here it's a bit of a surprise, though.
Great, unique material.
glimshe 45 minutes ago [-]
Not many, but there are a few amateur and professional musicians here benefitting from better piano hammers made possible by Paraloid B-72!
Note: I thought this was about Polaroid, not Paraloid, at first!
kazin1870 7 hours ago [-]
I use paraloid all the time, a bit surprised to see it posted here but I’ll support it.
boppo1 7 hours ago [-]
I'm new to it and having trouble finding guides:
- how do I apply it as a coating? I want it to be ~ 1/6" to 1/8" thick and as hard as possible
- will turpentine dissolve or soften it?
greygood 13 minutes ago [-]
Purchase as crystals and dissolve in acetone or ethanol to desired concentration. It will self level based concentration, allow to evaporate before applying next layer
chromacity 7 hours ago [-]
It's a relatively soft plastic and I don't think you can realistically build a uniform, good-looking layer that's 1/8" thick, if that's what you mean. If you need that thickness, high hardness, and nice appearance, I think your best bet is just a sheet of glass or acrylic on top.
It can be used as protective varnish, but that would be a very thin layer, probably 0.1 mm or something like that.
I'm reading that turp does not dissolve it, which is ideal so I can mix paint on top of it.
5 hours ago [-]
CarVac 6 hours ago [-]
I've done some DIY piano maintenance and I saw what was presumably this available to firm up the hammers. My piano needs them softened, though.
clort 1 hours ago [-]
Yes it mentioned firming piano hammers in the article. From what I remember, a piano hammer is a shaped piece of wood (or several?) with a leather strip around the striker part? What is the difference for you between hardening and softening the hammer, and how would it be done with this .. is it penetrating? (acetone base would enable that, it is used for carrying chemicals through a surface). Could you soften the hammers by replacing the leather strips, or soaking them to loosen & expand the presumably compacted fibres?
In my wider life in the UK, speaking to people associated with pianos (from a piano tuner, to school premises teams), it is often not worth the commercial expense to repair old pianos unless they are of particularly good quality or have some sentimental value.
colordrops 7 hours ago [-]
They should make non-yellowing transparent phone cases out of this stuff.
CarVac 6 hours ago [-]
Heh, I upvoted this a few days ago and it must've gotten on the second-chance queue.
Links to obsure but interesting Wikipedia articles are some of my favorite HN posts.
Xmd5a 5 hours ago [-]
Could this be used to 3D print supports ? For now, the only thermoplastic I know of that can be used to this effect is HIPS in conjunction with d-limonene.
0xbadcafebee 7 hours ago [-]
Huh. So it's a stronger, harder, less brittle, clear wood glue you can dissolve with acetone. Neat!
aidenn0 6 hours ago [-]
How does its strength compare to MMA structural adhesives? What materials is it compatible with?
shermantanktop 3 hours ago [-]
My only expansion for MMA is “mixed martial arts” and I’m not particularly familiar with it. Maybe there’s a wrestling move called the “structural adhesive”?
clort 1 hours ago [-]
methmethacrylate (ie acrylic)
Joel11 4 hours ago [-]
Thanks for Sharing this information.
FpUser 7 hours ago [-]
Am I the only one that read it as Polaroid ;) ?
perilunar 2 hours ago [-]
I thought it was going to be about a bomber with a parabolic-shaped wing, or something similar.
UncleOxidant 7 hours ago [-]
No,you are not. I was expecting it to be a camera.
zephen 7 hours ago [-]
I thought it was a cross between a camera and a bomber.
NDlurker 6 hours ago [-]
Edwin Land, the inventor of the Polaroid, worked on the U2's camera.
How many museum curators who need non-yellowing flexible thermoplastic are there on here?
On the restoration of my house I allow its use on very specific cases. It very useful for example in strengthening wood that has rotten. Sometimes Paraloid is the only thing that can be used, but it needs to be used with care.
Note: I thought this was about Polaroid, not Paraloid, at first!
- how do I apply it as a coating? I want it to be ~ 1/6" to 1/8" thick and as hard as possible
- will turpentine dissolve or soften it?
It can be used as protective varnish, but that would be a very thin layer, probably 0.1 mm or something like that.
https://resources.culturalheritage.org/osg-postprints/wp-con...
https://www.zoicpaleotech.com/pages/paraloid-b72-in-fossil-p...
acetone will dissolve it, dunno about turpentine.
In my wider life in the UK, speaking to people associated with pianos (from a piano tuner, to school premises teams), it is often not worth the commercial expense to repair old pianos unless they are of particularly good quality or have some sentimental value.
Links to obsure but interesting Wikipedia articles are some of my favorite HN posts.
https://otislibrarynorwich.org/2024/04/08/edwin-land-and-the...
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/polaroid-inventor-...