I’m trying to expand my resources and save money (aren’t we all) and am looking for the best/cheapest place to by lam. resin. FoamEZ is $38 a gal and that’s a ripoff. Fiberglass Supply is around $35/gal and Fiberglass Warehouse is $28/gal. Can anyone lead me to somebody who’s selling it for less. I live in SoCal so it’d be great if they were local, otherwise I could deal over the phone.
Mahalo
Kevin
You only get what you pay for, so don’t mistake price tag for quality.
Buy the best you can afford and hopefully you’ll have a better product in the end.
i sell resin and to tell you the truth foam ez is right on for a gallon i sell at 35.75 and could raise my prices as the wholesale cost has risen 14 cents per pound in the last two weeks. So after you pay some body to pour it out of a 55 gallon drum down into a 1 gal can which cost about 3.50 put a label on the can. the price starts to add up the overhead of there retail location etc. fiberglass supply 35.00 plus shipping(20.00 maybe) good luck the prices will get even higher as long as oil prices keep rising
where can you purchase resin and glass, etc wholesale? Anyone know? I have a reseller’s license and while I’m not going into business as a shaper anytime soon… I’d be interested to save a few bucks by buying wholesale…
Thanks!
buy resin in at least 5 gal quantities and you basically save the cost of a gallon
We pay $41 - $44 a gallon at Fiberglass Hawaii. We try to buy 5 gallons at a time. It’s like getting two gallons for free. Get together with you buddies and buy in bulk.
I am aging myself, but I remember paying $4 a gallon in the late 60’s.
Howzit Uncle, I paid $136.25 for my last 5 gal of UV lam resin from Fiberglass Hi. But that doesn’t include shipping to Kauai which adds about $23 per shipment. I usually buy 2 5gals of resin and 2 5gals of acetone plus what ever else I need. I cna remember buying 5 gals for $12.50 and getting acetone for $ 25.00a drum if we brought our own drum to refill.Aloha,Kokua
5 gallons is the way to go but I only make a few boards a year. I try to get together with other board builders like me.
I remember Fiberglass Hawaii use to sell a board kit for around $60 in the 70’s. It included the blank, glass, fin, two types or resin, hardener, surfacing agent and skeg rope. We use to buy the kit, take the blank to BK and he would ask us if we wanted a speed shape or a turning shape. He would template the blank and ask for our approval. Later that afternoon we would pick up the shaped blank and pay BK $25 for the shape. That night we would start to glass the board and an surf it the next weekend. But I was just as broke then as I am today. Remember in those days we only paid $0.36 - $0.40 for a gallon of regular gas. Imagine filling up a VW bug for under $3.00. I think minimum wage was under $2 per hour. The good old days … sort of.
How often do you head to San Clemente? Head over to Basham’s. You will find better prices over there. $38.00 a gallon in Calif. might cause rectal bleeding. You could get it straight from Revchem in Rialto, but it might be a bit more because you would not get a volume discount.
Brad’s Foam Shop, 209 Calle de los Molinos, 949-361-2203
Brad has wierd hours. Only open for one hour on some Saturdays.
Don’t expect any relief soon. Benzene (styrene is vinyl benzene) is still in very short supply. China is putting the squeeze on the availability of all chemicals. This is going to get even worse in coming years. Watch gasoline and all raw materials continue to rise as the behemoth enters the 21st century.
Howzit Uncle, I spent some time in BK's shaping room up in Pupakea Hgts also, BK was always a true genleman and great shaper. What amazed me when I moved to Kauai in 72 was gas was cheaper in lihue than on Oahu. Go figure. Aloha,Kokua
How long will lam resin “keep” for? should I just stock up?
Shwuz:
I’m in your area and it doesn’t keep well down here. Maybe a couple of months if you are lucky and keep it in a dark container tightly sealed. Summer is bad as the styrene will evaporate and you end up with resin too thick to use and styrene for re-mixing is costly. I’ve had good luck with SurfSource premixed UV lam resin from Fla. I don’t use much poly at all anymore except for dings but there are some wholesalers that deliver to volume users down here. You would have to buy 5 gallons at a time to make it worthwile. Let me know if you want some contacts.
Tom S.
Well, I’ve been using RR epoxy for my last 5 boards, but poly is always in the back of my mind for certain things… Mainly for the big swirls and tints… I haven’t used it since my first few boards, but nice to have the option.
Oh crap, that puts another thought in my mind…
How long will RR epoxy keep for? I’ve had half of a three-gallon set sitting in my work area for like three months now… Better ask greg.
Howzit tomas, Actually if you buy styrene or SA by the gal it’s not that expensive. I think I pay about $ 23.00 a gal each from FH. The local hardware store charges $6.00 for 4oz of either and at that price a gal would run about $192.00. The only thing is if you can’t use most or all of it in 3 or 4 months it’ll go bad and turn into a solid mass in the can. Aloha,Kokua
Kokua:
Howzit? That sounds about what I paid for styrene down here as well. Roughly what a gallon of resin costs. I’ve been using R/R epoxy now for several years and I don’t buy much polyester or acetone. I do use poly for fin layups and ding repairs though and I’m wondering now whether I could prolong the life of the gallon jugs of SunCure poly by storing in my shop refrig. Any thoughts on chilling it for longer life?
Tomas
Just yesterday a pal with a GET got a 5 gallon can of UV surfboard laminating at Fiberglass H for $140. I didn’t read the invoice closely, but 140/5 = $28 per gallon. The single gallon price is what, $44? So the cost of a five gallon can equals the cost of three single gallons, that’s like getting 2 gallons free. Put another way, if you use only three of the five gallons you break even.
Get a 5er and parcel it out with your pals.
Can life is about 6 months max. You strart to get crystals around the spout, then lumps in the resin. But strain 'em out through some fiberglass screen (used old screen okay, just make sure it’s clean), and the strained resin is good.
Styrene too will gel with time. I only use it to make SA and to thin finish coats, so I buy a pint at a time. I guess I’d buy quarts, since my pints don’t gel, but gotta find it in quarts first.
I haven’t tried it but it seems logical. I have read that some adhesives can have their shelf life extended by refrigeration, so it might be worth a try.
Howzit Honolulu, Do you leave the spout pulled up after opening a 5 gal pail of UV resin. I do but I cover the spout with an old resin tub that was used with dark pigment to block all UV rays. But I always use a paint strainer when pouring. The reason I leave the spout up is I’ve had it crack from pulling it up to pour and pushing it back down after a pour. Aloha,Kokua
I bought a gallon of Lam resin today for $28.00
Mitch’s Surf Shop
363 N.HWY 101
Solona Beach , Ca.
(858)481-1354
Of course it will take more than $10.00 worth of gas to get there!