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Posted by Ernie Leimkuhler on November 24, 2007, 1:16 am
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"Rob Fraser" <FraserRacing"AT"RobFraser.Net> wrote:
> Guys,
>
> I have a bunch of tubes of 36" filler rods for all sorts of different
> materials and I'm not going to be using my gear for a while due to an
> upcoming back surgery in Jan. I am thinking of just making some 6" dia PVC
> pipe with a threaded tops and a capped bottoms and sealing them well. What
> I'm wondering is should I put desiccant packs in the tubes and/or put
> Schrader valves on them and vacuum evacuate the air out or purge them with
> nitrogen gas or another gas to prevent or slow down degradation of the
> filler. I sometimes see that I have dulled filler and I just wipe them down
> with steel wool or MEK on a shop towel. Just looking to protect my
> investments. Any ideas or things you use to protect your fillers? I am not
> about to dump $15.00 on the store bought cute little 36" containers for rod
> when I can make it for pennies on the dollar and do it better.
>
Desiccant is a good idea for aluminum rod storage.
Uncooked rice makes a good cheap desiccant for short term storage, as in
under a year.
The downside to rice is that if any significant moisture gets in it will
eventually cause it to rot.
I am not sure how much silica gel costs to buy in bulk.
Potassium permanganate also works well.
When it is dry it is deep purple.
As it absorbs moisture is loses it's color.
Just bake it and it goes back to purple.
We used it at a lab I worked at in college for protecting underwater
laser systems.
A vacuum or protective gasses might work if you can really get a good
seal.
I am not sure how permeable PVC or ABS pipe is to Argon or Nitrogen.
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>
> I have a bunch of tubes of 36" filler rods for all sorts of different
> materials and I'm not going to be using my gear for a while due to an
> upcoming back surgery in Jan. I am thinking of just making some 6" dia PVC
> pipe with a threaded tops and a capped bottoms and sealing them well. What
> I'm wondering is should I put desiccant packs in the tubes and/or put
> Schrader valves on them and vacuum evacuate the air out or purge them with
> nitrogen gas or another gas to prevent or slow down degradation of the
> filler. I sometimes see that I have dulled filler and I just wipe them down
> with steel wool or MEK on a shop towel. Just looking to protect my
> investments. Any ideas or things you use to protect your fillers? I am not
> about to dump $15.00 on the store bought cute little 36" containers for rod
> when I can make it for pennies on the dollar and do it better.
>