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DOMING

Application of a clear polyurethane resin on a two-dimensional surface.

Create a three-dimensional, crystal-clear lens to enhance the look and feel of your products.

DOMING INSTRUCTIONS:

To begin you will need the following:

  • Glass spacers

  • Scalpel

  • A good supply of paper towels

  • Safety glass

  • Non-sterilised gloves

  • A heat source

  • Static mixer

  • Resin cartridge twin pack

  • Dispensing gun

  • 3 or more glass sheets – laminated glass, edge ground

  • DO NOT use plate glass it is dangerous!!!

1 – Weed your printed work to prepare for doming

2 – Lay your work up on a flat glass sheet, use masking tape to secure
3 – Place plunger into dispenser, ensuring started edge faces the handle.
4 – Place the cartridge into the dispensing gun
5 – Remove safety cap from the cartridge by turning 90° and gently pulling.
6 – Break off the seal of the cartridge. Keep it in a safe place for resealing
7 – Now attach the static mixer to the cartridge.(This screws in)
8 – Squeeze the dispenser until both cylinders are ejecting resin.

9 – Now attach the static mixer to the cartridge.(This screws in)

10 – Pull gently on the trigger until resin is ejected from the end of the static mixer.

11 – Wipe excess resin from the static mixer.
to be clean

12 – Dome your decals by gently squeezing resin onto the surface. Be careful not to apply too much or too little. (This will come with practice)The resin will automatically move toward the silicon coated backing paper. Don’t worry if it doesn’t move all the way to the edge of the decal- you’ll have time to correct this later.

13 – f any bubbles appear on the surface of the domed decal – use a gentle heat source (such as hairdryer) to pop the surface bubbles. Do not apply flame directly to resin.

14 – Repair decals that have uncovered areas by dragging the resin gently outwards with as patula or scalpel.
or any other similar tool

15 – Place next sheet of glass on spaces over domed decals to prevent dust etc from affecting your decals.
the working area should be clean

 

16 – The Domer’s nightmare:

Everything looked great last night-

why has this domes decal exploded?Polyurethane resins react violently with moisture- this is a slow process – it normally takes 4-5 hours to occur.

It can take many forms, a worst case scenario is illustrated here. Ninety percent of the time, small bubble, will appear the next morning,

Please ensure you work in a cool dry room do not blow on your decals or wipe them with your fingers – use a dry cloth to wipe before doming.

For those of you who want to avoid the problem completely and have access to an oven – simply place glass trays with domed decals into a preheated oven of 40ºc for twenty minutes.

Your domed labels will be completely dry and ready to ship after removing from the oven and the moisture will have no time to react with the decals.

Points to take care of when Doming

  1. Moisture: Moisture is the biggest enemy in the Doming process. Even the tiniest amount will cause bubbles in the dome and possible sticky patches where the resin has not set. In severe cases, portions of the dome will ‘erupt’. See picture below: This was most probably caused by a finger print on the surface before doming.
  2. Prevention: The Ideal environment would be an air conditioned room at about 16º C with a relative humidity of less than 40%. This said, a lot of very successful doming takes place in rooms with temperatures up to 23º C. Definitely NOT in Kitchens or Bathrooms. Use a mask over your nose and mouth or dome under a sheet of glass to prevent breathing on your work.
    • Keep hot beverages (tea, coffee, etc.) out of any room where you are doming.
    • Make sure that the objects you are doming and the Doming resin are at approximately the same temperature.
    • If you need to wipe your material before doming, use a clean, dry cloth. Do NOT use alcohol or mentholated spirits as these will leave moisture on the surface once the alcohol has evaporated. If you need to use a solvent, then use acetone and make sure it is dry before you dome.
    • Do not touch the surface to be domed with your hands or fingers.
    • If you have concerns about moisture on your work, put it in an oven at 40º C for about 15 minutes. Let it cool off in a dry place before doming.
  1. Resin Storage:
    • The Doming Resin is supplied in sealed packets purged with dry nitrogen, to ensure that it is not contaminated by moisture. These sealed packets, if kept at a temperature of less than 25º C, could be stored for up to a year.
    • Once the sealed packet is opened, the cartridge would have a shelf life of a few days if stored in an environment where the temperature is less than 23º C with a relative humidity of less than 40%. If you need to store it for a longer period, then place the un-used cartridges in a ‘Zip-lock’ plastic bag and seal it with as little air as possible inside. Place the plastic bag in a refrigerator until you need to use it again. When removing it from the refrigerator, allow it to warm up to room temperature before opening the plastic bag.