Thinning silicone (for seam sealing) the easy way

[Franco]

this is how I do it :

[neilmny]

Thanks for that Franco.

[Empty]

Franco

Do you have a recipe for polyester? I can only find reference to proprietary brands rather than home made.

[Franco]

Noi I don't , but I believe that Kwick Grip/Tarzan Grip are pretty much the same stuff as Seam Grip
polyurethane polymer
Seam Grip can be thinned with Cotol 240 (also a McNett product)
That stuff is "METHYL BENZENE and DIBUTYLBIS STANNANE" whatever that is....
it can also be thinned with toulene (toluol)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toluene
look there under "solvent"

When I used to seam seal with Seam Grip I did not thinn it but it was a bit of a pain and never looked all that neat.

[Empty]

Thanks for your reply Franco

It sounds like it would be a lot less fuss just to buy a bottle of the proper McNett seam sealer.

Thanks again

[neilmny]

Is white spirit (not shellite) ok instead of turps or is turps better?
Turps is on the nose and white spirit not so bad.

[perfectlydark]

Damn i wish i saw this about a month ago. Had a hell of a time thinning the stuff

[GPSGuided]

What's the difference b/n home made sealant cocktail per above vs commercial products eg. Seam Grip? Have my first seam seal job coming up.

[Orion]

What's the difference b/n home made sealant cocktail per above vs commercial products eg. Seam Grip? Have my first seam seal job coming up.

SeamGrip isn't silicone, it's a urethane glue. You may be thinking of SilNet, made by the same company (McNett). It's a silicone sealer. As to what the specific differences are I can't say, but I will attest to noticing differences. SilNet works very well as a seam sealer but when I tested it against an aquarium glass silicone adhesive for gluing together pieces of silnylon fabric, SilNet didn't make as strong of a bond as the other product. So something was different.

[GPSGuided]

Thanks Orion. Didn't know the urethane base on the SeamGrip. So question remains, what's the criteria one should use in deciding b/n a home silicon cocktail and SeamGrip? Is one more durable than the other? Effect on tent fabric?

[Orion]

Use a silicone (not silicon) product on a silicone impregnated fabric. Otherwise use SeamGrip or something equivalent.

[neilmny]

oops

[GPSGuided]

Thanks. Indeed it's silicone. Missed one letter... Ummm... I think Tarptent's recommendation is to go silicone based.

[simonm]

Tarptent is silicone coated fabric so like Orion said go with silicone.

[GPSGuided]

Glad I reviewed this point with you guys. Thanks. A stop at Bunnings is due this evening on the way home.

[perfectlydark]

Ah...i might have used silicon... i didnt know there was a difference.lol!