plastification of a wood branch

Questions From Our VisitorsCategory: Sealersplastification of a wood branch
Pascal Francis Durrenberger asked 2 years ago

Hi Stewart. Thanks for the website great site. I am looking for a particular effect. It is for an art installation and I just wondered if you would have a suggestion. I have a 2  metre branch that fell from a tree in a london park after a big storm. I would like it to use for an outdoor installation. So I would like to protect it against the rain. There are plenty of sealers out there but the effect I am mostly looking for is “a plastic cover look” like it was popular on sofas in the 60s. I mean there would be perhaps an easy way to do this is find plastic tube and use some heat to mold it onto the branch. But I just wandered if there be a product I could spray on and solidifies to form a think plastic layer on top of the branch. Any suggestion would be very much appreciated. Cheers. Pascal

1 Answers
William Stewart Staff answered 2 years ago

Hello Pascal,
I must admit that this is an interesting one. While there are clear epoxies that you can pour on a surface to get a thick build-up and glass finish, I’m not convinced they’ll spray.
You could investigate a product called Plasti-dip, which comes in clear and is a vinyl-rubber compound. It is used a lot on cars to give stone-chip protection on the front bonnet. I know people also use it on wood.
Try this link: https://geni.us/kMnG and see what you think. I’d test it on some scrap first, but perhaps with multiple coats, you can get the thickness you’re looking for?

Disclaimer here: I’ve never used this myself but have heard about it a lot, so I’d be interested to get your thoughts if you do decide to go with it.
It normally lasts about 3 years before peeling off and requiring re-application. I’m not sure if you’d get that for your application, but you should get 12-months I’d have thought.
Sorry, I can’t be more helpful, but I’d love to hear how you go and see some pictures! Good luck