• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

My favorite bedding compound, Pro Bed 2000!

LVLAaron

LVLAaron

Gold $$ Contributor
I've been loving Pro Bed 2000. The guys I've used it for notice the lack of shrinking. With other compounds, namely marine tex or acraglass, if they re-torque the action a month after getting it, they'll get a little turn of the screw. No such movement with PB2k.

However, once it cures, it does seem a little less hard than other products. It's not going to move, but it doesn't "seem" as hard. I have no clue if it matters, but you know these things can keep a guy up at night.

Today I figured out my preferred way to use it.

- Put your dollops on a mixing sheet.

- Apply a little heat to get it softened up

- Mix "a pinch" (steal your girls measuring spoons) of fumed silica to thicken it. If I don't thicken it, a lot tends to seep down the pillars and create ugly gaps. Do whatever you can to eliminate any air flow and don't inhale this stuff... It's as light as air and difficult to manage if you're not prepared.

- Mix in maybe 1/3 teaspoon or so of atomized stainless steel (https://www.brownells.com/tools-cleaning/gun-tools/stock-bedding/atomized-metals/?sku=081021204)

- Maybe a little more heat if you're slow. PB is weird like corn starch.. it can be hard to mix, but the heat helps a ton.


Apply and enjoy. The end result is a much harder feeling bed that doesn't sag during cure or shrink after.
 
I tried to get some questions answered after I bought the huge bottles of it and they were ignored, If the owner or his employees won't answer a technical question about the product, I will not buy it again.

I will stick to Devcon.
 
Sniperhandle said:
I asked him what thinner could be used because the stuff I got from him was very stiff and practically unusable.
Click to expand...
That would be great to know because it is pretty stiff mixing unless it’s warmer out or add a little heat. It also seems to need much longer to get full hard than other epoxies. Definitely can’t rush the stuff.
 
WSnyder said:
That would be great to know because it is pretty stiff mixing unless it’s warmer out or add a little heat. It also seems to need much longer to get full hard than other epoxies. Definitely can’t rush the stuff.
Click to expand...
The stuff I got from him was about the consistency of salt water taffy or so.

Most companies will answer a simple question. I asked folks on this forum and couldn't get a definitive answer either, Someone has to know what you can thin epoxy with. I hate to throw away $100.00 worth of bedding compound, But I bought it a year or so ago now, Just out of curiosity I opened the jars just a minute ago and the volume is half what it was, So some kind of solvent is escaping the jars, Sure would like to know what that is.
 
If you cut it... it's going to shrink, no?

It's like corn starch... the more pressure you apply to it, the thicker it gets... but it'll run like Forest Gump. A little heat really makes it workable.
 
Sniperhandle said:
The stuff I got from him was about the consistency of salt water taffy or so.

Most companies will answer a simple question. I asked folks on this forum and couldn't get a definitive answer either, Someone has to know what you can thin epoxy with. I hate to throw away $100.00 worth of bedding compound, But I bought it a year or so ago now, Just out of curiosity I opened the jars just a minute ago and the volume is half what it was, So some kind of solvent is escaping the jars, Sure would like to know what that is.
Click to expand...

Devcon says acetone is fine. But PB is obviously different.

It's kinda obvious that PB2k is just good old boy who contracted a larger company to manufacture and distribute it.
 
LVLAaron said:
Devcon says acetone is fine. But PB is obviously different.

It's kinda obvious that PB2k is just good old boy who contracted a larger company to manufacture and distribute it.
Click to expand...
Ok, Thanks, I would have bet that MEK would be what to use but I may try a small bit of acetone with the bedding compound to see what happens.
 
Yeah he is a Gunsmith, I am sure he doesn't manufacture the stuff. I have bought other products from him in the past also, But never had a need to get a question answered, I'm sure he is very busy, But to me he should make time to answer questions about what he sells.

Edit to add:

I haven't looked at the bottles for a while until today, But it does say that the volume will settle, And it has, But it is very stiff. I don't know if I got a bad batch or if it's all like that.
 
For instance, Here is the specs for Devcon 11010:

  • Capacity Wt. = 1 lb
  • Temp. Range = 250.0 DegreeF [Max]
  • Dielectric Strength = 30.0 V/mil
  • Chemical Compound = Epoxy
  • Color = Dark Grey
  • Compressive Strength = 8260 psi
  • Full Cure Time @ Temp. = 16 h @ 75 DegreeF
  • Stress Hardness = 85.0 Shore D
  • Applications = Multi-Purpose
  • Applicable Materials = Concrete, Most Metals
  • Resistance = Chlorinated Solvents, Hydrochloric Acid-10%, Kerosene, Water, Leaded Petrol, Propylene Glycol, Mineral Spirits, Sulfuric Acid-10%
The Liquid Aluminum Devcon has between 700 and 800 PSI, Which is about 1 1/0 the strength.
 
Sniperhandle said:
For instance, Here is the specs for Devcon 11010:

  • Capacity Wt. = 1 lb
  • Temp. Range = 250.0 DegreeF [Max]
  • Dielectric Strength = 30.0 V/mil
  • Chemical Compound = Epoxy
  • Color = Dark Grey
  • Compressive Strength = 8260 psi
  • Full Cure Time @ Temp. = 16 h @ 75 DegreeF
  • Stress Hardness = 85.0 Shore D
  • Applications = Multi-Purpose
  • Applicable Materials = Concrete, Most Metals
  • Resistance = Chlorinated Solvents, Hydrochloric Acid-10%, Kerosene, Water, Leaded Petrol, Propylene Glycol, Mineral Spirits, Sulfuric Acid-10%
The Liquid Aluminum Devcon has between 700 and 800 PSI, Which is about 1 1/0 the strength.
Click to expand...

 
Well I did a small test blob of PB2K with acetone added. It readily took the acetone and didn’t do anything weird as far as mixing it. I pushed it into a nice tight blob and over 10 minutes or so it’s flowed out quite a lot. Probably doubled in surface area. Let’s see how it hardens up.
IMG_3149.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Having used Pro Bed since the early 2000's, I've never seen a case where the bedding cured less hard than other conventional bedding compounds. When milling it, you can hear the difference the longer out it goes....up to about 96 hours or so. Not real scientific but there it is.
 
AlNyhus said:
Having used Pro Bed since the early 2000's, I've never seen a case where the bedding cured less hard than other conventional bedding compounds. When milling it, you can hear the difference the longer out it goes....up to about 96 hours or so. Not real scientific but there it is.
Click to expand...
Good to hear. Can't say I've done much cutting on it past a day or two.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Classified Ads

Forum statistics

Threads
164,661
Messages
2,182,231
Members
78,464
Latest member
Speedy7722

Share This Page

Back
Top