I am doing a project with a rattle can but it's an epoxy based paint (not oil like your off-the-shelf Krylon or whatever). I am also doing a step where I oven cure everything after I finish painting it. I am doing 200 degrees for 2 hours. So far my parts have turned out great, I'm really happy with them.
Do I still need to let them air cure for a few days after or are my parts ready to use now?
Best Answer
Beware. Many products are marketed as "epoxy" when in fact they are not epoxy based, just normal paint with a small amount of already-cured epoxy in the mix, so they can make the marketing claim of being "epoxy". Real epoxy is nothing like that.
Many paints don't like being oven baked. You may want to experiment with something unimportant.
Real epoxy comes in 2 cans. You mix them together in a mixing cup, and you have a limited "pot life" to apply it and clean the spray gun. Which is why they can't sell it in rattle cans.
High-temp-cure epoxy absolutely requires an oven cure, but gives extremely long pot life - long enough they can sell it in one can. I've never seen high-temp in a rattle can, but if that's what you have, awesome. The oven schedule is mandatory - don't short it, or it won't cure.
When spraying (real) epoxy, make sure to wear a proper NIOSH respirator. The resin in uncured epoxy contains an immune system irritant, skin is a good barrier, lungs are not. That health issue is why big-box stores don't like to sell 2-part epoxies and urethanes in products you might spray.