Epoxy Primer good after 5 years?

Getting ready to paint my Merc and was going to use some Omni Epoxy primer I had left over from another car. My question is I bought it 5 or 6 years ago, its been inside out of the cold, will it still work? The car is bare metal and some filler. Going over it with Omni 2k Urethane. Thanks for any help!
Brian

 

If it's sealed it's probably OK. I have some good ol DP74 that's 10yrs old and it's still ok. Used it not long ago. Your issue will be the catalyst. If it's been exposed to air at any time it might not harden. You need to 'burp' those catalyst containers when you get done with em to purge the air. Look into Shopline products for new catalyst since the Omni and Shopline are just a continuation of the original DP lines. Their 370 series epoxies are 2:1, primer:hardener just like the old DP series. Try a small spot through a mini gun on something to be sure.

 

It may still be good, but considering the consequences of that primer failing, is it really worth the risk?

Bob

 

I have used old epoxy primer (DP-40), but it does settle a lot and get sludgy down near the bottom so you need to stir it really well until your arm is about to fall off to get all the thick slop from the bottom mixed up again, or take it and have somebody put it on a shaker. The hardener is the one that goes bad if it's been opened to air. If the hardener used to be clear and now it's brown and sludgy, you probably should forget trying to use it.

I agree with the bobscogin that the consequences of having to sand off gooey uncured primer if it doesn't harden right is much worse than forking out some dough for some new fresh primer. If you want some cheap epoxy primer, Kirker makes some that works pretty well and you can get it on online pretty cheap. Another problem you might have is thick blobs of primer clogging up your gun's tip, or making the gun spray out all splattery and lumpy looking. I'd save the old epoxy to use for stuff that you don't care about much, like the insides of doors.

 

Hey,

Toss the hardener, shake, still & strain the epoxy! A test panel is always a must on any paint material that you're not absolutely sure could ware white to the wedding!

Swankey Devils C.C.
" Humpty Dumpty was pushed!"