Replies

1. 
   G.LaLonde | Feb 11, 2000 02:26am | #1

   *
   Badger, Do they call you Badger because you live in Wisconsin?? If you do , call the Corian distributor (Hallmark Building Supplies) in Milwaukee. They set up training sessions in the area periodically. I believe the last one I saw was just outside of Chicago. I got certified about 10 years ago when they were looking for more installers. Now I believe it's easier to get a top secret clearance at the Pentagon. Anyhow, find out who is the Corian distributor for your area and they will probably help you if you are not trying to compete with one of their best customers. Good Luck!

2. 
   Guest_ | Feb 11, 2000 03:51am | #2

   *
   Or you could hook up with one of the competitors and sell an equivalent product at a lower price and not have to deal with nasty Corion politics at all. Take a look at Hi-MACS for one; acrylic like Corion (so it can be thermoformed), and many of the same colours (they steal them back and forth ). They are also relatively new in the market and probably looking to certify people, and I can sell their product for $30 Can. a foot less than Corion. I'm not trying to sell you on Hi-Macs; there are lots of good alternatives, but I prefer working with acrylics rather than polyesters. Some other acrylic brands are Gibralter and Avonite.

1. 
   Guest_ | Feb 14, 2000 04:50am | #3

   *Hi Adrian , Do you mean that you can heat this stuff and bend ? How sharp ? how hot do you need? I'll probably never use it but just wanting to know. I'm leaning heavly to concrete for my counters.

1. 
   Guest_ | Feb 14, 2000 09:24am | #4

   *"...leaning heavily to concrete..."Neat word play, Don. Intentional?

1. 
   Guest_ | Feb 14, 2000 05:27pm | #6

   *hi Don; yeah, you can bend the acrylics, not the polyesters. You have to heat it to 350 deg.(I think; I'd have to double check that), and it becomes floppy as a wet noodle. You can actually tie it in knots at that point (but it's damned hot in your hands), so it's flexible enough to do most anything you would want to do in regular countertop applications.It's a better way to do the drop edge on a radius countertop (heat form the edge, and glue it to the underside of the deck), rather than build up three layers in big chunks and rout away the waste. Takes some practice to do well though. I used to know a guy who used his postforming machine to bend it, and I think FH printed some pictures of kitchen upper cabinets made entirely of SS where the gables curved back to the wall a few years ago; looked very hip. I was just looking at an article in one of the cabinetmaking trade magazines; it's unbelievable what you can do with this stuff now, including carving and all kinds of things that are over my head.

3. 
   Karsen | Feb 14, 2000 05:27pm | #5

   *
   I'm having a heck of a time trying to get information on becomming
   a licensed Corian installer.

   I have inquired at several dealers, talked with several installers and have
   tried to get the information directly from Dupont and all inquiries have netted
   nothing.

   I can understand why some area people would discourage competition
   but this is driving me nuts! Can anyone give me any guidance or
   share some information?

   Thanks, Badger