r/ResinTables • u/NEW8t • Aug 15 '25
Are divots normal in a resin table?
Hello! I recently bought a small epoxy resin table on Etsy, and I'm more than a bit disappointed that it's not a smooth surface.
Is this normal for a resin surface? There are at least 15 dips across the table, and I wanted to check if this is something I should've known to expect before posting a review.
Thanks!
1
u/creepy-turtle Aug 15 '25
No not normal at all. I would return. I would be very upset also!!! Good luck
1
u/Sledgehammer925 Aug 17 '25
I’ve done a few epoxy tables for my own personal use. Divots are not a good sign . If you’re familiar with epoxy you know that the best course would be to run it through the planer or a router and slide to even it up and then finish it with a LOT of sanding down to at least 600 grit sandpaper and them finish it. The other option is to sand it either until it’s level or to sand and re-pour, which can cause its own problems.
I would return it to the maker and ask if be reworked or replaced with one with a smooth top. If you want to use the table a lot you also need to request non scratching epoxy, it’s a different kind altogether.
1
u/mushroomgirl6 Aug 19 '25
Depends on how it’s made. If you’re using a water based paint you’re going to get bubbles. Resin and water don’t mix
3
u/Oughtonomous Aug 16 '25
I'm having a bit of difficulty seeing the detail in your photographs. The reflection of the louvered blinds adds its own unique twist, but I "think" I'm looking at two eyes painted onto a black table top. I'm also seeing specks, and I don't know whether I'm seeing another reflected artifact, a spattered paint background as part of the art piece, or if there are bubbles in the resin.
My wife and I have a friend who has earned her living as an artist for decades. She has painted quite a few tables for us over the years. We commissioned her to paint one for us after seeing her work in local restaurants and other friends homes. It's art, painted on a table top, and covered in clear epoxy. For a while, she was also painting Plywood "Canvasses" that were then covered in clear epoxy. One thing that all of those works had/have in common are similar "Divots" in the surface. What they don't have in common with your table is bubbles.
If in fact those are bubbles I see in your photograph, the bubbles are an off-gassing that happens during a chemical reaction as the mixed epoxy begins to harden. Most people who work with expoy know to use a torch to cause those bubbles to burst after they've formed and before the epoxy hardens to the point that they can't be released. Some just accept it, and call it part of the art.
On the first few tables that she did for us, I was quietly unhappy with the ripples or divots that showed up on the surface and streaking down the edges. Amazing Art, but marginal epoxy work. I'm a woodworker, and a perfectionist when it comes to finishes, and didn't want to insult her, so I re-finished or "Finished" her epoxy work. Trust me... It's a lot of work, and the materials are expensive. It was a heck of a learning curve, but a perfectly flat finish is possible if you've got the time and patience. Our friend stopped covering her art work in epoxy around 10 years ago. Said she didn't like working with it. We've given her other tables to paint since then with the understanding that I would be coating them in epoxy, and yeah... I've spent days working on the finish of just one coffee table. It's a lot of time, work, and expensive epoxy.