# has anyone made casein?



## glycerine (Feb 21, 2011)

I've seen some instructions online for making casein and was wondering if anyone else has tried it.  What was your experience?


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## ed4copies (Feb 21, 2011)

http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=61594&highlight=casein,+home


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## rkimery (Feb 21, 2011)

Got the recipe off the net, now I am gonna try to make some!   :biggrin:


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## PenMan1 (Feb 21, 2011)

A word to the wise: Do this some place like a bait shack that didn't empty the bait tanks before going bankrupt.

Curing casein smells worse than hot rotten bait! It takes about a month and stinks the whole time. 

The only way to get rid of the smell was to sell the house.

As long as Ed can get casein, I won't be making any more, as I like being married and my current house.


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## rkimery (Feb 21, 2011)

Thanks for the headszup! 



PenMan1 said:


> A word to the wise: Do this some place like a bait shack that didn't empty the bait tanks before going bankrupt.
> 
> Curing casein smells worse than hot rotten bait! It takes about a month and stinks the whole time.
> 
> ...


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## PenMan1 (Feb 21, 2011)

Vinegar does really work, makes it too brittle. Formaldehyde really is required. So is a moist free environment. 

Imagine souring milk mixed with formaldehyde sitting in your kitchen for 30 - 60 days! Pee uee! Big mistake!


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## studioso (Feb 23, 2011)

Makes you wonder who was the loner that figured Caseine out in the first place...


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## Rick P (Jun 5, 2012)

I was thinkin about trying my hand at this but it sounds like something that would draw in bears!


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## PTsideshow (Jun 6, 2012)

An interesting English site, on the history of plastics.
The Plastics Historical Society - Casein
Has anybody skipped the step of the liquid milk in the making and used the casein powder that is used in making milk paints.   Ultra Casein Powder | The Earth Pigments Company
Casein powder, they also have a couple of recipes for the paint.
:clown:


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## Displaced Canadian (Jun 7, 2012)

What exactly does the formaldehyde do? I know it makes it less brittle. How does it do it on a molecular level. Just wondering if a wood stabilizer would work.


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## PTsideshow (Jun 7, 2012)

Displaced Canadian said:


> What exactly does the formaldehyde do? I know it makes it less brittle. How does it do it on a molecular level. Just wondering if a wood stabilizer would work.



It is to harden the cheese into a non soluble material, after the curd is dried. It is soaked in the formaldehyde, as it is porous it soaks up the formalin and reacts with the protein turning it harder,( it acts as a polymerizer) then with out it. It will be insoluble in water. (Formaldehyde is highly toxic to all animals, regardless of method of  intake. Ingestion of as little as 30 mL (1 oz.) of a solution containing  37% formaldehyde has been reported to cause death in an adult human.)

I haven't made any but it was on the bucket list from jewelry class. The only thing the people here seem to have a differing opinion on is the strength and length of the smell. And the need to have no moisture available.
All the material on the web doesn't mention smell if at all, other than what one would expect with curdled sour milk. Also none mention any special moisture reduction needed. And that it only takes a couple of days to dry.

Here is one how to with and with out the formaldehyde.
How to Turn Milk to Stone: 13 steps - wikiHow 
You can also google milk stone, and  galalith, (which was the largest producer German/French company)it is also called French bakelite.

I think that it might be possible to use the casein paint base as a starting point to make casein plastics. So if you use do add the step for formaldehyde, use plenty of ventilation. 
:clown:


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## PenMan1 (Jun 7, 2012)

You can easily make Casein plastic at home in 30 minutes.  UNFORTUNATELY, the 30 minute variety is NOT what you are familiar with, if you have pens from the casein available from Germany or Allendale plastics.

The recipe for simple casein is simple. Add 1/2 teaspoon of white distilled vinegar per ounce of milk heated to 150 degrees F. It is stirred for about 1 minute, until the milk has fully curdled. Then, the liquid is strained from the beige "blob"!of milk protein .  The blob is then blotted dry and molded. The best way I've found to mold it is by using a dowel to "pack and tamp" a vertical PVC pipe until you can't pack it anymore.

THIS method will "harden" in two days, but it is a beige/white blob of nothing. There IS a way to dye casein of this type, but I forgot the due proceedures. The good news that is product is edible and is often recommended as a protein diet supplement for men, AND this part of the process doesn't stink too bad.

BUT, the naturally occurring striations that make Casein so beautiful, are obtained by adding formaldehyde to the casein plastic for 30 to 60 days. If you can imagine the death smell of formaldehyde mixed with Limburger cheese over a 30 period this describes the curing smell. Curing Casein smells much like casein cut with a fast spinning miter saw.


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