Ceramco's (Denstply) pressable ceramic

[TheLabGuy]

Is anybody using this? Since E. Max LT is a joke when it comes to glazing it, I'm curious if anyone is using Dentsply's version of the LT which is suppose to glaze real nice and be as strong as LT as well for veneers.

Note: Empress Esthetic is still my choice for veneers, but I wouldn't mind something stronger if it is as nice looking.

[sixonice]

Labguy. I really would like to help you with the challenges you are having with e.max Press LT not glazing good enough for you. I deal with these restorations everyday and feel strongly that it is an easy fix! I thought you and I discussed this in another post and things were better? Are you using the e.max glaze or another kind? Have you prepolished a bit before you glaze (to smooth the surface to be glazed). Remember to mix the e.max glaze VERY well before application to get it creamy and homogenious. Are you diluting the glaze with too much liquid? Finally, temps are KEY. All ovens are different, and most have to be adjusted on the high side. If you would like I would be more than happy to call you to discuss the problem to get you back on track!! Let me know.

[TheLabGuy]

Sixonice, You were a great help. After all those changes though, when I hold a Empress Esthetic veneer up to a LT Veneer, their is no comparison, Empress Esthetic wins hands down. I was just asking because I know LT and Ceramco's version is twice as strong (Mpa).

[Al.]

I press about 30 units a week in emax LT. I press lower bicuspids and posteriors full contour and only layer the facial of upper bi's and anteriors.
I get a very nice glaze with one application. If I didnt I would not use the system or if I had to spend the time to prepolish with a handpeice first I would not use the system eather.
Labguy a poor glaze with LT, IMO is your glaze application or firing temp. and not the system.
Youre not deluting your glaze are you? I did at first and got a poor glaze and I had to hit them with diamond paste.
That glaze comes out of the tube thick and sticky but glazes nice with out puddled areas unless you over do it in the connection areas of bridges.
The material must absorb alot of the glaze.
If I glazed my pfms the same way they would be overglazed.
I love the LT ingots. Its been a real time saver and money maker for me.
I still do my veneers in esthetic though unless I have more room for layering or am doing another emax next to it.
Good Luck, Al

[TheLabGuy]

Thanks for your input Al, but i'm curious, back to my original debate over LT and Esthetic. Why do you still do the Esthetic for veneers, although the LT is over twice as strong?

[Al.]

Originally Posted by TheLabGuy

Why do you still do the Esthetic for veneers, although the LT is over twice as strong?

For lower anteriors Ill use LT or mabey singles but I stay pretty covered up with work and it is a royal pain in the butt and very time consuming to layer enamel over 6 or 8 anterior laminates. It makes for nice photos and demo cases to layer and incorporate all the internal colors but I have a wife and kids screaming for my attention.
Most of mulitiple unit laminate cases I recieve, the patients want "white teeth".
With the esthetic ingots I can press it, tweek the contacts, contours, texture and then glaze with nice results.
The LT ingots dont look as nice, without layering. They dont have the same translucency. But I thought I heard that they were going to come out with a High Tran ingot in emax???
For the full contour press posteriors B1 is to opaque and there is no D2 only a D3, but it is on the light side.
These shades really need to be layered to increase the value, but for 1st and 2nd molars I will compromise tran. for the extra strength of using 100% core material.
Weve only had 1 fracture in 2 yrs with posteriors and and Im getting several Drs to switch over to emax for posterier crns. because of the price of metal. Of course I dont do them unless I have room or I reduce the prep and sell them a reduction coping.
The problem Ive had with using other pressables is they dont have the name recognition or support that ivoclar does. Tell a Dr your using emax or empress and he nodds his head tell him you will give him Densplys pressed crns and he looks at you with a question mark on his face.
Emax has been easy for me to sell.

[TheLabGuy]

Fair enough, thanks for answering my question. I agree totally, and you're correct on the "brook trout" look the Doctor gives you when say Dentsply pressed crowns.....lol Actually, my lab is phazing out of using any and all of Dentsply products. I was just curious if anyone on here was using them. Glad to have you here Al, welcome to Dental Lab Network. How long have you been in business?

[Al.]

Thanks, Its good to see a Lab forum. I didnt know there were any. I spend most of my internet time on deer hunting forums.
Ill be 50 this yr. My Dad was a dentist I graduated from Lab school in 78 and started a lab in his office. That lasted about 5 yrs before I went out on my own. In the office I spent to much time doing his dirty work , like grinding soft line out of dentures cleaning cement out of temp seated crwns, repolishing every crn he had to adjust helping with temps, etc.
That was in Orlando Fl. Now 30 yrs later Im in Ky.
4 yrs ago I bought a farm 40 mi south of Lexington and closed the lab in Fl and reopened here.
Intresting thing is I have more work here in Ky then I did in Fl and more cosmetic and larger cases. Im in central Ky I dont think a C&B lab would survive in eastern Ky. Dentures would do good over there though.

Why are you going to phase out Densply stuff? Are you having problems wiht the company or their products?

[TheLabGuy]

We're phazing out of all Dentsply (Ceramco's) stuff because they lied to us and you, for that matter. Dentsply started a huge chinese laboratory a couple years back, upon doing this they said they would never advertise to the Dentists, strictly for Domestic labs only. Dentsply spread the word to all the labs, including U.S., if you get into a bind, send us your work. Sounded okay with me, as long as they weren't advertising to Dentist's. Needless to say, they're advertising to Dentists and they just lost my account (400,000)......You should of seen the smile on the face of the rep. from Ivoclar.....lol

I guess I'm old-school patriotic, I believe if you want someone else to do something, you should teach your family (American's) first. It's a way of loving your country and how it was built and founded. I know, i'm such a speck on that way of thinking, but I do my part and will never send overseas without doing everything in my power to teach/train/mold an American into learning one of the most rewarding careers out there to do it first. So to all you middle men that just send stuff overseas and don't teach Americans first, as I've said before, you're just a unpatriotic dental slut to the industry......period.

Now you know.....lol and why didn't you go to dental school Al? You just do fixed?

[Al.]

I wont send anything out of the country either.
The only thing I use of Densplys is some vertex. I use Monotrac for every thing except what the Drs pour up themselves and mount about 25% of them with the vertex art.
Whats a good substute?
What other companies does Densply own? I get junk emails from them all the time?
Yeah, Im fixed only. My dad wanted me to go to dental school and take over his pratice, but there is no way I could have worked that closely with him.
Anyway at the time all I cared about was women and fast cars.

[TheLabGuy]

Good for you Al.
As for Articulators, we talked about them in this thread. Some great info there.
New Triple Tray system ??