Re: [Paddlewise] Hull Repairs

A couple of further notes regarding certain responses and questions on this
thread.

Someone said something about being careful of contact with epoxy -- ie,
lungs, hands etc.  It is well established that the fumes from epoxy are
pretty much harmless.  Polyester is a different story.  Skin contact with
epoxy is mostly harmless, and the vast majority of people never have any
adverse reaction.  There is such a thing as developing a sensitivity to it,
usually only encountered among professionals who use it every day.  I'm told
that if you develop the sensitivity, you may as well forget it.  It's
miserable to use the stuff.  I've been using epoxy for . . . um. . . well,
many years (over 25 anyway), and never had the slightest problem.  I use it
all the time in confined spaces.  It's harmless.

Regarding the use of coloring agents, yes, certainly mixing the coloring in
with epoxy and filler changes the color.  As I think I said, it's an
imperfect process.  You will never get a perfect match, even with plain
white.  Frankly, the only way to get a perfect new finish is to spray on a
new coat of whatever you like -- I like 2 part poly coatings, like Imron,
Awlgrip or Interthane Plus.

Regarding mat vs. cloth.  Mat is thicker and properly used should provide
more strength and solidity per application.  I don't know what the problem
is that was being described in the question here.  Mat is very easy to use.
It occurs to me you might have been using roven woving.  That stuff is a
mess.  Very strong, but a mess to use.  Mat is simple.  And yes, the way you
descibe using it is exactly the way to do it -- apply some epoxy mixture to
the surface, lay the mat on top of it, then brush on some more epoxy until
it's saturated.  Frankly, that's the way I apply cloth most of the time,
too.

Regarding the notion that building up an area with cloth or mat will lead to
increased stress on the area around it, well. . . that sounds a little odd
to me.  Wouldn't the stress be the same on all other areas as it was before?
I'm not a physicist, and I confess questions like this puzzle me.  But I
certainly wouldn't let this bother me too much.  If I want to reinforce an
area, I reinforce it.  And I can tell you for sure, I've reinforced a lot of
areas on glass boats.  All to good ends, I believe.

Regarding fillers, this is probably too big a subject to tackle here.  I
suggest the West pamphlets (available from West Marine or anywhere else
where Gougeon products are sold).  Fillers are very important in
epoxy/fiberglass work.  I keep lots of them around and use them constantly.
There is (naturally) some controversy about some of them.  Some people --
including myself -- have used all kinds of bizarre things for fillers.
Sawdust is common.  Regular old flour is also common.  I read recently
someone used the lint balls from the clothes dryer.  Hah!  You can use just
about anything.  The metal fillers, like aluminum, or the graphite fillers,
are really quite nice for things that require compressive strength.

I hope this helps answer a few of the questions that have been posed.

Mark



----- Original Message -----
From: Michael Daly <michaeldaly_at_home.com>
To: <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net>
Sent: Thursday, June 15, 2000 9:53 PM
Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Hull Repairs


> "Sailboat Restorations, Inc." wrote:
>
> >  For
> > color, I'd use some of those little tubes of coloring agents made by
> > Evercoat that you can get at any chain "chandlery" and mix them up until
I
> > got as close a match as I could.  The sequence is: get the coloring
mixed as
> > close as possible in a little plastic bowl; then mix the epoxy
separately,
> > then mix in the filler, then mix in the color.
>
> I've only ever added color to white gel coat so wrt epoxy:
>
> Adding the coloring to the mixed epoxy doesn't change the color (i.e
dilute it)?
> Does it come out opaque, translucent or clear?
>
> Mike
>
>
>
>
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