plexus methacrylate distributor

[roob76]

anyone know of a retailer that sells the plexus methacrylate adhesive to the general public in small quantities? i have only found sellers that want to sell a whole case of it. i only need two or three cartridges for bonding a cap onto the hull of a 17'6" bay boat. i need the plexus ma550(two or three cartridges)a gun and a couple of the mixing tips.

[marshmat]

I didn't know Plexus came in small quantities.... every time I've seen it, there's a lot of expensive measuring, mixing and dispensing equipment involved.

[roob76]

Yes They Come In Cartridges For A Special Caulking Type Of Gun With Tips That Mix It As It Comes Out. But I Have Only Found Cases Not Individual Cartridges For Sale. I Might End Up Just Going With 3m 5200 Or It. I'm Sure The 5200 Will Last Longer Than The Polyester With Filler That Was Originally Used.

[Herman]

I have no idea of dealers on your side of the pond. We are dealer for Plexus in the Netherlands, and we sell out in individual cartridges (380 or 400 ml) if needed.

Plexus is available in 200 liter (drum), 20 liter (pail), 380 or 400 ml cartridges, and some even in 50 ml cartridges.

Try and give Plexus a call or mail, and see what they can come up with.

[roob76]

anyone try using regular epoxy with milled fiberglass in it with just enough silica so it doesn't sag? seems like this would actually make the hull and deck act as one piece! this would also be cheaper for me since i have about 1 1/2 gallons of epoxy already and the milled fiber would only be about 10.00 U.S.

[glassman]

west sys has a mat. called pro-set its a great thing. i use it to install bulkheads stringer,also deck joints the hand gun about 68$ tubes of pro-set 24-30$ they have fast med slow it works good on my teak covering boards i install no lifts in ten years

[roob76]

yeah i've seen that stuff. all of those are basically epoxy based adhesives that are toughened and slightly more flexible than your average laminating epoxy. iwas thinkinjg that if i modify the epoxy mixing ratio of the laminating epoxy i can make it more flexible than when mixed to the exact ratio ie more hardener more flexible. i know if you go too much hardener and it will be useless but i was thinking a max of 5-10% more hardener than usual.

i have made botched batches of epoxy before and actually have a tube that i made with a botched batch of resin (too much hardener. should have read the instructions on this unfamiliar resin i was using) and it cured fine just extremely flexible. i can actually bend it too a 60 degree bend and watch it slowly come back straight. this mix was way off though(mixed a 3:1 as a 2:1 ratio) and i don't plan on going that exteme.

i figure by mixing with a bit more hardener(5-10%) than resin and adding the milled fiber and a bit of silica i can make a putty that is strong has a strong bond is not brittle and will flex some to avoid cracking.

it has too be 100% better than what was in there which was what looked to me like a slightly thickend gel coat and was extremely brittle. this stuff was also used to make self bailing holes. seems like they drilled oversize holes then filled with this brittle putty then redrilled the holes to correct size and added scuppers. i also had to repair the holes wich were cracked around the edges. i barely had to tap it with a flathead screw driver and hammer and it pretty much came off as two big chunks. i then sanded all the edges acetone wiped and made a putty with epoxy, medium size milled fibers and silica and completely plugged the hole. once cured i redrilled hole to correct size and smoothed everything out. much stronger than the original gelcoat filled hole.

[DGreenwood]

There are still builders who use 3M 5200 for that job. It is worth considering in your case.

[roob76]

yeah i have considered the 5200 route but would rather have some structural material that is cured and drillable so that there is acytual structre with fiberglass so the rubrail can grab well when i redrill the holes. seems to me that this would be the best and strongest structural bond next to a methacrylate type adhesive. next best would be the 5200!:?:

[Herman]

Epoxy glue joints are slightly more fragile in peel. This is where methacrylate is good. However, if you have the oportunity to laminate the deck-hull joint from the inside, the joint will be stronger than you can imagine. If you ever wreck the boat, all they will find back is the joint...

However, anything you are planning to do will be much stronger than polyester putty.