fiberglass over steel?

Discussion in 'Boat Design' started by boredman1, Dec 11, 2014.

  1. Commuter Boats
    Joined: Oct 2006
    Posts: 177
    Likes: 12, Points: 18, Legacy Rep: 182
    Location: Southeast Alaska

    Commuter Boats Commuter Boats

    I don't get into very many of these discussions but I'll try to add a little.
    Relatively long experience in marine and industrial repair, in the marine world from basic repairs to reconstructions, lengthening projects, and new construction to 40 feet. In industrial work, fabricating and repair of piping, tank linings, and ventilation equipment.
    In both worlds I've had occasion to apply fiberglass to steal, stainless steel, lead, and aluminum and have had no failures outside of anticipated duty cycles for the intended application. I once fiberglassed a riveted aluminum boat telling the client that she could expect 5 to 7 years of daily use ( the boat was a commuter to and from an island ), the boat is still functioning at 16 years. Jobs such as the vacuum tank on a turd truck, steel fittings entering a fish hold, etc. all have been successful. I've been somewhat anal about prep and clean and will often use a premium ( I believe it to be premium ) vinyl ester as either the working resin or as a primer.
    I've removed linings that were subjected to very hostile conditions and have not seen much of the adverse affects of the permeability of the polyesters and vinyl esters that I've used.

    Gerald
     
    Last edited: Dec 29, 2014

  2. ondarvr
    Joined: Dec 2005
    Posts: 2,929
    Likes: 573, Points: 113, Legacy Rep: 506
    Location: Monroe WA

    ondarvr Senior Member

    Sorry for the delay in getting back to this, had many things going on over the last few days.

    There aren't really any bad resins, they all have their place where they can work well, it's more about finding the right one for the exact application. This can be difficult when you use the same resin for a variety of projects though.

    Just a simple gel time change of a few minutes can make a resin work well, or poorly, just depends on the application. Using the same resin all the time does help you get to know it well and how to use it for the best results.

    All the resins you had listed earlier will work for many things, just find the ones you like the best.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2015
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