How thin is too thin for laminating work?

[Omeron]

Although my question is related to a 40 ft cold molding sailboat, i guess it is also a general question.
If one is laminating several layers of wood strips with epoxy to achieve any structural element, whether this being a frame, hull shell,tiller, or anything else,is there an optimum figure for the number of layers, and for the final ratio
of wood to epoxy?
Ofcourse it is obvious that the thinner the wood strips and the more layers there are, the more labour goes into it. But disregarding the amount of labour,
do you think going too thin (one mm.) and layers as much as 25-30, would result in a composit element containing too much epoxy and too little wood?
Would that make it brittle, and less desirable than lets say 3mm and eight layers?
When epoxy saturates wood during lamination, how deep does it penetrate
into it that you would begin to loose wood as we know it, and begin to have an epoxy element with wood as a filler.
If there is an optimum ratio, is this by weight, by volume, by number of layers, or anything else?

[chandler]

There is also the amount of epoxy involved, far more expensive than the labor or the core material.
Less than 3mm is 1: hard to fasten 2: hard to find 3: a waste of glue.

[bbsboat]

A software for lamilation you can use:Vectorlam,its free!
Another way ,the book The elements of boat strength can help you.

[bbsboat]

http://www.vectorply.com/lamdesign/vectorlam_sw.htm
this page to down load VectorLaM

[Omeron]

Thank you gentlemen.
The software seems very interesting. I could never have found it,
if you didnt point to it.
Does anybody know how much they charge for it after the initial
trial period expires. Or is it free and this just a wording in the licence agreement?

[bbsboat]

its free!I have used it,and very useful

[Pericles]

Speak to Vicem. http://www.vicemyacht.com/model.php?kat=1&model=v52

Pericles

[carl_shipwright]

Speaking as a builder not a designer, use as thick a timber as you can get to follow the curve and therefore as few laminations as possible. This will save mateial and labour and give the strongest result.

[Landlubber]

Carl, that is the "correct" answer.