Which epoxy system do you use????

[WHumphreys]

Im curious to see which epoxy products people use and why. I would like to choose a particular one and stick to it. My choices are

West system

System 3

Mas

Interlux

SP Epoxy

E.A.S.T. System

Raka (Only seems available in the US)

Ive no doubt they are all good at what they do but is there a slant to a particular manufacturer.

Not really interested in unbranded products as I like the support that comes with most major products.

Also availability is important as I Live in the UK and some not so well known epoxys I've been steered towards are only available in the US

This:

http://shop.r-g.de/en/home/

we use in building wood EP boats (different formulations of course).
And it is the cheapest prime quality supplier you will find to deliver in UK.

Richard

[Jimbo1490]

Epon 862 + various curing agents, usually Epi-Cure 3234.

[susho]

SP, Ampreg 22
good characteristics, nice colours (haha) handy when mixing, nice viscosity, great support.

[marshmat]

I tend to use West System right now, it's great stuff, but I would love to find something cheaper.
Had some great success with Adtech high-temp resins a few years ago for solar car moulds and parts, a fairly easy to use, strong and reliable system with good customer support.... they make a marine epoxy system as well, see http://www.adtechplastics.com/

[Stumble]

West Systems with a Port Supply number at west marine for small stuff (less than 5 gallons). It is still to expensive, but it is available on demand instead of needing to be ordered.

For larger projects I would have to price the majors out and see what the numbers are then.

[Jimbo1490]

Originally Posted by marshmat

I tend to use West System right now, it's great stuff, but I would love to find something cheaper.
Had some great success with Adtech high-temp resins a few years ago for solar car moulds and parts, a fairly easy to use, strong and reliable system with good customer support.... they make a marine epoxy system as well, see http://www.adtechplastics.com/

Adtech makes a lot of cool stuff just about nobody else has, like epoxy 'gelcoats' and intermediary coatings.

Jimbo

[CTMD]

A couple of very experianced Kiwi boat builders I know intentionally switch epoxy brands with each project. The theory is that the subtle differences between brands mean they and their staff don't build up allergies as quick.

Having said that I use and recommend SP (gurit).

[WHumphreys]

Your the second person to use SP (gurit). I have never heard of it (not that I should of being a beginner). Why is it your choice and what is so good about it?

[CTMD]

How can you say you've never heard of it. It was in your original list.

Being from the UK, SP are your local specialists. They have an incredibly wide range of epoxy based products (definitely not a one product for everything situation) and a good range of cloths etc. A great case study was a Kiwi client who was building his boat in his farm shed. The local company stopped stocking the cloth we had specified so we suggested he give SP a call. A week later we had him on the phone raving about how much better and easier to work with the SP cloth was. This is a guy who had never before built anything out of glass.

Most of their resins have a range of hardener choices which can be mixed to tailor your gel time and as mentioned above their hardeners typically have a tint (which disappears) so you can be sure you've mixed it fully.

From a professional point of view I also like them due to the level of support they provide and their willingness to help you solve an issue even if it means recommending a product from the competition.

[WHumphreys]

That sounds excellent as a generalization what are they like cost wise to the other well known suppliers.

My original list was created from sites selling epoxy what I should really of written is Ive heard of West System, Mas, Interlux but dont really know anything about the rest :-)

And hell its midnight here its been a long day hahahahaha who said stripping paint from grp was easy

[CTMD]

Originally Posted by WHumphreys

That sounds excellent as a generalization what are they like cost wise to the other well known suppliers.

It a competitive market you'll pay similar for products of similar quality. If you can get something much cheaper then thats what it is, something much cheaper.

[WHumphreys]

After reading through their website I think Ill give them a call tommorrow. It does look like a well supported excellent product. I suspect this is what I will use. Cheers

Originally Posted by CTMD

It a competitive market you'll pay similar for products of similar quality. If you can get something much cheaper then thats what it is, something much cheaper.

That is not really true in the UK (not in Germany either). Although I fully concur with you that SP is a prime choice, there are others with absolute the same value in terms of product quality and service.

[WHumphreys]

Where my confusion tends to lie at the moment and is going to influence my choice is paint manufacturers and Epoxy manufacturers seem to overlap in the middle a bit. I currently have a 36 year old grp boat I am restoring. The grp is in very good condition no blistering to speak of. It has had the gelcoat painted over (not very well) in the distant past. Im going to re-paint it after I have prepaired it. Where I get a lost a little is the paint manufacturer i.e. Interlux for example seem to have there own epoxy as well. Does that mean I do all the repairs in the sp epoxy and then switch to theres for the hull. I say Im a beginner but I know how to use the grp products from practise and a lot of reading but I find Im a little like a woodworker who knows how to use a saw but isnt quite sure what type of wood to use if that makes sense.