The "ins" and "outs" of fiberglass....

I decided that I needed to get past my stubborn self, and learn about fiberglass before I actually start buying steel and building a boat.
I watched a bunch of videos today, read some things, tried as hard as possible to learn as much as I can.
My experience with fiberglass is limited to patching the floor of an old fishing boat.

So far, I've learned:

You need a mould.
Apply release wax on mold.
Paint mould with gel-coat.
Apply epoxy mixture.
Apply fiberglass.
Keep repeating until desired thickness is obtained.

So the basics seem to be pretty comprehensible, but I am going to keep trying to learn as much as I can.
I figure I owe it to myself at least before spending money on anything.
The only down side so far seems to be that I'll need to make a mould before making the boat.
Out of fairness though, some steps with fiberglass would save work and expenses that welding steel would cost.

 

You don't need a mold.

If you use a gel coat, it has to be epoxy comparable (surfacer) product, if you're making an epoxy laminate.

Most all boat building will require a jig of some sort. If you want to cast something, repeatedly, then a mold is logical.

Download the Gougeon brothers book on boat construction, available at westsystem.com

 

What do you mean by "laminate"?
I keep hearing that term tossed around, is it a foam sandwich construction?
Or you mean the epoxy glass sheets?
I'm still reading and reading about fiberglass, so much to know, almost drowning without even building a boat yet! haha.

My instinct is to try to make a mold from cheap boards and plywood, but use some type of filler so the wood isn't grainy, and leaves a perfect smooth finish.
From there, I would get the hull skin completed to it's final thickness, then start using cheap foam to lay in fiberglass beams.
I realize theres structural foam, but I'd rather use cheap foam and do all the structural parts in fiberglass too rather than rely on foam for anything but insulation.
Do guys lay steel in fiberglass? I'm just wondering, I've yet to see it, but if it was completely sealed in, it shouldn't ever ever rust?!

There are a lot of different places that claim different methods for fiberglass, so which is the strongest?
Is the courser stuff stronger? does it take a healthy mix? So far I'm assuming that smaller items use finer grain, and larger items user finer grain glass for the 1st layers, then progressively thicker as the thickness is built up. Is this about right?

It can be very confusing with fiberglass, cause everyonee seems to have a different project goal, and different understanding, and slightly different preffered methods and products.
It might be time to go on ebay and order enough supplies to mess around and see if I got what it takes to make fiberglass.

 

Again - it's free . . .

 

I put it on me e-reader, plan on checking it out tonight