Building a stitch & glue boat in Fiji

Mr upchurch is right, there are +1000`s different kinds of product labelled under the "epoxy" umbrella... the type im referring to is the composites industry standard, amine cured 2 part epoxy resin, usually mixed in a 4:1 or 5:1 ratio.

There are single part epoxy paints, 2 part epoxy paints, floor paints, tank liners, the list goes on, but these are all epoxies... tho not the type we are discussing here...

Heres a pictorial showcase which shows what is commonly built using epoxy resin, besides little plywood boats that is;







Heres some more good techincal reading too -> http://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&r...=0vKDNH3-XB7e3R6bdoQOng&bvm=bv.55819444,d.dGI

Your concerns with proper epoxy laminating resin, for a little plywood boat, would be eliminated should you choose to read up on it - as we have all done before and thus advise you accordingly... its up to you mate...

 

I mentioned installing forward controls in an earlier post. This is the kind of system I am thinking about. Forward controls without a regular console

 

Yah, a small craft with a center consoles look like windsurfer with a refrigerator stacked amidships.

I prefer side consoles on small craft...better looking and easier to route the cables aft to the engine.

A stick for steering is fantastic for low power boats...stick, cable and pulleys..the old fashion style works great

 

I have never considered contaminates on the wood surface. Just trusted that it is clean.
For the plywood boats apparently the wood was clean.
For strip planked boats I have to cut strips out of 1, 2 and 4" boards with lots of waste, then sand the surface to make it smooth. Apparently that has been enough to get clean wood.
I don't use silicones and oils (except in the cars) in my shop/ garage.

Good luck. Hoping for the best is all I know to do, except if I see something looking like oil I don't use that wood. Silicone you can't typically see, of course.

BTW, I work at the plant where the aircraft above was made and that epoxy has no relationship to what we are talking about. Cured at 350 degrees F under 80PSI pressure, with a 36% resin content, on Carbon fiber with a higher stiffness than most of us will ever purchase, and it is a Pre-preg.

 

Excellent side console...

 

Yup she a beauty, I am going to implement something like this. The vehicle examiner came by today to check out the work so far. He be very impressed!

 

Stay away from solvent washes or other witchcraft. They always add surface impurities. Soap and water...washed off with plenty of water is best.

At one time it was common to wash an entire sheet of plywood before impregnating it with paint or epoxy.

The thought being .....surface contamination and raising the grain of the wood to achieve better penetration.

Evidently a plywood surfacing machine at the factory can polish , over heat and surface harden the wood and this retards penetration

 

The factory heating and polishing of the ply seams like a real possibility on Fir plywood at least.
Sounds like a good reason to run a random orbital over the surface to help with bonding if there is some suspicion.

 

The rep for the only FG supplier came to check out the build today and see why the roving was no good. We took a length and draped it onto the boat and hand pressed/pushed it around and it draped cleanly and laid flat on the seams, the way it grabbed the curves on the bow reminded me of Chinese finger trap :/ most of the strands laid across the seams at around 45 degrees :/

 

perfect... exactly what you need. Same reason you use +-45deg double bias tape along your chines etc.

 

When you do the main sheathing lamination on your skiff , its worthwhile to lay the cloth on the hull, fit, trim, add a few pieces of masking tape to hold things in place...then let the dry cloth rest on the boat overnight.

The cloth will relax a little and then be very easy to impregnate and work with in the morning

In the perfect world every fiber would cross a joint at 45. The world aint perfect so many fibers will cross at less than ideal angles.

Relaxing the cloth helps deal with this

 

I am confused a bit though. I was expecting the 600gsm to jump of the hull and try to strangle me! :O I was surprised how well she behaved draped on the hull and over the seams

Still confused about another thing too. Why is tape about 6" wide or so? Cant find this info anywhere. Why cant tape be a couple of foot wide?

 

My question is why do you want tape 6" wide?
I've only used 2 - 3".
Once you get past a small distance the rest of the width doesn't do anything for the strength of the joint.

 

I cannot answer why 6" wide with any authority

But my my question is, why not 2 feet wide?
4m boat
9mm ply
55cm panels
2 feet wide 450gsm double bias tape

 

........ I suppose once it's over a certain width maybe it's not tape......... some fabric like 4-6 oz woven like for surfboards comes at about 700mm
http://www.surfblanksaustralia.com/...ss-products/fibreglass-cloth/cut-length-price
http://www.dionchemicals.com/products/6_oz_fibreglass_cloth/6_oz_cloth_product_list.html/ref/190
http://www.nuplexcomposites.com/aus...fs/products/reinforcements/Reinforcements.pdf

Jeff.