Bondo and west epoxy?

Our current project is building teak and maple sole for the sloping parts of the fiberglass hull in our boat. In order to get some of these areas fair we need to use a filler of some kind.
We thought bondo might be a good choice....but I'm concerned that the bondo will first of all bond well with the hull and then also when we glue the teak and maple strips down to the bodo areas, will the west system epoxy bond well with the bondo?

Thanks for any help

 

Why not just use epoxy with a filler added?

 

The areas are fairly big...west epoxy is expensive

 

Bondo is not a good choice. It does not bond well in a wet environment. Yes epoxy with a wood filler is expensive compared to bondo, but it will bond well, give you a nice clean fair surface and last forever. West is not the only epoxy on the market. There are others that are just as good and less expensive. Look around. Try Boat Builder Central. http://boatbuildercentral.com/. There are other online sellers as well and they sell for far less than what it costs retail.

 

The term 'Bondo' as used here means automotive polyester resin based filler. This stuff is fine on cars but really has no place on a boat. You can mix your own epoxy resin based filler for pretty cheap if cost is the issue. Search the old threads for a recipe.

Jimbo

 

bondo is GREAT!! if you like to redo your work,, and likes cracks,, but it will usually show you the way home if you follow the trail it leave behind ya hehe

 

Quick Fair System 3 is an epoxy filler that would be a better choice over Bondo and its cheaper then 3M Premium

 

You Dingbat! You can't leave a trail on water with the lightweight bondo that floats 'cause your trail will drift and you won't get home! You have to use old school bondo that sinks. Then it will sink and stay put so you can follow the trail home

Jimbo

 

hahaha opps my bad

 

To much Bondo sniffing Much?

 

sniffing?,,,opps,,,, was wondering how to get it out of my teeth

 

There are tons of other suppliers of epoxy out there, and I've found that epoxy is pretty much the same between suppliers- I was running short on one kind, and used hardener from another, and it worked just fine.

Long story short Worst Marine is way the hell overpriced!! I use USComposites.com if you have to buy online, otherwise look for a local supplier.

 

It's generally better to judge epoxies (and most materials, really) by properties rather than by brand. Compare the technical data sheets for a few that you can get at good prices, and you'll probably find one that's close enough in mechanical and chemical properties to your expensive brand.

Bondo is not for boats. Neither are the 200 other products that look and feel just like it. Polyester-based car body fillers just don't hold up in a wet environment. Yes, epoxy will stick to Bondo. But it would be like tabbing drywall in with carbon fibre- the stuff underneath will just disintegrate, and the whole thing fails anyway.

Epoxy, with the thickening filler of your choice, would seem to be the way to go.

 

epoxy filler

I've been using dryer lint as an epoxy filler.
Seems to work great, has anyone else done this before?

 

Almost anything works as epoxy filler. Of course they provide different properties. I have about 30 recipes for different things.
I have seen people use bondo on boats before and paint it, the poor buyer of these boat will be in for surprise shortly.
Try http://www.fascoepoxies.com they have a fairly inexpensive fairing compound and other epoxy products.
I used their products mainly now, more consistant and better than mixing my own.