"Faux Wood" over Fiberglass??

Okay - I had a crazy idea, but I'm not sure it's possible... I have a tired old fiberglass boat that I want to restore, but was thinking that it would look really sweet if part of the restoration included making the hull look like it was wood - sort of a "faux wood" if you will -- I have a lot of experience building cedar strip boats, so I thought maybe it would be possible to strip the hull, over the fiberglass.

Does anyone know if this is even possible, and what sort of adhesive could be used for this? Would there be a good bond to the gelcoat, or would it have to be taken down to the fb first? Etc...

Any thoughts would be helpful.

Thx
Lee

 

I am not an expert on this but it sure sounds like it could work. You probably will have to get past the gelcoat but maybe not. You could always do a "test patch" on sanded gelcoat...say 3x3 inch square and the attach some of the cedar with a good two-part epoxy..and see what happens with the bond. No harm done if it doesnt bond well..just peel off and go to plan B. Epoxy will probably be too brittle for this type of application though. I'm sure someone else in the forum can suggest a good type of resin for this kind of job. ..perhaps you can post a few pics of your project ..before and after...good luck!

 

Epoxy has been used for this and will hold like mad to FRP. Let me get a photo of a boat that did this before you start, please. Would you post a picture of your boat?

 

Lee,

Yes, it's crazy- it'll take a lot of time and effort, most likely more than the boat will be worth.

But it'll also be way cool if you can pull it off. Thin strips, not quite veneer-thin, but much thinner than would be used for strip planking, could probably be set in epoxy over a well-prepared fibreglass substrate. I would be tempted to (temporarily) mechanically fasten each one as it's glued down, then vacuum bag it, removing the screws once the epoxy has set.

Test a small, inconspicuous area first to make sure it'll actually work, of course.

 

http://www.fibreglast.com/showproducts-category-Chromaveil-190.html

It ain't cheap, but it does work.

 

I have some customers that vacuumed veneer to polyester boats. Looked very nice. unfortunately I lost the photos, but the process is fairly simple.

Also possible is glass veil with wood imprint. The prices of Chromavail shocked me. It must either be something completely different than I am thinking about, or someone is making big money. I must check, but I believe the glass veil costs less than 2,5 euro per sq.m (approx 10 sq ft)