Use Gel-cote with cloth?

Hello

Can one use polyester gel-cote to wet out/laminate with 6 ounce cloth?

I ask as I am repairing a very very small area (very tip end of small rudder) that would use less than an ounce of resin…..probably a half ounce…..I really don’t want to buy 16/32 ounces of laminating resin, use a few drops, then have to store something toxic that I probably won’t ever use again….

Again…can I embed 6 oz. cloth substituting gel-cote for resin? (Then a few more layers of gel, sand up the grits, then buff in)?

 

It works and is frequently done on cosmetic repairs. Or, if that's all you have on hand.

It's a bit tougher to use because you can't easily see how well the glass has been wet out, plus you can't see any air.

 

LOL I just got a new quart of laminating resin and now I need a few oz of gelcoat for a utility-grade repair.
Trade?
Would the inverse situation work: tint lam resin 3% (white resin-specific pigment) and do three or four 5 mil (.12mm) thick wet coats? OK to thin with acetone up to 5%?

 

It will work, but the color and gloss may not hold up long term.

Resin starts off with a very low viscosity so thinning it probably isn't needed

 

Thanks Ondarvr, I appreciate the candid answers you give on these topics. This will be to get the patches from pea soup resin and pigmented filler to a more uniform color ahead of bottom prep.

 

Thanks to those who helped….

To clarify: I would embed the cloth with gel, wait for cure, sand, and then still add several coats of more gel. So I am a bit confused on the statement about the color and gloss not holding up…..won’t the final coats of gel (over the repair) hold the color/gloss?

 

I think that specific comment was more for my homemade gel coat question.