Oh what a mess!

[alick burt]

Yesterday I finally got around to glassing the inside of my hull.To say I struggled with it would be an understatement.once again (as my cloth isn't wide enough) I had to use two pieces of cloth with a join along the middle.
No matter what I tried I just couldn't get the cloth to behave.I kept getting air bubbles all over as i worked .Itreid to push the cloth down and work them to the edges but they just kept lifting it up.Around the stems I kept getting creases and some of these i was able to work off to the top edges .cutting the cloth around the stems was a nightmare.it stuck to my knife.When I tried to remove the excess strips of cloth they remained attached to the rest and pulled up the cloth that had stuck down.When I cut it again and removed the offcut I then had trouble getting the cloth back in place because it stuck to my squeegee!
sometimes when i pressed the bubbles down they appeared to go but wait,had i just broken through the cloth!!!
After about ten hours of fighting with the beast I finally gave up as i had come to the conclusion that everything I tried made it worse.
Twelve hours later,I now have bubbles,lifted bits of cloth ,creases,some tears in the cloth and a very uneven coat of resin.any ideas on how i can correct this mess will be gratefully received ! meanwhile I'm going to make up my gunwales!

[Rick]

Don't despair Alick, you'll need to sand off those defects and apply fiberglass patching wherever there is bare wood. Then sand edges smooth to feather in and the repair work shouldn't be too noticeable after another coat of epoxy and varnish.

It's the same procedure as if you had damaged the hull after it was finished... prepares you for more repair work later on.

[Arctic]

Been there and done that- twice now. I think this has got to be the biggest disadvantage of the fiberglass/epoxy method.

Sand and scrape- patch and smooth. Don't expect perfection either- it does not exist.

Trust me, you will not notice the things you see now when you are enjoying time on the water with your boat.


Mark

[canoeblderinmt]

Alick,
Sorry you had such a tough time. Laying down the glass on the inside is for sure the most challenging part of building a stripper. I've been lucky and have only had a few places I needed to sand down and patch. Believe Mark when he says that if you are careful with your patching, it will not be noticeable. I have had many people admire my boat, but none of them have ever seemed to notice nor mention any of the flaws I see so readily because I was there when they happened.

You are creating a thing of grace and beauty. Trust in that, do not despair, and you will be rewarded with hours of enjoyment that will fill your soul.

Greg

[alick burt]

Thankyou folks
Once again you have saved me from panic and despair!Looks like i'll start with a long sanding session.
I've just bought a couple of syringes with the thought of using them to pump resin into the bubbles.Has anyone had any success with this?I intend to prick a small hole for the air to exit from as well as one to pump the resin in through...

Been sanding all day have added an image so you can see what i'm up against!
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn18 ... ned023.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn18 ... ned021.jpg

[j0hns01]

:shocked
I spent a couple of hours last night trying to get the air bubbles from underneath my cloth as well. So basically, the only thing I can do is sand the bubbles smooth? Will I ever get the smooth finish I have on the exterior? I didn't have any problems with that. Very frustrating to think of all the hours I have put into this boat.......

Stephen

[alick burt]

Hi Stephen
Do not despair.I learn't a couple of things with my repairs to bubbles.If you do sand through the cloth they will disappear if you clean out the dust well and then drip a little resin into the hole and cover it with masking tape.I had a lot of these to do and some came out better than others. It is best to keep the tape nice and flush with the surrounding surface to mimimise the sanding afterwards.Then i put avery thin brush coat over the lot and it now looks far better.I still have a few bubbles showing and I am now confident that I can sort these out using a syringe.In this case I drill a tiny hole into them at each end of the bubble and pump the resin in pushing the air out of the second hole.This too can be taped to keep it from running out again until set.and wipe off any runs with a paper towel. Be very careful not to drill too far on the drilling stage for obvious reasons! I used my old wheelbrace to do this as it gives more control than a power drill.
As you can see from my pictures I had a lot of bubbles and I know the more time I spend on putting them right the more of them will disappear and the better it will look but at the end of the day it is my first canoe so I don't expect perfection.It'll still float! :smile
Regards
Alick