By the way ! I want to also echo the Congratulations !
You will be SOO proud of yourself, when you first put the canoe to water !
It's truly a moving experience !
Great job !!!
Jim
fiberglass
Epoxy flowing and drips.
Hi Dawne.
What a beautiful Boat!! I can not wait to be as far along on my canoe project as you. My current project is a 36 foot sailboat and I have about a year left before it's ready so I'm way off. I can give you some tips on minimizing drips in the epoxy though.
I think the main reason you are getting the drips is that the viscosity of your mixed epoxy is too thick. In my case I use west system with the 207 hardener. I ran into the drip problem in a recent cold front when our temp got down into the 50's here in Miami FL. It seems that it just gets too thick for proper application. I have never had that problem in the past so i can only attribute it to temp.
I would suggest experimenting with heating you r resin and hardener to about 80-90 degrees and then mixing them together. remember this will also speed up the reaction so spread it quickly.
Also foam rollers usually don't work so well for me. I find that they introduce a lot of air into the picture. When you are trying to get a glass finish they just will not do. I have found that a 4" foam brush on the other hand is excellent (and cheap). For the application technique i usually try to follow some sort of pattern and try to tip minimally so the epoxy flows naturally. also make sure you do not overload your brush.
this was a little project on the boat that was very similar to a canoe strips and all. http://www.flickr.com/photos/69652907@N00/4308016686/
$600 in the Teak alone though... I cant wait till I'm working with cedar.
Keep up the awesome work.
javascript:emoticon(':applause')
Xavier
What a beautiful Boat!! I can not wait to be as far along on my canoe project as you. My current project is a 36 foot sailboat and I have about a year left before it's ready so I'm way off. I can give you some tips on minimizing drips in the epoxy though.
I think the main reason you are getting the drips is that the viscosity of your mixed epoxy is too thick. In my case I use west system with the 207 hardener. I ran into the drip problem in a recent cold front when our temp got down into the 50's here in Miami FL. It seems that it just gets too thick for proper application. I have never had that problem in the past so i can only attribute it to temp.
I would suggest experimenting with heating you r resin and hardener to about 80-90 degrees and then mixing them together. remember this will also speed up the reaction so spread it quickly.
Also foam rollers usually don't work so well for me. I find that they introduce a lot of air into the picture. When you are trying to get a glass finish they just will not do. I have found that a 4" foam brush on the other hand is excellent (and cheap). For the application technique i usually try to follow some sort of pattern and try to tip minimally so the epoxy flows naturally. also make sure you do not overload your brush.
this was a little project on the boat that was very similar to a canoe strips and all. http://www.flickr.com/photos/69652907@N00/4308016686/
$600 in the Teak alone though... I cant wait till I'm working with cedar.
Keep up the awesome work.
javascript:emoticon(':applause')
Xavier
Thanks Xavier
I really appreciate the time you took to respond! I think the temperature was a big part of the issue too. Our basement stays around 55 with just the furnace running. I raised it to about 62 (give or take) with two space heaters the night before. However, the viscosity of the epoxy was as you described. Very thick and would not spread well. I used a 3" brush to do the application. I have been putting off doing the inside because I can't seem to heat our basement above 60 degrees this past week (tempertatures around 10 F). I have no idea how long it will be before I can get it warmer down there and I can't deal with the drips! If I add a 3rd space heater it blows the fuses. 
So in the mean time, working on decks and ordering hardwood for the gunwales. But I feel my hands are tied for the time being.
Thank you very much for the additional input. I feel like I've gained a lot more experience and knowledge as I prepare to tackle the inside of the canoe. Hopefully this will give me a little better results when the time comes.
p.s. Your sailboat looks really beautiful! The teak is lovely.
So in the mean time, working on decks and ordering hardwood for the gunwales. But I feel my hands are tied for the time being.
Thank you very much for the additional input. I feel like I've gained a lot more experience and knowledge as I prepare to tackle the inside of the canoe. Hopefully this will give me a little better results when the time comes.
p.s. Your sailboat looks really beautiful! The teak is lovely.
Dawne Olson
"The human soul needs actual beauty more than bread" ~DH Lawrence
"The human soul needs actual beauty more than bread" ~DH Lawrence