help with crack filling

[tptbum]

Hi all -

My first attempt at crack filling resulted in getting the thickened epoxy all over the hull - I tried to scrape it off with a putty knife before it set up, but it was still pretty rough when it dried.

So I sanded - but when I got it pretty smooth it is still pretty dark. So my question is do I need to keep sanding until I get the dark off ? I feel like if I do keep sanding I am going to put a hole in the boat / if I don't I will always have fairly ugly dark spots.

Gotta try round two of crack filling as well.

Thanks

John

[aliguori]

How thick was the epoxy? Was it a peanut butter consistency such that it would hold it's shape? What did you thicken it with?

It sounds like your epoxy may not have been thick enough and the wood absorbed it. Otherwise light sanding with 80 grit would have taken it off.

I wouldn't worry about it as long as it's smooth. Once you glass, the rest of the wood should darken up as it absorbs epoxy.

[Patricks Dad]

A couple tips on filling cracks....

1. I don't used thickened epoxy any more. I just use wood putty out of a tube (mixed to match the color of the wood when it's wet - error on the dark side). If you have small cracks, wood putty will be just fine.

2. When I did use thickened epoxy, I layed a piece of painters tape on either side of the crack before I filled it. Then pulled off the tape after the epoxy had begun to set up. This created an ever-so-slight high spot of epoxy which could later be scrapped or sanded off level with the wood.

I generally work very hard when stripping to avoid cracks so the filling challenge is minimal (usually less than 20 minutes total).

hope this helps.

[tptbum]

Randy - this is way off topic . . .
but your name sounds familar to me, are you a trumpet player? (or were you in high school)

John

[Patricks Dad]

I did go to high school but have never played the trumpet.

[tptbum]

must be a different guy