Epoxy Question and Knot Reassurance

[HarryinSC]

Hi All,

I'm working on my first canoe, a 15' Bob's Special. I have been working at a torrid pace - once I started, it became an obsession. I'm sure all of you can relate!

My question is about the cured epoxy that was used to glue on the stems and fill small cracks. I have sanded the entire boat now, but I didn't completely sand through the excess epoxy that I scraped onto the bow and stern where it meets the stem. For what it's worth, these areas were pre-sanded thoroughly (a slight taper to the end of the strips was necessary to better meet the outer stems). Will this blend nicely when I apply the fiberglass and epoxy, or will it be mismatched? I'm attaching photos that show how it looks right now.

And now, my self-conscious nature seeks a little reassurance. I sourced what cedar was available in my area, and it had a fair amount of knots. When I started building, I only considered the structural factors, not so much the aesthetics of the knots. Only now, as I prepare to fiberglass the boat, do I realize that nearly all of the gorgeous boats I've seen in Canoecraft (and on this and other forums), are clear cedar with virtually no knots. I was a bit crestfallen staring at the boat last night, wondering if it will come out as beautiful as I've been picturing in my head this whole time. How do you all feel about the look of knots?

Thank you all immensely for your help. From reading through this forum, you all seem like wonderful people.

Harry, in SC

Edit: adding imgur link

https://imgur.com/a/uBEAtpA

[Jim Dodd]

All canoe builders are wonderful people ! No Doubt ! !

Every builder ends up with a different canoe than any one else !

Your first canoe will be fine ! That next one will be a lot better ! And take less time and money to build !

My acquisition of tools has grown immensely ! I now have way more clamps than I need to build canoes ! Ha !
Enjoy your build process, and canoe when you are done !

[Jim Dodd]

Back to your question !
If you used straight epoxy, at the stems ? It will blend.
If you used filler ? it will likely show. Not bad, but you can see it.

Don't worry about the knots ! If you survived sanding them ! The worst is over ! Now they will just be Character !

Sorry for the late reply ! I've been alone with one of my strippers in the BWCA for 4 days, and just returned.
Have fun ! And Good luck glassing !
Warm your shop up as much as possible. Epoxy likes warm !

Jim

[HarryinSC]

Jim, thanks so much for your reply! I’m sure the BWCA is absolutely stunning right now. It’s on my bucket list to take a trip there one day!

I appreciate the guidance as well. I did use some wood flour from sanding as a mix in, so it will probably show up a little without some additional sanding.

I’ll post more photos along the way!

Harry