I'm ready to purchase epoxy. Is there a lot of difference between brands, or is it sort of "dealer's choice? I plan to encapsulate the mahogany plywood as well as glass the bottom anbd sides and glue. Can I choose between West System, System 3 , RAKA etc. based on cost, or is there one clear winner? Thanks.
Dave
All the major brands of epoxy are very similar in physical properties. Raka is too thin for my liking, requiring more coats to fill weave and more filler to thicken up. West System and System Three are too costly, but are very fine products. System Three's Quick Fair is about as smooth a fairing compound as you'll find, though mixing is a chore with it's weird ratio. It's not very economical to use, as you can buy fillers and add it to epoxy for a lot less, but it does save the bother of doing so.
West System's now got some interesting "special" mixtures, like GFlex. This would be ideal for a birdsmouth mast build on a bendy stick configuration or a laminated boom or gaff.
WWW.bateau.com has a good 2:1 epoxy, for considerably less then the major brands. It's blush proof, unless you epoxy in the rain. If you tell Joel that PAR sent you, he might give you a pro builder discount. Graham has a similar 2:1 (I think it's 2:1) mixture. A link can be found over at the Messingabout.com site.
There are also some "unrefined" brands which are cheap, but have limited working time or temperature ranges.
In the end, I recommend using one of the major brands that offer pumps. The pumps can keep the novice out of trouble, assuming you don't lose count or can count for that matter.
After you get some experience, you can move to the self mix stuff. 1:1 and 2:1 ratios are common and fairly easy to not screw up. These will save you some money, but you have to be methodical about measuring out mixtures.
------ Bump------
Marinepoxy (
www.Bateau.com,
www.Duckworksmagazine.com)
RAKA (
www.Raka.com)
Progressive Epoxy Products (
www.epoxyproducts.com)
DWX (
www.Duckworksmagazine.com)
Fiberglass Coatings Inc. (
www.FGCI.com)
Thanks, Paul. A confusing topic for the novice. Since the epoxy over at Batteau is cheaper, a rookie like myself may be overly wary. It's good to know you approve. BTW, do they have a dispenser available? I'll probably go with them. Thanks.
Dave
Dave I use the raka and like it. I think it is like beer or cig. the one you get use to and confortable with. Par know a lot about these brands and I don't think he would steer you wrong. It is just that some of them are a little tricky for first time user. The raka is a 2 to1 mix and I have had good luck with it. It is a little thinner than some but it is also easer to work with than some at least for me. Bud
No they don't have pumps, but it's easy to use mixing cups, each marked with ounces. Pour one ounce of resin for each two ounces of hardener and you've got it.
Epoxy is more forgiving then most thing about mixing ratio errors. If you're off by a little bit, it'll still setup. It just might not be quite as strong or may blush more. I've had mixtures off by as much as 10% and it still cures hard.
Personally I don't use pumps or other dispensers. This might be that I have several different epoxies all with different ratios. I've learned to use the exact same procedures during each mixing occasion, which serves to eliminate mistakes. This is the key to consistent epoxy work. Develop procedures that work for you and don't vary from them. Most of use have a "goo station" where the epoxy is stored, mixed, fillers added, etc. You'll find you go though the same motions each time you get some goo.
I used Marine Epoxy from Duckworks. They have the pumps and after a couple of weeks using cups, I ordered them and I'm glad I did. They also have fillers and all the stuff you need.
The Marine Epoxy from DuckWorks is the epoxy sold by Bateau.com. You may get a better price if you contact them directly. I didn't notice the pump kits, which may be a new addition or my not paying attention, as it's not something I'd use.
Forget about the pumps and go with mixing cups from a paint store. The pumps always seem to get air in them and you never know exactly how much resin and how much air you got out of that last pump. You'll also loose track of how many times you pumped. Remember epoxy is not a dangerous task and beer mixes well with it which makes it even easier to loose count of the pumps.
Beer is the reason I went to the pumps. One two one, one two one, one two one, repeat.
I found Industrial Formulators epoxy to be economical, and easy to mix and use. I mix with paper cups and it has always worked well for me.
Greg