Laying stringers
 

could someone explain tabbing i plan on covering the stringers completely with the cloth going out at least 12 inches on each side first layer then shorter on next layers. do i need to add more right where they meet the floor. Trying to figure out how much cloth i need now Really giving me a headache. Then i have to figure out how much resin.

If I'm not mistaken , you start out tabbing with shorter pieces first and then progress up to the larger overlapping layers one by one.

If your new stringers a made of wood of any sort it's a good idea to make sure they are completely sealed with resin before you start laying wet cloth over them. It's a small procedure overlooked by many but very important as it prevents the dry wood from wicking all the resin away from the cloth that needs it for a good bond to the stringer.

Get plenty of material .. ya don't want to run out three quarters of the way before the end !

12" Is probably much to far to be tabbing out. You do not want the edges of each tab to end on top of one another. In other words they should be staggered.
If you look in the General Q&A area for a thread by myself on stringer replacement I have most of the steps documented. It may help. I would highly advise that you get some help from some one that knows what they are doing. Use to much resin and you will get a week bond and to little and you will likely delaminate..... There are TONS of tricks that you can do and would learn from a pro....

Jon

I would not use it but,
 

West System makes an awsome book for general knowldge of repairs. all you need is to use poly instead of West.

Composite's One can provide cloth and resin needs if you get some measurements.

Billy

You sound like you know West, you must have read the report on bounding poly to poly it is not a good repair, that is why west developed their system epoxy to poly for repair. Does any hi performance boat company even use poly anymore? No! Epoyy or vinyl esters which are modified epoxy's just cheaper.

I'm with BU, use poly. West viscosity is WAY to high to be able to wet out properly. while epoxy has its place it really isnt necessary for something like this. Its all about prep work, just make sure you grind the area very well first. also make sure you have at least a half inch radius on the edges of the stringer to let the laminate make the bend easier. 2 layers of 1808 is a good cap chop side down.

http://www.uscomposites.com/

us composites is a great supplier for the do-it-yourselfer. they have great pricing on smaller quantities and have everything you need. if you do feel the need to use epoxy try their 635 resin.

You can prep till the cows come home, polyester does not bond well to itself, period. That is why we have the West system they are making millions in the boat repair arena. But people will do what people will do, if it looks pretty who cares if it breaks.

Also please explain the viscosity wetting out thing? They make several different hardners, with pot life from several hours to several days. Has anyone ever used the product on here before?

Superwrench, do yourself a favor... look back through the years of posts by Glassdave, Audiofn, Offshore Ginger and some do it yourselfers too like Zanie and a few others. There is at least 100 years of combined experience here and they wont steer you wrong.

Actually, if you really want the skinny on epoxies talk to this guy, John Greer. He mixes his own and will explain in laymans terms the difference in what he mixes vs. the big names. Nice guy (and he knows what viscosity means).

http://www.jgreer.com

Jackhammer: While you are correct Epoxy does have the ultimate in holding power it can cause problems down the road. For example putting ANY polyester paint over the top of it is a no no. So once you put the Epoxy down you have to treat it with Durratech and so on. Vinnylesters are very close in strength but do not have this problem. I think that what Glass Dave is saying is that if you properly prepair and mix your Polyesters and vinnylesters that they are more then addaquate. A lot of the bonding issues that people have are poor prep. I had to reglass a foot throttle on my buddies boat that he glassed down. He did it with epoxy and I just reached under the dash and ripped it out. I redid it with Polyester and you will rip a hole in the bottom of the boat before you have a problem with that thing lifting off again. A lot of people mix the ester resins to hot. The more layers you plan on putting down the hotter they will flash (actually goes for epoxy as well). So you do not want to over catalize your mix. I only ever mix up 1 qt at a time. This gives me plenty of work time for what I have in the cup and it never has haddened on me before I have had time to finish the area that I am working in. You need to work fast even with a quart.

Wetting out is when you apply the resin to the glasss it turns clear. What I always do is take a piece of cardboard or wood and put resin on the cardboard then I lay the strip of glass on the resin. I then take my paint brush and paint the glass. It will turn clear when you have the proper amount of resin on it. Epoxy is much harder to get the glass to go clear so you have to work it a LOT more. I then lightly squeegee the glass and lay it in the boat and do any needed touch ups.

Jon

Good post Jon... it's sharing this kind of real world experience that keeps me glued to OSO (almost a good pun : )

My post on epoxy was meant to to help superwrench decide if he wanted to spend extra on West Systems or not. John Greer will tell you pretty much all of the companies selling epoxy are esentially buying them from the same manufactures, Dow, Shell, vantico, etc... The only thing I really like about West is that they are stocked locally in the case I need a quick fix. When I was needing a lot for my project I actually went straight to Shell (driving distance for me) and was able to get what I needed to blend the 635... I just didn't need 55 gallon drums of it so I started buying from US Composites, they had the best prices...

fiberglast.com
 

is also a good site. They can provide conversion charts to let you know how much resin and cloth is needed to obtain the thickness you are after. If they can't, call Rick Hess at Composite's One. He can also provide a chart to get an idea for what you need. As far as poly, West or others? done right all work well. After 23 year I have never had a lay up let loose or delaminate. Used them but on large jobs your better with something that wets out quick. As stated grinding is a large part of the repair proccess.

Billy:signs069: