Contagious

I am making a mold of an R/C boat as a little side project..
Is there other ways to apply gelcoat (tooling gel) other than spraying?? Can it be brushed or rolled??

I live in a residental area and do not want the neighborhood
getting buzzed and complaining.

Any help is appreciated.

Oh yes, One more thing.. After the mold is complete can I produce peices without using gelcoat as long as the mold is well waxed.
For ex: just start laying up glass instead of spraying gelcoat first.
I am going to airbrush them anyway so do not need a gelcoat finish.

Thanks guys!
Contagious

Steve 1

Brushing gel coat no promlemo since the beginning of time in the boat business, there has been more gel coat brushed on than you can believe, just use a decent brush and brush from the dry area to the wet (like a good varnish job)

Going without gel coat will expose you to a myriad of problems starting with pin holing and ending with a mold surface that is hard to lay-up on; you see the gel coat softens the surface by rounding the corners a little enabling a more easily attainable void free laminate

I will see if there is a brushing Gel coat available here, Overseas it is the norm. The thix index of spray is much less than brush, Viscosity I meant.
But again there is the weight penalty of gel coat on the part
Best Regards

glassdave

iTrader: (1)

hey contagious, steve pretty much nailed it for ya (after following his posts i have come to realize steve is the "mister wizard" of the boat building world an sharkey too ) . you will definetly need to use gel coat. make sure you wave a GOOD release agent on the original when you make your mold, parting wax or polyvinylalchol. another little tip, if you still want to spray the gel go to home depot and pick up a gravity feed spray gun. they have a few knock-off's of high end guns that work pretty well. i use a devilbess GTI that has a very high transfer efficiency, almost no over spray. for heavy stuff like gel use just enough pressure to get it to atomize a bit and you will cut down the haze alot.

by the way . . .is this an original boat model . . .or are you splashing someone else's design . . . . . . just kid'n man . . . .

i have a couple of RC boats my self. an older Dumas 41 inch cig flat deck done up like the old BOATING magazine cover girl. also putting togather a 65 inch cat right now too. i was thinking of pulling a mold off it before its done in case i crash it or somthing.

Contagious

Thanks for your help guys I really appreciate it.

So just to make sure: It is ok to brush gelcoat & gelcoat must be used to produced a piece as well??

Im going to check into that spray system, When I did the hull mold I thinned the gelcoat down with acetone and man was there some major fumes and fog.. And it was not really applying that much gelcoat.. (I know what you guys are thinking, "Dam Rookies) .. But to make a long story short the neighbors and girlfriend had tude for awhile..

Yes Glassdave, I cannot lie.. The hull is a copy of an old 40" Dumas, But I did make a new euro deck for it.. And yes I have said that in the past that that should be illegal, But I am not doing it for profit.. Just my personal toys and Its been a pretty cool winter project and learning experiance.. (Dont piss the neighbors and girlfriend off) It even had the house smelling like gelcoat for a few days)

Thanks Pros! I appreciate it..