Repair Advice

I took a pretty good hit to the side of my 16ft. Tatman on Wednesday. After I got off the water I noticed that the rock had put a half dollar sized dent in the rubstrip - breaking through the varnish and the top of the meranti veneer. It is cosmetic and not structural so I'm not overly alarmed - it is a fishing boat after all. 

My plan is to sand, apply west system epoxy to glue and secure fibers (and waterproof), sand again and varnish.

I'm curious how long I should let wood dry from the last float before I apply varnish - as the wood was saturated in the immediate area. I also can't seem to find want the west system 105 / 205 in small quantities for a small repair. I did find west system G- flex epoxy in tubes - any thoughts here would be appreciated.

Does this sound about right or am I missing something? 

Thanks so much, 

Rob

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Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on November 6, 2015 at 5:47pm

Rob,

Go to West's Website.  They have epoxy repair kits.  Here's a link.  

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/repair-kits/

I am thinking you can get these through any West System Supplier.  It should do the job.

Dorf

Permalink Reply by Rob Dussler on November 6, 2015 at 7:27pm

Thanks, Phillip!

Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on November 6, 2015 at 7:37pm

Jamestowndistributors.com has qt cans of 105 resin, and .44 pts of hardner, 205 fast dry, 206 slow dry, and 207 special clear. Might not hurt to have some of this on hand. Pretty sure this stuff is good for years if stored right.

The 205 drys a little dark good for bonding stuff, the 207 is very clear good for coating and sealing and might bond good too. Used the 207 to coat all my wood and for my glass on the sides, and I used it for my scarf joints to keep them clear. Ive used both of those.

Mix either with sander sawdust till thick and use it like a putty

Permalink Reply by Rob Dussler on November 7, 2015 at 6:54am

Mike - sounds good. I did wonder if it would be preferable to have the initial coat of epoxy be very viscous to aid in the saturation of the wood grain and fibers. I've read so much about mahogany "checking" and want to make sure the damaged wood is glued back together thoroughly. Perhaps the putty consistency will do just the same - this is my first repair so lots of questions... 

If you feel that putty is the better option, I'll roll with that. 

I appreciate your reply, Mike.

Rob

Permalink Reply by Kurt Selisch on November 7, 2015 at 7:40am

Hi Rob, - I think you are on the right track. I would thin the initial coat of epoxy with either acetone or denatured alcohol so it has good penetration into the damaged plywood. Then patch over with the wood flour thickened epoxy.

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on November 7, 2015 at 7:33am

Pictures will be helpful to our long distance troubleshooting. If you need help posting let me know.

Rick

Permalink Reply by Kurt Selisch on November 7, 2015 at 9:57am

Pic of a hull punch in a middle fork salmon outfitters boat that I just completed. Went all the way through the rock guard and hull. Pretty good hit in sulpher slide rapid. Hardest part was getting the rock guard off that was nailed on with bronze ring nails and after years of varnish seeping between hull and rock guard, it was virtually glued to the boat. Lot's of swear words! The thickened epoxy visible at top right corner of damage is from the inside patch. 

Permalink Reply by tungsten on November 8, 2015 at 6:56am

Don't use thinners in the epoxy,going from memory here but i believe it reduces its ability  to stop water ingress .Any epoxy will thin down with heat before you mix in the hardener.

Permalink Reply by Mike Baker on November 8, 2015 at 8:27am

What Tungsten said about thinners, heat is way better. If cosmetics are important I would use 105/207 wet out the area and let it mostly kick. Mix another batch let it jell up a bit (207 doesn't have a violent kick unless you mix a bunch) put it on the repair and cover it with packing tape to hold it in place. Sand after removing the tape and repeat if necessary this should give you a clear repair. This is how I fill in nail holes.

Nice looking boat by the way.

Mike

Permalink Reply by Rob Dussler on November 8, 2015 at 4:11pm

Thanks, Mike.

Very helpful. What do you mean by "kick" when referring to the epoxy?

Best, 

Rob

Permalink Reply by Mike Baker on November 8, 2015 at 4:46pm

Kick is the term for when the chemical reaction is getting close to done. Really fast hardeners will get very hot and even melt plastic if left in a mixing cup or pot, 207 is pretty slow. You could probably do the same thing with the g/flex that comes in a small bottle not the tube if you didn't want to buy the 105/207. The tube g/flex is very thick. G/flex has a nice varnish like amber color to it, not as clear as 105/207.

Mike

Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on November 8, 2015 at 5:17pm

Hey that will be a great way for me to fill some of the little divits on my sides where the screws are under the glass before I varnish.  Most flushed out nice but the handfull that didnt will show bad with gloss. I was leaning towards a matte finish, but if that works good maybe I will shine :)

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