is expoxy necessary?

[Guest]

what all does it do, is there an alternative, and how do i fiberglass? thanks, i need all the info on stitch and glue too. what do i fill the seams with? thanks.

[jem]

Review these sections:

http://jemwatercraft.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=6

http://jemwatercraft.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=7

That will get you started in the right direction and give you enough info to get started thinking about more questions.

If you'd like, send me an e-mail and I'll send you a sample set of pirogue plans.

[Oldsparkey]

Guest..........

The epoxy strengthens the wood by soaking into it and then it acts as a bonding agent with the rest of the epoxy when you put the fiberglass on the boat.

Fiberglassing is easy. After the boat is epoxy saturated then lightly sand it to remove the burrs from the expanding wood fibers , I call them whiskers. Then lay the glass down on the boat and wet it in.

Stitch and glue is just that. Some holes (small ones) are drilled in the wood panels where they meet at the seams then stitched together with either thin wire or plastic tie downs. This is what holds the panels together. Then they are epoxyed and when the epoxy dries the stitches are removed.

The seams are then filleted with a wood powder and epoxy mix (about the same thickness as peanut butter). This fills the seams and makes a complete bond between everything. The filleting material can also be made from microscopic glass bubbles mixed in with the wood flour and epoxy, this makes the sanding of the fillet a lot easier.
To have a good straight edge along the filet a person puts down some masking tape then fillets the seam and before it dries all the way the tape is pulled leaving a uniformed edge and fillet. When this process is being done it is wise to tape the outside of the seam so the fillet does not go all the way thru the seam and make a ridge on the outside.

I am sure Matt will have more suggestions ...... I covered the basics of the process. "O"oooooop's .. I see Matt beat me to it

Chuck.