There is no ready supply for wood dust or silica here in the Philippines ...
Sure there is! Well maybe not wood flour, but Cab-O-Sil (fumed silica) is available here. I don't remember where I got mine but it may have been Polymer Products, they seem to be the best supplier of glassing supplies in the country. I don't know if they have an outlet in Davao though ... do they?
I do plan on using the micromix for the interior fillets ...
You're really better off using a structural filler in the chine joints. Try mixing some cabosil (after you get some) and kalsomine (pulverized limestone, available at practically every hardware store) together for your structural fillet putty. The kalsomine is a whole lot stronger than micromix (which is actually a fairing filler not a structural filler) so it produces a much stronger structural fillet. It's ridiculously hard to sand too, so you should apply your glass tape over it while the fillet is still wet, then you can smooth them both at the same time and avoid some difficult sanding..
Last edited by kengrome on Sat Aug 23, 2008 9:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Thank you Ken for the tip on using powdered limestone. I did not know it was available nor that it could be used as a strengthening ingredient with the epoxy. I knew about cab-o-sil but there is no Polymer Inc here in Davao. Fortunately I will be going to Manila next month and I am planning on stopping at Polymer to get some more resin. I'll pick up some cab-o-sil too.
And thank you for the tip about using a structural filler inside on the chine joints. I am just about to start that process but I will delay it until I can find some of the powdered limestone (kalsomine) you mentioned. Your information is very timely as I was going to use resin and micromix to fill in all the inside fillets. I just finished cutting the fiberglass this afternoon for all the inside joints. I have other boats waiting that can utilize the cab-o-sil. I will also use the kalsomine for filleting the bulkheads to the hull, or do you suggest using micromix there? Weight is not a concern so I think I will use the kalsomine there too so that I do not have to have two pots of fillet materials.
I use kalsomine in all my fillets. It's heavier than some other fillers but very strong so it is appropriate where strength is important such as in most fillets where two plywood panels come together at an angle.
Micromix is more appropriate for fairing putty because it is weak but easy to sand smooth and fair.
By the way, kalsomine is the Filipino name. In the USA the same material is called 'lime' or 'agricultural lime' and is used as a mineral supplement in the soil.
If you cannot get kalsomine for some reason you can use cement instead. The only problem with cement is its gray color whereas kalsomine is white or off-white, but this won't matter if you're painting your hull anyways.
You can also use talc powder in structural fillets, it makes a slightly lighter and slightly softer fillet that is slightly easier to sand, so it's not as strong as kalsomine in this application but it is still way better than micromix as a structural filler.
I was lucky to have enough resin to complete the seams but I will have to get some more to coat the plywood inside. I was pretty tired after doing all the inside fiberglass in one day. I am going to seal the front and rear seats with flotation inside and put a hinged top on the center seat for equipment storage.
It is pretty strong and rigid and weighs 37 kilos or 81 pounds without the seat tops. I also need to add a rub rail.
I used the kalsomine as filler with the resin and wet on wet method which precluded sanding the kalsomine. I put some coarse sandpaper, 36 grit, on my pad sander and it made short work of feathering the edges of the glass. It did a much better and faster job than a disk sander. Dusty work though, so I wore a respirator and hearing protection with a shower immediately after finishing and I warned my wife about possible itching from the fiberglass dust.
I picked up some more epoxy in Manila and finished triple coating the inside with epoxy. I installed the rub rail and next are the seats. The middle seat will be hinged for storage.
I am going quite slowly but that gives me time to plan on what to do and how to do it. I will be adding a support for an umbrella. A bimini top is not feasible right now. I will be happy to get some relief from the sun and rain while fishing. The rub rail adds rigidity and some very nice handles for the boat.
I changed my mind about a hinged seat. This safer arrangement allows access while still seated. I will have the inside portion padded so there will not be too much thumping when I stow the anchor and other items inside.
And now that the seats are all glassed in it is time to start sanding and make the oars. The designer, Morten Olesen says to make them six and a half feet long and that agrees with my calculation of 1/2 beam times three plus six inches.
I am thinking about emerald green with yellow trim for a color scheme. The inside vertical surfaces white, seat tops yellow, rub rail yellow, and floor green inside, Outside green with yellow bottom. Tomorrow I'll be going to Samal Island for a few days to arrange a storage rack for the boat and maybe do some sailing with my Puddle Duck.
The paint can is closed. I am going to christen her "Serenity". I think I'll have a lot of fun chipping the paint rock by rock from this beauty.
I have to put the oarlocks on and make some oars, but I think I will be taking her to Samal on Monday. I have the oars from my PDRacer that will work in the interim.
I might paint some sand on the floor for non-skid.
This should be my last post on this project. I brought the row boat out to my place on Samal Island on top of my truck without a roof rack, just some nylon straps and foam pads. I think you guys in Luzon have to have a trailer and or real roof rack? I have a picture of the method using my PDRacer in the PDRacer file. Nothing like that required in Davao.
This boat rows really well, will turn on a centavo but tracks very well and is fast and easy. I think she weighs less than 90 pounds. I think I will make the oars about 7 feet long. On these the PDRacer oars the handles jam just a bit so I have to look out for my thumbs.
Greetings from Samal!
