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Re: Fabric
By:Paul G. Jacobson
Date: 7/28/1999, 11:16 pm
In Response To: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc (Kara Smith)


> Also, I was planning on buying fiberglass from Tap.. 6oz, 38" at
> $4.50/yd. Does anyone know of a discount supplier (or does anyone have
> 20-50yds they're trying to get rid of)?

You seem to have gotten mostly advise on the resin. I think you can do better on the price of fiberglass cloth.

Get the catalog from Defender. I've been drooling over their prices on cloth, but have not bought anything from them yet. There was a posting a few days ago from someone who had bought from them and got dirty material that did not work well. I can't say if this is common or not, maybe others can comment. I have been thinking of using multiple layers of 2 ounce fabric on my next project. Three layers in most places in the hull, two on most of the deck and 4 layers in 'bash' areas on the outside bottom of the hull.

They have 6 ounce cloth in 38 inch width for $2.75 a yard if you get over 35 yards -- and you are getting over that length. They have 44 inch, 50 inch, and 58 inch widths with prices that go up to $4.36 a yard for the 58 inch width. You would use less length with the wider material.

If you use 4 ounce fabric, by the way, you can get 60 inch material for $2.43 a yard.

If you like the idea of using multiple layers, you can get 38 inch wide material in a 2 ounce weight for 84 cent a yard. Put on 3 layers to get the equivalent of 6 ounce material, and you are spending the equivalent of $2.52 a yard. If you use 3 layers of two-ounce material you may need the entire 125 yard roll. If so, you get an additional 8 percent discount. For 38 inch material that works out to the equivalent of 41 yards for $97.

Defender also handles MAS and West system epoxys. Their URL is www.DefenderUS.com

I've been happy with the cloth I bought from Calrk-Craft (www.clarkcraft.com) when I bought it they had 60 inch cloth in 6 ounce weight for $4.75 a yard. Compared to 38 inch width that would be equivalent to about $2.65 a yard. Their prices may be diferent now. If you are thinking of a thicker layer on the bottom of the hull, consider their 7 1/2 ounce cloth. It is only a few pennies more than the 6 ounce material. In 38 inch width it was $3.50 a yard, and would replace two layers of 4 ounce material on the boat bottom for bash protection.

www.fibreglast.com seems to have prices that I would call 'middle of the road'. for small quantiies, but for orders of over 50 yards, their 38 inch width 6 ounce cloth would be $4.15 a yard. These people have a tremendous amount of information available, and are a good source for instuctional tapes and books. They currently have a 5% discount for orders placed over the web, and their catalog is very informative.

There are a few more sites on the net that have price lists. I can't remember the URLS but I think you can search for Advanced Composites and Aircraft Spruce with any search engine.

hope this helps

Paul G. Jacobson

Messages In This Thread

Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Kara Smith -- 7/26/1999, 6:10 pm
Re: Fabric
Paul G. Jacobson -- 7/28/1999, 11:16 pm
Re: Fabric
Will Brockman -- 7/29/1999, 7:55 am
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Berkeley C. -- 7/28/1999, 11:56 am
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Doug K. -- 7/27/1999, 6:46 pm
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Jim Horlacher -- 7/27/1999, 11:28 am
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Hank -- 7/27/1999, 8:07 am
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Don L -- 7/26/1999, 8:25 pm
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Kara Smith -- 7/27/1999, 1:13 am
Re: cloth orientation
Ed Valley -- 7/28/1999, 12:38 pm
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Don L -- 7/27/1999, 8:36 pm
Re: cloth orientation
Ross Leidy -- 7/27/1999, 9:43 am
Re: Epoxy brand? Sys3/Tap/etc
Dan Lindberg -- 7/26/1999, 6:45 pm