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I wish I'd known...hints from the aircraft world
By:Steve Hagan
Date: 10/2/1999, 12:31 am

I finished my boat a while ago, and I haven't been on this board for a while, so I'm sorry if this is redundent.

After finishing my second kayak (1 Pygmy, 1 Guillemot) I've moved on to a massive new project-a plans built composite airplane (the Cozy MK4)! I've learned a lot during this project that I wish I knew when building the boats. First, I've been using a handcream called Ply 9, which forms a barrier protecting your skin. This, coupled with Butyl gloves has worked great for me. Second, I bought an epoxy pump, the Sticky Stuff dispenser. If you are only doing one boat its not worth the $200, but for a plane or several boats it saves time and epoxy. Third, they use a wide variety of glass on this plane. UNI, for unidirectional fibers, is a glass with 90% of the material running in one direction. Very strong in that axis. There is also a Tri-axial weave which I think might be good for inside layups. Aircraft Spruce and Specialty (http://www.aircraft-spruce.com) and Wicks Aircraft Supply (http://www.wicks.com/aircraft) have a wide range of different glasses and epoxy supplies. Third is Peel Ply. This is a huge labor saver. Peel Ply is a dacron fiber that you lay up as the final layer over the wet glass. When the epoxy cures you can pull it off, leaving a smooth, textured surface you can glass over without sanding. Also, if you peel ply over seams, like when you put the deck on the hull, the epoxy DOESNT LEAVE A SEAM! Also, it tends to pull the excess epoxy out of your layup, saving weight. Finally, I'll be using "Instafoam", a 2 part liquid that when mixed produces massive amounts of foam. I'm planing to pour some of this in the ends of my boats, for flotation.

Sorry if this has been discussed, but I hope some of this helps

ps. Thanks for the great plans, Nick!

Messages In This Thread

I wish I'd known...hints from the aircraft world
Steve Hagan -- 10/2/1999, 12:31 am
Careful with that foam!
Paul Lund -- 10/2/1999, 2:14 am
Re: Careful with that foam! Ditto
darren -- 10/2/1999, 2:03 pm
Re: I wish I'd known...hints from the aircraft wor
Don Beale -- 10/2/1999, 12:57 am
Re: I wish I'd known...hints from the aircraft wor
Jason Steeves -- 10/2/1999, 2:38 pm
Re: I wish I'd known...hints from the aircraft wor
Steve Hagan -- 10/2/1999, 1:15 am