Boat Building Forum

Find advice on all aspects of building your own kayak, canoe or any lightweight boats

Re: Bubbles in the Joints
By:Larry Thompson
Date: 3/6/2000, 11:25 pm
In Response To: Bubbles in the Joints (Bruce)

I am at the same point in Nick's S&G plans. I noticed that when I mix the epoxy it gets "bubbly", with these tiny bubbles, thus, if it is not applied by brush, there ends up bubbles in the mix. Being that these joints are all on the inside, I don't think that they will mean much aestetically, as far as structural integrity is concerned, I am putting a 1/4" wide run of thickened, "bubbly" epoxy straight down each joint, then topping it with a 2" strip of fiberglass tape, which is then wet out. Bubbles or no, I can't imagine any force great enough to rip these seams apart, especially after the entire exterior is sheathed in 6 oz. cloth.

When I had floppy 20' sheets of plywood laying on my basement floor, I really was skeptical, but the more I build this baby up, the higher my confidence climbs.

Larry Thompson

> I have been placing epoxy in the panel joints of my Coho. The unthickened
> expoxy has bubbles entrained in the liquid. These are quite small,
> typically 1/16 to 1/8" in diameter. Looking at the joints you can see
> the resulting bubbles after the expoxy hardens. Some of these rise to the
> surface, and will be removed by a light sanding, while others are below
> wood level, and will remain forevermore. Three questions. 1) Is this a
> common problem or am I just looking too close? 2) How can I stop or
> minimize this from happening again? I would really like my deck to be
> clear of this problem. 3) Any input on if these bubbles will impact the
> integrity of the structure? They would be quite difficult to remove. Thank
> you for the help.

Messages In This Thread

Bubbles in the Joints
Bruce -- 3/6/2000, 11:12 pm
Re: Bubbles in the Joints
lee -- 3/7/2000, 12:36 am
Re: Bubbles in the Joints
Paul G. Jacobson -- 3/6/2000, 11:31 pm
Re: Bubbles in the Joints
Larry Thompson -- 3/6/2000, 11:25 pm