Epoxy thickness

[bluegrasslover]

As I'm sanding and sanding and sanding the outside of my UJ pirogue tonight I started wondering if all the sanding I'm doing on the epoxy can or does weaken the hull. Is there a minimum thickness of epoxy required to make a strong boat or is the epoxy more about keeping the fiberglass attached? Seems like I'm doing an awful lot of sanding to get it smooth!

 

[seedtick]

In composite systems - fibers and resin - most of the strength comes from the fibers. The job of the matrix resin is to keep the fibers in place and not let them move.

As long as you're not sanding away fibers, you haven't compromised the system. That's easier said than done, usually by the time you notice that you're into fibers, you're well into them.

 

[Jimmy W]

Just try not to sand into the fiberglass. Any epoxy above the cloth can be sanded off.

 

[bluegrasslover]

That is really good to know. There were a couple of small places where I did hit fibers but they were very small and I stopped immediately. I was just worried to death with all the sanding I had to do to get everything smooth that I was losing strength.

Thanks!