Just wanted to look for some help with finishing epoxies. The problem is weave on the rails. Sprays and wipe outs are no help. Hot coats lay out so thin, my sander is getting tons of weave. I look at all the other boards in all the shops I visit, same problem. So, what’s the secret? Double hot coats? Maybe add some filler to get thicker hot coats? I used to do poly hot coats back in the day. Some worked well, but the ones that chipped off were a nightmare I don’t even want to relive!! We’re doing double hot coats on this batch, of course they look great but the added step is a bummer. Hopefully with so many getting into the epoxy game, somebody out there has a secret to share…
Forget polyester hotcoats, they’re a pain in the ass. I have been doing lots of all epoxy glassjobs in a very commercial (non-hobbyist) environment for a few months now, and we’re getting some very nice finishes that are going into local showrooms, no problem. Here’s how I do it. Hotcoat within 24 hours of lam with epoxy as follows:
Using a faster resin helps. I use Aluzine, which with the fast hardener, has half the potlife of Loehr’s fastest resin**. A denatured alcohol wipedown, allowed to thoroughly dry is generally a good idea if it’s been more than a couple of hours since the lam. Make sure you use a clean lint-free WHITE rag or you’ll leave dark fuzz all over the board. I get the room as warm as possible. Here in Hawaii, on a hot summer day, I turn the AC off and the room goes to 90F in 20 minutes or so. I’ve never had the pleasure of working in a very cold environment and that could really be a problem, but I can’t speak from experience. Getting the room to over 75F should suffice, anyway. Mix a small batch and hotcoat the nose, tail and rails down to the edge first. Don’t use surfacing agent, or it’ll show where you’ve sanded into this first coat. Feather out all edges of this coat with your mostly dried out brush, so there’s no big edges to sand. Once this coat is thick enough to stay put, around 20 minutes at 90F, hotcoat the whole deck and rails normally using surfacing agent. Another important point-- Put some resin on the board. Don’t get caught up in the “I used less rein/My dick is smaller than yours!” idiocy that seems to infest epoxy shops. You’ll still be using WAY WAY less resin than if it was polyester, and the simple fact is, you need something there to sand. The cost difference between a very thin and a relatively thick epoxy hotcoat is a buck or two per side, at most, so use as little as possible, but don’t get stupid. If you’ve hotcoated and all the weave is sticking up all over the board, it’s too thin, plain and simple.
**This would probably even work with Resin Research stuff fine, despite the longer potlife, especially at higher temps, but I only use that resin for certain purposes, and hotcoating is not one of them.
Hope this helps. I know what of I speak.
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Don’t get caught up in the “I used less rein/My dick is smaller than yours!” idiocy that seems to infest epoxy shops. Classic. Thanks BammBamm. I don’t know why I didn’t think to use a cheater fill on the rails and all like that. Yeah, we don’t have a problem getting the room hot here in FL!! I appreciate the imput big time. I’ll try ANYTHING right now. I’m so stoked on the Epoxies, all the boys are loving them, I love 'em, getting used to all the extra (well, different) work. Just have to charge to make 'em worth it, so they have to be trump tight!! Yeah, remember learning about that white rag thing the hard way. Don’t even wear colored tees at work anymore!!Thanks again, Drew
I love the Seuss quote in your sig. I used to read that story to my kids all the time. He appeals to the littlest kids, but always has a deeper message, revealing the bittersweetness of life in his stories. It’s not all “happily ever after”, but this world certainly isn’t.
Yup; Seuss, Schultz, Silversteen, genius.