Hi guys,
I’m attempting my first board and tried to do a foam stain on the rails with MM epoxy and pigment. What should I do, if anything before I glass? There are also some tiny bubbles that I tries to pop before it got too hard. I did not add, add F to the mixture.
Should I have a large concern about the samething happening to the lamination?
Pics.
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I haven’t done a foam stain before glassing, nor have I worked with MM epoxy. But from your pictures, it looks like way too much resin for a foam stain. A foam stain, to my mind is just that, a stain. All you need to use is enough to color the foam.
My suggestion, when you lam, don’t use additive F, and don’t use so much resin. Just enough to wet out the glass thoroughly, sqeegee the rest off. Then fill with hot coat.
If you’re talking about all those light spots in the green area, I’d say it’s a safe bet your board, or the resin itself, was contaminated. Similar to what happens when you mix oil and water. They separate. Something along the lines of a foreign substance messed that up. Grease, oil, solvent, etc.
I also agree with Huck.That’s way too much resin, just to achieve a color before glassing.
My concern is not the color being consistant as much as the resin being smooth.
Should I sand and then laminate using aditive F and see how it goes?
Sorry, NOT use addive F.
Thanks for the advise Huck and Sammy!
Also, the Resin kicked quickly, I mixed for about 3-4 minutes and had about another 1 or 2 before it kicked. I used the 2:1 ratio suggested.
Since that was the case, should I have a concern about not having enough time to work when glassing if I do the 2:1 ratio again?
As I was putting the resin on it was not staining like I thought it would. I sealed to board with spackle, don’t know if something in that process went wrong but if it did, any suggestions about what, if anything, I should do to the surface before laminating that may remove any contaimination?
If you can sand without hitting the raw foam, you’ll probably get a better glass job, but it’s probably gonna look worse. You shouldn’t have to sand a foam stain before glassing IMO, but you have so much resin on there it looks lumpy - hard to tell from the pics - if it’s not lumpy then don’t sand and don’t worry about it.
in the future probably skip the spackle where you stain because the resin stain will seal the foam anyway.
Be sure to really measure carefully, don’t mix for so long, maybe 2 minutes max, then pour and spread quickly. On bigger boards I mix the rail wrap resin separate, after I’ve squeegeed the field. Cuz I use RR kwik kick and it goes off pretty fast.
What you did should have been done when the board is totally laminated, hot coated, and sanded. Then you put the rail color on…especially a dark color.
So, go ahead and carry on with the building process. Looking at you build process so far I will assume that you will have burn throughs bubbles and raw glass showing. So just get it done as best as possible, then do the cosmetic pretties last. When you are all done go get a can of green spray paint and shoot the rails. Thats the best way to get it looking good.
Thanks Resinhead!
I thought the foam stain would have less issues that paint, live and learn…
Will the hot coats smoth out, or fill in some of the bumps? I assume since this happened on the rails it will probably happen on the rest of the board when I glass (some short of contanination on the foam). If that’s the case, will sanding and the hot coats eventually even it out?
I’m going to take Huck’s adivse and go easy on the resin for glassing and pray the hot coat fills in the bumps.
I’m not going to ride this board, it’s for wedding guests to sign at my wedding in 2 weeks, so it will just be a keepsake, but I want it to still look good. Thought it would be nice to have and if I make too many mistakes, no biggy, it’s going on the wall. Next board will be to ride and hopefully I learn enough to not make as many mistakes on one I actually want to ride.
Also, I have a logo with our names and the wedding date to put on the deck. Should I place it between the 2 layers of glass or on the foam and glass over. I have seen both done. With the possible foam contamination would one method or the other help to make to logo look better, or at least not screwed up?
Thanks for all the advise!!
I made a typo in the original post. I’m using Resin Reseach epoxy not MM, whatever the heck that is… I was flustered typing that post. The hardner is a “fast hardener”. Can the mix ratio of hardner be decreased to allow for more time to work the resin or will that compromise the resin (a little less that 2:1)?
Don’t use the fast hardener!
Where are you located?
oh yeah and congrats on the upcoming marriage!
The fast hardner is what was sent to me from Greenlight. I’m in central FL. Hot and not so hot are the only temps here. I don’t think I have time to get different hardner shipped to me because I need to be finished with this project in 5 days. Can I slightly reduce that 2:1 ratio?
Nothing like added stress before the wedding, like I don’t have enough already… in my defense I have been waiting on the logo to be made by my future brother-in-law. I bet that 3 week wait, having the board sit after shaping and sealing, is where the contamination probably occured…
Too much going on there, wish u were in so cal I would try to help u out in person. I have scaled back hardener just a little, but many staunchly opposed to doing this, but if its just a wall hanger strength not an issue.
Thanks Huck!
I’ll laminate it tonight after work and see how it goes. Fingers crossed…
I wanted to thank you all for the help. The job is complete!! The color was the only major thing that did not work out well. That and my first lap tucking job. I was so concerned about tucking the rails tight and wetting them completely, as well as fill the holes in the color, that I was not paying enough attention to the few little strings that got on the deck. The tuck I did when glassing the deck was much better. I hot coated then did a gloss coat after sanding the hot coat. The gloss coat came out a bit orange pealed but nothing major, the first hot coat was like glass. I have done the whole thing by hand, no power tools, so I think sanding may have been better with a polisher but all and all, not bad for my first board. Now time to make one I’ll actually ride!!
Thanks again guys!
Sounds good, thanks for the follow up report, glad it all turned out. After the wedding and you get settled in, be nice to build yourself a daily driver, with this first board experience behind you.
Some issues with air bubbles from the first lap as well as nose and tail cuts were not perfect.
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Not bad for the first time. If I just would have gotten that foam stain mix correct (I think I added too much pigment) the rest is not half bad, after a little sanding work and popping bubbles.
Thanks again fellas! Yes Huck, I need to make one to at least take on a test drive. I’m thinking a fish just like this would be the perfect addition to my Gulfcoast of FL quiver…
Now the wedding!!!
Cheers!
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