So been reading a lot on here and wanted to get some feedback on sanding before a hotcoat with epoxy. Is this a no no? I just glassed my first board just the Lam so far using RR and it came out freaking awesome! I was skipping around like a kid at Christmas! I sanded the lap lines on the rails/deck and bottom smooth with the rest of the board so the hot coat would be nice and pretty! Then got on here and started seeing some ugly pics of hotcoat nightmares using RR! What I want to know is sanding the lap lines smooth before the hotcoat bad? it seems necessary due to the overlap and some fibers that have pulled across the board when tucking the rails. If its bad no problem I got three more blanks already to lay a template on. This stuff is freaking addicting!
If laps, nose and some overlap of cloth on the tail area has been smoothed out, even and blank sealed you could use a clean brush( not sponge cause that would just push grease further into your weave) and some soapy water and wash the grease off( not always necessary if you have worked in a clean environment, free of dust, hand grease and air contaminants that may contain Wax, oil or Water) Make sure the board is dry before you hot coat. In general and to avoid simple mistakes The hot coat should be applied to only fill in the weave of the cloth. Also make sure you tape out the rail with masking tape. The more mess you make the harder it is to sand. Once cured you could sand the hot coat, at this stage you would definatley hit some weave of the cloth. Clean the Board again and apply Gloss Coat to cover all your imperfections. Sand again to your liking.
This is only a process that I used when I first started Glassing Epoxy, and every body has a different methods whether it is to cut resin usage, or just so good at it they don`t need to worry about 50 % of the procedure I just out lined above.
Thanks for some feeback but I am not hotcoating within 24 hours its been about a week due to the Holiday, kids, work etc...I will hotcoat today and let you guys know how it went! I like the quote that I believe is on someones page here that goes "glassing isnt that scary its not like were saving lives or anything"! Just having fun and like seeing everyones efforts! This is the best website any surf junkie could wish for! Cheers and Happy Holidays Swaylockers!
Sand the laps and lightly scuff the glass. Blow it off or brush it with broad, wallpaper brush and you'll be fine. If you the epoxy seperates after the first pull with the brush, just brush it out again.
just put down the hotcoat so will see if all these ugly hotcoat incidents are real or if was operator error! I am using RR which has been the expoxy of choice for those with bad outcomes and I sanded the laps smooth, its been a week since lamination, and sitting in my garage untouched until yesterday and don't think i didn't fondle the hell out it too! HAHAHAHA! So this is a great study for those having problems with their hotcoats! I'll be your guinea pig so to speak! How fun is this at my expense! I post some pics next post in a few hours after the hot coat is not tacky!
So after waiting a few hours I returned to the garage and to my delight the hotcoat is freaking beautiful! No holes, craters, etc...gotta do the bottom but the top is still slightly tacky its a cool 65 degrees here in North Florida and cure time is taking longer than expected. You can see the reflection of my garage door in the glossy hot coat! So I guess sanding, fondling, and lamination done last week has no effect on hotcoat. Or I just got lucky but I think that RR is great expoxy and I used to finish cabinets for a living so I do have some exp with finish work!
Thanks chrisp I almost hate to sand it but thats half the fun for me! I love to sand for some reason! This is my first board and its not making it easy for me to think about anything else!
Sweet! If you don’t have a lot of slag, you can start sanding at 220 or even higher.
I haven’t tried it yet but, on my next board, I plan on letting it cure in my van with the windows up watching the thermometer of course… Somewhere I remember reading that about 140* is a good temp to cure at…
So your gonna hot box your van! Dude! HAHAHAHA! I'm in North Florida, Flagler just south of St. Augustine by about 20 mins. I wasnt planning on a glossy finish was going for a sanded one didn't expect it to be so shiny! Got an new Milwaukee polisher enroute got a great deal on the internet a few days ago, super stoked about that! Gonna instal fin boxes today! Went with Pro Box seems to me the best answer for fiddling around with cant angles and the feedback on Sways is always encouraging!
For the record no one said sanding is a no-no. You need to sand the laps where the edges and bumps occur. It's just that you don't need to sand the entire board. The weave and fibers showing should be plenty enough to bond to the hot coat. Sanding a lam coat only drives little chunks of whatever into the cloth
The problem is when people start washing their boards with all kinds of $hit...soapy water, DNA, Acetone, or blowing it off with a rust oily old compressor, then wiping them down with some old grimey dip stick towel in the shop. Or lather there arms and hands up with cheap skin lotion, and proceed to fondle the board. Then they have these self-inflicted problem and try blaming it on the epoxy. The less you touch the board, the better the hot coat turns out, thats a scientific fact...
Your board is a perfect example of learning from this site, then executing properly. Way to go on researching first, and not coming here with the problem after the fact. Looks good.
Thanks Resinhead! I figured as much with the sanding of the laps I didnt touch the weave on the deck or bottom I just figured the hot coat would fill the holes and it did. I used to make custom cabinets and such and worked with finishing wood an in a spray booth, its all the same just technique. cant wait to sand and ride gotta set some fin boxes today hopefully but got a house full of sick wife and kids so it will probably get pushed back. They really dont like it when you run to the garage to fiddle with surfboards!
