I am gettin ready to glass a board and plan on using volan for the first time. My goal is to achieve the greenish (non-tinted) visble weave in my laminaiton. So I went to my normal suplier to find they carry two wieghts of cloth a 7.5oz and a 10oz. Although the cloth appeared to be the same color as hexcel or jps. The shop manager didnt seem to understand what is was i was looking for therefore im skeptical of buying a product that might give me the same results as other cloths. They told me the shipping box says volan on it and that it is made in Canada. Well since i dont know anything about volan is there anyone with any info that may guide me in the purchasing and applicaiton. Live stoked and pass it on!!! Mike Karol
volan is nothing more than a surface tratment, analogous to scotchguard, that seems to affect how light is refracted through the cloth. It is in all other ways the same as the usual run of non-volan cloth…except I seem to recall reading of some issues with some epoxies- Greg Loehr would know more about that. Found on most 10 oz and heavier cloth, if it sez ‘volan’ on the box with the other 7.75 ounce stuff then it may well be. See if they will give you a small sample of the 7.75 ounce, laminate it along with some lighter and non-volan stuff and see what’s what. hope that’s of use doc…
for info on volan go to liddlesurfboards.com. he’s been using it for decades.the key is to brush,roll and squegee(sp) it dry.it tends to flex and dent, rather than shatter and spider crack when hit.the green is there per what Doc said-no need to color.
I believe all glass starts it’s life as volan and although it is a classic look for boards it’s ugly for other applications. Therefore, it is treated (bleached?) to make it clear at layup. It’s cheaper to make but is more expensive due to low demand. Due to volan being untreated there can be impurities in the glass that will show up as light or dark spots or streaks after wetout and the suppliers can be very inconsistant meaning one roll will be beautiful and the next absolute shite. Anyhow, if it says volan it probably is but it all looks the same before it’s wetout. You may find some of the clear glass still has a tiny bit of a tint to it…always take care to make a clean lap.
Jimmie, If you don’t know what you are talking about, don’t post fiction. Volan is a finish or sizing that helps the resin wet out and bond to the glass. If you are worried about the green tint, look at the side of the roll, if the fibers give a green tint, it is probably volan. Sluggo
I must have been misinformed. It happens. My bad. My apologies. I think you could have been more diplomatic, Sluggo, but if that’s the way you feel, I’ll never post here again. p.s. It’s still a very inconsistant process.
Not quite. In fact, just the opposite. Washing the cloth after the stuff is applied is part of the volan treatment. It’s an extra step after the cloth is finished, a wetting and anti-static agent. Which kinda explains why heavier cloth, with thicker yarns, typically has it. Thicker yarns = more difficulty getting good resin penetration, so something that helps it wet out better and easier is useful. It is, in a chemical way, related to soaps, with polar and non-polar sides to the molecule. Some pale green may be seen on non-volan cloth ( though how the hell you’d know it was or wasn’t volan-treated by observation is beyond me) could come from the resin itself; some tends to harden pale green, some a faint green tinge. A little info below from DuPont, who makes the stuff- hope that’s of use. http://www.zaclon.com/pdf/volan_datasheet.pdf
i apperiate the responses to my inqiry they have positively reinforced my skepticism about volan. but i they have created another question. i was told along the way in my board building insturction sand throughs on volan are a worse problem than on standard cloth. after reading about the treatment and bleaching processes: do sand through show up worse and is the dust more enviromentaly caustic?
dust - no real difference. In fact, from the Volan sheet; The chromium in all Volan® products is completely in the trivalent state. Unlike the hexavalent form, CR (VI), which can be toxic, the trivalent form, CR (III), is an essential trace mineral. So, it might be good for ya. Then again, at about 0.01% or less Cr(III) by weight considering a 65-70%/35-30% by weight resin/cloth lamination, it’s not real relevant compared to hardened resin dust and fiberglass fragments/dust which are not exactly good for ya. Likewise disposal issues. Sand-throughs…yep, problem, 'cos when you patch it the places where the patch overlaps are twice as green. Like it had this revolting blotch of mildew. So, go easy with that sander. Which is a real good idea anyhow. Been trying to figure out just why it is that the stuff makes that green tint/tinge when saturated with hardened resin. Interesting subject, color chemistry. Dunno if it’s favorable transmissivity or one a them quantum energy things or whether it’s, mebbe, something to do with the chlorine-chromium ionic bonds themselves or if it’s an effect of those ions in a primarially nonpolar matrix. And I couldn’t find out without a spectrometer and a few other lab toys. Oh well. Kinda miss having an equipped lab available. hope that’s of use. doc… http://www.zaclon.com/pdf/volan_datasheet.pdf
Doc, thanks for the input its nice to get educated resposes like yours it helps to bring the concepts to the next level. now i dont know if you are acutually a doctor but im willing to assume based upon your thorough knowledge of the subject matter. any how i have a story you may apperiate. i had the opportunity to examine various types of fiber glass products in my science lab in school. viewing the samples under a stereomicroscope was as interesting as it was benificial to understanding the product better. not to mention the interest it brought to the teacher and other studnets who had bugs and leaves to view. when asked what i was looking at by the others it seemed to be foriegn matter to them. well it felt good to be acknowledged as being some what inovatetive by my peers because of the negative stigmas surfers and board builders have for being slackers of society. may be you can relate to this. live stoked and pass it on!!! mike
Jimmie, I not a diplomat, I just get tired of responses from people who don’t have a clue what they are talking about. If you have good info, post it. If you don’t, you are just confusing people looking for answers. Whats the point of asking a question if you are going to get answers back from people who are speaking out of their ass. I just read in a post below that Parmenter sent a plug to surftech. Of course the person posting this was full of crap, but some dumb ass will believe it. Next thing you know some false rumor will go flying around that Dave sent a plug to surftech.
Naw, I don’t have a doctorate, it’s just a nickname that stuck. A consequence of being too curious. Stereomicroscopes are cool, aren’t they. You oughtta see different crystalline formations in steel and cast iron with one. Probably be interesting to see some samples from busted boards under magnification, say busted stringers and the like. http://orangecow.org/pythonet/video.html