Fiberglassing didn't go so well... help.

[crabmustang 10+ year member]

Are you doing the glassing out side in the cold? because that will effect how the glass sticks and hardens.

 

[sexiewasd 10+ year member]

no inside, 70degs.

 

[1rockford1 5,000+ posts]

no inside, 70degs.

Well then u just **** i guess. j/k

 

[sexiewasd 10+ year member]

no it's true it turned out horrible and needs to be redone. I'll try the paintbrush dabbing thing, and using more resin.

 

[1rockford1 5,000+ posts]

well u tryed bro so thats pretty cool. u learn from your mistakes

 

[ramos 5,000+ posts]

So my box is permanently in my trunk now and almost finished, I just have to fiberglass part of the top. I started laying down mat today and I made one really big mistake, I bought bondo brand resin and hardener. The mat stuck to my gloves more than the box and after I got it on it would fall off. (it's upside down, top of box and glassing from the inside.) I made a huge mess but managed to get two layers stuck down before I got too pissed off to finish.
Now I have a **** ton of cutting and sanding to do that I didn't plan on because of the air bubbles and parts that just wouldn't stick. I ended up going through four of those tiny tubes of hardener at $2 a pop and had to throw most of it out as it would not stick.

(Question)

I know I can order some better stuff from UScomposites, but what should I get that will actually stick to the box and not me, I have a heated garage to work in (70-75deg). Also what weight mat should I use?

I am never using that bondo **** again, I made a mess and about 3 hours more work, my arm is sticky and later I will have to pull out lots of arm hairs.

Any other tips would be appreciated.

Try it this way once and see if it's easier.

Get you a scrap of wood or cardboard to use as a "wet out" board. Mix your resin and catalyst, then lay a piece of mat on your wet out board and dab resin on with the brush until your mat is saturated fully. You can tell it's fully saturated when the mat becomes completely transparent. Then apply the mat , using the brush to dab out air bubbles. More resin won't make it stick better. It will actually make it fall off easier and an arse load messier. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[wasted ink 10+ year member]

Bondo brand resin is fine to use its got the same chemical compisition as us composites, its your technique thats giving you the problems

youre wrong. that bondo ******** is epoxy resin with a wax agent added. US composites b440 is a polyester resin, lays much nicer. you may think the bondo works fine, but try to the US composites and youll never go back.

same goes for body filler. theres no comparison between bondo and evercoat products (rage gold, rage extreme)

 

[ramos 5,000+ posts]

youre wrong. that bondo ******** is epoxy resin with a wax agent added. US composites b440 is a polyester resin, lays much nicer. you may think the bondo works fine, but try to the US composites and youll never go back.
same goes for body filler. theres no comparison between bondo and evercoat products (rage gold, rage extreme)

Hey guess what, You're wrong. Bondo brand resin is POLYESTER resin, and it comes in a couple different varieties. Surfacing (with the wax ) and layup or laminating resin (without wax). //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[ramos 5,000+ posts]

And just for the record most all surfacing resins have the wax added in them. The wax rises to the surface to protect the surface from air while the resin is curing //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[wasted ink 10+ year member]

Hey guess what, You're wrong. Bondo brand resin is POLYESTER resin, and it comes in a couple different varieties. Surfacing (with the wax ) and layup or laminating resin (without wax). //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

Im not wrong. i was thinking of the marine resin when he mentioned bndo brand, which IS epoxy. there is still a difference in chemical composition between the two (US composites & bondo brand) polyester resins.

And just for the record most all surfacing resins have the wax added in them. The wax rises to the surface to protect the surface from air while the resin is curing //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

for the record, not one product of US composites' polyester line contains surfacing wax. you can have wax added if you ask, but it is not in the batch ordered regularly.

not trying to argue here, just stating facts.

 

[scoob8000 10+ year member]

Looks about like my first fiberglass attempt. Very frustrating stuff to work with, not to mention I have very little patience to begin with.

I have the same problem, it sticks to my gloves more than it wants to stick to what I'm glassing. Like if you use your hand to smooth it out, when you pull your hand away it sticks and pulls back off.

I have also used the woven fiberglass mat. It's a million times easier to work with than that long stranded stuff. Not sure if there's a strength difference though.

 

[wasted ink 10+ year member]

Looks about like my first fiberglass attempt. Very frustrating stuff to work with, not to mention I have very little patience to begin with.
I have the same problem, it sticks to my gloves more than it wants to stick to what I'm glassing. Like if you use your hand to smooth it out, when you pull your hand away it sticks and pulls back off.

I have also used the woven fiberglass mat. It's a million times easier to work with than that long stranded stuff. Not sure if there's a strength difference though.

if you cut pieces to size first, its easier. lay a small amount of resin, put your piece down, hold it down firmly with your brush in the center, pull your hand off, then use you brush to dab the mat and wet it out. do not brush it like paint. once that piece is wetted out, move onto the next, and so on.

the mat works alot better than the woven cloth because it is stronger. it also comes in different weights, which makes a difference in strength and layup. theres nothing wrong with cloth, but mat is preffered where it takes more layers of cloth to get the same effect of mat.

 

[ramos 5,000+ posts]

Im not wrong. i was thinking of the marine resin when he mentioned bondo brand, which IS epoxy. there is still a difference in chemical composition between the two (US composites & bondo brand) polyester resins.


for the record, not one product of US composites' polyester line contains surfacing wax. you can have wax added if you ask, but it is not in the batch ordered regularly.

not trying to argue here, just stating facts.

I'm not arguing either my man. There are slight chemical differences in all different brands of polyester resin. There is even slight difference from batch to batch. You say "EPOXY" likes it's a bad thing. I prefer to use epoxy resin over polyester most of the time myself. Unfortunately it comes at too much of a premium to warrant the extra expense.

But notice that US composites doesn't specifically sell a resin labeled as "SURFACING" resin. I didn't say all resins, I said specifically "Surfacing resin". Meant as the last lamination. Aids in curing and makes it a little easier to sand.

It's not a bad thing, it has a purpose. And a vary widely used purpose. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[wasted ink 10+ year member]

I'm not arguing either my man. There are slight chemical differences in all different brands of polyester resin. There is even slight difference from batch to batch. You say "EPOXY" likes it's a bad thing. I prefer to use epoxy resin over polyester most of the time myself. Unfortunately it comes at too much of a premium to warrant the extra expense.

But notice that US composites doesn't specifically sell a resin labeled as "SURFACING" resin. I didn't say all resins, I said specifically "Surfacing resin". Meant as the last lamination. Aids in curing and makes it a little easier to sand.

It's not a bad thing, it has a purpose. And a vary widely used purpose. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

I agree. i use epoxy time to time for certain applications, but i usually prefer the polyster for normal layup. i didnt mean epoxy was bad, but for layup, i find polyeter to be alot easier, especially for those who are unexperienced. i didnt mean to put epoxy resin down as a bad thing, but mention that polyester tends to be a little easier for layup.

i cant stand bondo products, as you can tell.

 

[ramos 5,000+ posts]

I agree. i use epoxy time to time for certain applications, but i usually prefer the polyster for normal layup. i didnt mean epoxy was bad, but for layup, i find polyeter to be alot easier, especially for those who are unexperienced. i didnt mean to put epoxy resin down as a bad thing, but mention that polyester tends to be a little easier for layup.
i cant stand bondo products, as you can tell.

I noticed lol . In the op's intended appliication though. The extra "sticky" ( better adhesion qualities of epoxy) of the epoxy resin would make his life a little easier. I like epoxy mainly due to the different catalyst rates availiable. mix ratio is always the same, just use a catalyst with a different curing rate //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif