JEM Watercraft

Hi Whirly
I use acetone for all my resin clean ups, and brush storage.
It's in most hardware shops but is cheapest from automotive shops


Is there a prize for the messiest work bench

I had a bit of a mishap when gluing one of the handles for the paddles I am currently working on. My guess to what happened is I picked up the wrong bottle, and instead of hardener mixed polyurethane clear with the resin The end result was a sticky mess that was certainly not going to go off. I scraped off what I could, cleaned with acetone and re-glued.
I was a bit worried about the bond as the muck had soaked well into the wood. However when I trimmed the handle to length I tested the off cut and the wood split rather than let go of the glue (PHEW!!)


The Trapper's looking good, I like the look of the ends. Is that a graphite / resin mix?


Rob

G'day Whily,

Mick here, long story, but I had to create a new account for this computor.

What sort of epoxy are you using?

I used a cheap brand of it that I got from a local chandlery ONCE and had similar problems with it.

G’Day Rob and Mick,

Rob, I reckon I’ll be buying bulk acetone next town trip. Seems like the only way to go.
Mate, I think I have an answer for your messy work bench, lift that lid and then strike one of those matches! You probably won’t have to worry about the bench, or the rest of the workshop for that matter..
The Bow? No that is just resin and sawdust glue.

Mick, glad you sorted the internet thing. This is cheap stuff I’m using. Was trying to keep costs down as much as possible- (getting this sort of gear in Darwin is, like a lot of things there, Ex-spen-sive!) . False economy I guess, though it may have been a cock-up on my part, as the stuff has been performing fine up until now.

Anyhow, this is the latest accessory

Scraping, scraping, scraping, Man! There is a LOT of hull on an 18’ Trapper !!! But I’m getting there.
Anyhow, during the week while I was futilely waiting for the resin to go hard, I sent off for an Emailed set of Old Sparky’s pirogue seat plans with the idea to adapt them to suit a canoe bench seat. I ripped and cut up and sanded the bits I needed in the afternoons after work. This weekend, between bouts of trying to get the gunk off my hull, I put it together.
Made up a dummy for the bench out of scrap


And put the seat on


Comfy. I didn’t have any dowel around, so modified Chuck’s plans a bit more.


And then I just HAD to go and follow Ron’s lead and make this an off-the-ground job




And it all folds up really neat for carting around


I used 19mm (¾”) marine ply for the sides as opposed to a piece of wood, so felt safe narrowing down the sides a lot more tan the plans showed.

Thanks Chuck for a great set of plans and Ron for a great idea. Now i just need to pull it apart to resin it and make up another one for the front.

Wow............................Might need to get in touch with you for an outdoor setting comission.

Whirly....

That seat has had more modifications to it then even I would of dreamed of and all the time it just gets better.

(oldsparkey ) Chuck.

That fold up seat is something I cant do without , I think you will like it.
That seat is a TCW
Tx River rat
Chuck
Whirly
Combination sitting arrangement
Great job.
Ron

Thanks Ron, I may have to brand that 'TCW' on the side and see how many times I have to explain it

Well, its been more scraping, scraping, scraping. Bloody hell, I don’t ever want to have to do this again.
My mind must have been off doing something else when the measuring was happening. The stuff I’ve been using is "Altex 421", and the glued joins, the glassed butt joins, the saturation coat and the glassed keel strip all went great, so I think it must have been pilot error in this case.

The stuff I got to do the hull glassing and the internal glassed joins is an “International” product, ‘Epiglass HT 9000’. Anyone used this? It’s also a 4 to 1 mix. I rang around and got good reports.

I tried a few different types of scraper, and have found an old knife blade held at 90˚ does the job best. Slow, but it does it.

I got Marcus to give me a hand to carefully turn her over so I could get at the top panels without looking like Quasimodo, and the boat suddenly became ENORMOUS!

Hah! I really do not think I will have to worry about where to put stuff…


I think I will however have to install an Intercom, so I can talk to whoever is up front.. Man! This is a big Boat!

G'day Whirly,

that really is an impressive looking craft. I bloody want one!

Re the international HT9000, it is now listed as a general purpose eoxy.

I have used it and it seems to be fine resin. the only problem I had with it was amine blush.

By this, I mean that it got a milky sheen on the exterior of the boat once all the resin had cured. I don't think this is much of a problem, it just affects the pretty of the finish. Others have said it can be washed off with soapy water or something. I tried to without much luck, so I just lived with it.

Since those dim dark days, I only use West Systems epoxy, specifically 105 resin and 207 special purpose hardener. The is no blush with this stuff and it is really good to use.. I get it here,

http://www.atlcomposites.com.au/atl_com ... /australia

Scott alexander is the bloke to talk to. A good bloke and he knows his stuff. They will freight anywhere and even including freight, the price of West Systems is competitive with International.

Whirly wrote: and the boat suddenly became ENORMOUS!

Hah! I really do not think I will have to worry about where to put stuff…



I think I will however have to install an Intercom, so I can talk to whoever is up front.. Man! This is a big Boat!

I remember when you asked for it that big. I thought to myself it was going to be a beast but ok!

But the payoff is if you take an extended trip with more gear or perhaps 3 people, you're all set.

The dancin girls.... you will have room for the dancin girls.... or a football team and some grog !
Good work... But I hear you on the scraper, not one of the enjoyable bits
keep at it
col