JEM Watercraft

Going to start on the Merrimac this week but as I read the plans I am a little unclear wether or not I need to apply a coat of epoxy before I lay the fiberglass on or if I can put the faberglass cloth directly on the wood and then wet it out. If I do need to coat the wood with epoxy first, do I have to wait until it cures to apply the cloth? Any clearification would be greatly appreciated,

Thanks a bunch
Bob

Put a coat of epoxy on the wood 1st. Let it cure and then give it a light sanding.

The epoxy will saturate the wood and create a tooth for the other epoxy to bond to when you glass it.

The sanding is to remove any whiskers that might appear ( wood fibers swollen with the epoxy ) they hook the glass and cause runs in it so a light sanding gets rid of them. If you run your hand over the epoxied wood before sanding and glassing you will see what I'm saying.

Then glass the boat.

Chuck.

Thanks chuck, I was always a little foggy on that one. Cant wait to start the build. If I can figure out how to post pic I will throw a few up in the builders log.

Bob

I typically don't do the "sealer" coat. I just lay the cloth on the hull and then wet out the cloth with a small foam paint roller.

But either way is acceptable. Just don't wait too long between applying the epoxy and then the fiberglass because amine blush issues.