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 Post subject: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 1:50 pm 
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Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2006 8:09 am
Posts: 4
Hi All,

Question - I am getting ready to repair a soft spot on my hull just in front of my tramp. I am planning on using the west marine system but I am wondering about weather or not I need the 205 or 206 hardner, is the 206 stronger since the cure time is longer? Also, do I need the filler at all? Whats the best technique to get the epoxy to spread around to the entire area? Do you drill all the fill holes first or as you go?

West System 105 Epoxy Resin
West System 205 or 206 Epoxy Hardener
West System High Density 404 Filler

Thanks

KW


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 Post subject: Re: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 4:54 pm 
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Joined: Tue May 27, 2003 12:44 pm
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Location: Oceanside, California
As noted in the FAQ on this... I prefer gitrot. It penetrates and is a bit elastic. You don't want to use a resin that hardens to a brittle finish. It needs to flex a bit.

You drill first (one for injection and many as vents) and plug vent holes as the resin seeps up at each of the vents.

http://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=1156

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 Post subject: Re: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 4:18 am 
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Location: Metuchen NJ
I have an area on my H18's port hull just ahead of the rear crossbar that needs this fix. The one detail I have not found is; how deep the holes need to be without drilling through the bottom layer of fiberglass? Put another way, what is the total thickness of the layup sandwich?

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 Post subject: Re: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 5:53 am 
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Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2011 3:45 pm
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Location: Saratoga Springs, NY
OlderBowman wrote:
I have an area on my H18's port hull just ahead of the rear crossbar that needs this fix. The one detail I have not found is; how deep the holes need to be without drilling through the bottom layer of fiberglass? Put another way, what is the total thickness of the layup sandwich?

Matt Bounds was just answering this question in the H14 forum - I would assume the drill depth is similar:
http://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=44345

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 Post subject: Re: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 9:03 am 
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MBOUNDS wrote:
About 1/8". You don't have to drill all the way through the foam - just enough to get close. You can poke through the foam with the drill bit spun in your bare hands to get down to the second layer of glass.

Beware the point on the end of a standard twist drill. Don't trust yourself to hold the drill to the proper depth. Use a drill stop or a small piece of tubing around the drill bit to control the bit. It will have a tendency to lunge when it breaks through the first layer of glass.

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Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)


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 Post subject: Re: Soft Spot
PostPosted: Sat Aug 11, 2012 10:08 pm 
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Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2006 8:09 am
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I have been reading more about West Systems vs. GitRot and came across this entry, I'm not sure which system to use at this point. Anyone else care to chime in????


"Based on reading through a number of entries on this forum. I have observed talk and use of git rot and similar stuff to deal with rotting foam mostly but also balsa cored hulls. Below is an excert from West Manual from Jamestown Distrubuters that I though makes a very good point. From what I can find either using slower hardeners and heat or System Three rot fix with give better results then Get rot. Just my two cents from a little researh. I don't have experince with any of these products under these circumstances. The thinners don't add to the strength but west and system three methods do. For that matter any epoxy with slow hardener and heat will work better then Git Rot which seems to mostly be solvents and epoxy.

"Thinning epoxy

There are epoxy-based products specifically designed to penetrate and reinforce rotted wood. These products, basically an epoxy thinned with solvents, do a good job of penetrating wood. But the solvents compromise the strength and moisture barrier properties of the epoxy. West System epoxy can be thinned with solvents for greater penetration, but not without the same compromise in strength and moisture resistance. Acetone, toluene or MEK have been used to thin West System epoxy and duplicate these penetrating epoxies with about the same effectiveness. If you chose to thin the epoxy, keep in mind that the strength and moisture protection of the epoxy are lost in proportion to the amount of solvent added.

There is a better solution to get good penetration without losing strength or moisture resistance. We recommend moderate heating of the repair area and the epoxy with a heat gun or heat lamp. The epoxy will have a lower viscosity and penetrate more deeply when it is warmed and contacts the warmed wood cavities and pores. Although the working life of the epoxy will be considerable shortened, slower hardeners (206, 207, 209) will have a longer working life and should penetrate more than 205 Hardener before they begin to gel. When the epoxy cures it will retain all of its strength and effectiveness as a moisture barrier, which we feel more than offsets any advantages gained by adding solvents to the epoxy."

This is an excert from West Manual from Jamestown Distrubuters. Look at bottom of page just under tips. http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/us ... reparation "


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