Prepping a Fiberglass Hull

Discussion in 'Construction' started by thegeek, Mar 14, 2019.

  1. thegeek

    thegeek Well-Known Member

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    I bought a FG hull second hand, a Ralph Coles Nelson.

    Inside was a coat of Aquamarine paint that matched my batteries (not too shabby), I left the paint.
    Big mistake, the paint didn't want to stick to anything. Oh crap, now I have a problem, big problem.
    Wood subdeck just pealed off (goop won't hold), double crap.

    Now normally with a FG hull a small amount of release agent will be present because it is used in manufacture.
    A bit of buffing with sand paper will scuff the surface and provide a tooth to have the glue hold on to, standard practice.

    By removing the paint from the inside of this hull with regular paint remover provided a HUGE benefit.

    Kleen Strip paint remover was used in this case. Water soluble with a relatively easy clean up.

    It took about a hour or so to remove nearly all the paint from the inside of this hull.

    The result was a hull with a surface that didn't have to be scuffed. The surface of the Fiberglass was clean
    and free of all release agent and took any glue really well (scary well).

    So the moral to the story is:
    "When buying a new hull always Kleen Strip the inside before assembly" hull.jpg
     
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  2. modelshipsahoy

    modelshipsahoy Vendor

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    Could have been improperly prepped...

    Always prep with a thorough 36-60 grit scuff followed by an acetone wipeout and you should have no problems with an inside paint job.
     
  3. thegeek

    thegeek Well-Known Member

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    The paint was the problem. And scuffing and aromatic Hydrocarbons tend to not be wife friendly.
     
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  4. modelshipsahoy

    modelshipsahoy Vendor

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    I figured that for this one. My comment was for others future projects.

    I’m very fortunate to have a lovely lady that finds working with me in a glass factory Romantic! :oops:
     
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