Glass Bottom Boat

Skorpa is primarily made of marine grade plywood. Fiberglass is used to reinforce areas of high stress and to protect areas from abrasion. The fiberglass I use is a woven cloth like material. Fiberglass can be made from synthetic materials, but what I use is related to the fiberglass that is used to insulate houses. Glass fibers are spun into thread and woven into cloth.

Here the hull is draped with 6 ounce cloth. I carefully laid the cloth out and worked to smooth out all the wrinkles. When I had the cloth fairly smooth I tacked it in place.

The epoxy is poured on and spread with a squeegee. As the epoxy soaks into the cloth the fibers become transparent.You have to put enough epoxy on to saturate the cloth but not so much you float the cloth off the hull or start runs of epoxy. You have to use enough pressure to move the epoxy but not so much you move the cloth. Is there any wonder I have trouble sleeping the night before?

The roller works best on vertical surfaces. I can get a thinner layer of epoxy. Building the epoxy up in several coats allows me to get the desired thickness without runs.

After I have the epoxy spread out evenly with the roller I go over the surface lightly with a foam brush to remove any air bubbles or roller marks. This leaves a pretty smooth surface so there should be less sanding to do.