Epoxy coating
I knew it’s gonna be a long day of work. I planned rolling at least three layers of epoxy, to properly encapsulate the hull. Two layers is enough usually but three is better.
Sunday, I started at 6 in the morning. All prepared since yesterday: the hull is sanded and vacuumed, the whole workshop vacuumed and as clean as it can be. The weather was going to be nice but the morning was chilly, with 6 degrees.
I started the kerosene stove and ramped the temperature to 25 degrees. Left the shop for two hours, to allow the hull and epoxy cans to get up in temperature.
Back around 9 I shut down the stove.
Same as with varnishing - if the wood is cooling down (slowly) it stops de-gassing which otherwise would result in small bubbles in epoxy or varnish.
During spring or summer you just simply wait with the paint job until afternoon. In my case I was simulating these conditions with the stove, for each subsequent coat.
First coat rolled out, plywood edges not yet coated.
Around 10 o’clock I was done with both sides. It took 25 pumps of WEST 207 to cover the hull. Per coat! I was happy I have another full set in the workshop because the one used in the shed is getting light rapidly.
While waiting for the coat to cure I was soaking plywood edges with a small brush and small batches of epoxy - to keep constantly fresh stock, as thin as it goes.
Tedious job but very important on plywood constructions. I was flooding strakes’ edges to saturate fibers.
Second coat applied at 14, when the first one was still tacky but left no traces on gloves. This way - painting wet-on-wet - I don’t need to sand the hull before next coat. Instead all layers will blend and cure as one, thick protective layer.
Filling plywood edges with more epoxy.
Mahogany on transom went nice and dark, just as I imagined it. No staining was needed - good, old stock of Honduras mahogany.
The third coat started in the evening and I was working until 01:30 on Monday. Not much sleep before going to work but it was worth it.
If I planned to keep the hull bright - with varnish - I would apply 2 more layers of epoxy, to build up layers. On Meritaten, where I made cabin sole from mahogany ,it got 6 layers of epoxy, resulting in glass-clear coat with no bubbles.
Bottom strakes - garboard and three next strakes - got extra thick layer of epoxy. They lay horizontally now so I was not worried about runs.
With that done I have just a few steps before turning the hull:
further epoxy-saturation of plywood edges, until they become shiny and “glassed”
epoxy saturation of CB-case opening on the inside. Or I will make oak insert to fully shield the garboard’s exposed edges?
sanding the hull for primer coat
painting the hull with one or two-component paint. I don’t know the difference between them, so far I was only using one-component paints but that was on classic plank-on-frame boat. I need to do some reading
bending and attaching brass band, to protect the keel