murky mucarta

[manassas dragon]

tried my hand at making micarta but the finish is dingy.used bondo anything better?

 

[mrn8]

3M or West System 105 (from West Marine).

 

[FTO_dude]

An epoxy resin as opposed to a fibreglass resin should give a better result.
I think with homemade micarta you're always fighting a losing battle however, ive been there.

 

[Leethal Cutlery]

[
I think with homemade micarta you're always fighting a losing battle however, ive been there.[/QUOTE]

I respectfully disagree. There are plenty of people that get amazing results making their own laminates don't give up. Practice and experimentation are key

 

[phillipsted]

Use West Systems 105 Epoxy Resin and the 207 Special Clear Hardener. This stuff was developed for coating and laminating and dries completely crystal clear and colorless. Great stuff.

I've never had good luck with fiberglass resin.

TedP

 

[manassas dragon]

thank you phillipsted

 

[FJ1906]

Use West Systems 105 Epoxy Resin and the 207 Special Clear Hardener. This stuff was developed for coating and laminating and dries completely crystal clear and colorless. Great stuff.

TedP

I had some leftover from doing some work on my Whaler, made a small piece of blue jean "mycarta" and it came out better than I expected. Easy to find and easy to work with. Kinda hard to mess up an equal 1-to-1 pump ratio for the resin and hardener. West Systems 105 gets my vote. :thumbup:

 

[Mudbug007]

You have to remember that all (at least ALL that I know of) fiberglass resin dries amber in color. And if you don't get the correct ratio of hardener to resin, it can dry a darker amber. And what some forget is that a lot of resins will darken and/or yellow over time, especially if they do not have uv inhibitors added to the formula. Just something to keep in mind while hunting for a better resin!

 

[rjfm1972]

Try this stuff in the pic below. I get it from Menards. Its the same epoxy thats used on table tops. Its very durable, crystal clear, and is reasonably hard(will not crack or chip if impacted, like fiberglass resin will). I used it to make micarta using green and tan canvas. I think it turned out quite nice (see bottom pic).

 

[fod]

As mentioned, use a true epoxy resin. Better end product and easier to use. But you gotta pay. I buy in bulk and find it hard to find under 60 cents an ounce delivered.

Look for water clear, UV stabilized with a work time of at least 30 minutes, preferably 45. I can lay up 3 3/8 x 12 x 18 sheets in 45 minutes, but I have had a little practice.