Marine Epoxies?

L

Lee L.

Active member
What are some of the really good marine epoxies for gluing up decoys? Are any of the marine epoxies any good from Ace, Lowe's or Home Depot?
 
Lee~

I had been using System III and then got a batch last winter from U S Composites - which I learned about from this site. They both seem fine to me. Each brand offers numerous epoxy products. U. S. Composites is very reasonably priced. I always keep about a gallon in the shop, for both decoys and boats.

I get a laminating epoxy - usually a 1:2 or 1:3 mix ratio. You probably know that accurate measurement is important with any epoxy. I bought a set of metering pumps but have not tried them yet. Instead, I keep a supply of graduated mixing cups, and they work well for me. The paper cups are disposable but the plastic ones can be re-used (peel the cured epoxy right out as one piece if you are lucky) - but so is a lot of stuff with epoxy. I use tongue depressors for mixing and spreading if I am just gluing up a wooden decoys but use chip brushes or foam brushes/rollers (and squeegees) for coating stuff.

I have not seen what products are available in all of the big box or chain hardware stores. I keep a small supply of 1:1 mix epoxy for small tasks where it will probably never be tested but I still want an epoxy.

Finally, you probably want some colloidal/fumed silica (e.g. Cabosil) for thickening the epoxy and preventing runs.

All the best,

SJS
 
I 2nd US Composites I used the medium cure epoxy from them to reglass my sneakbox. It worked great and they have hands down the best prices even when you pay for shipping it still the best price.
 
I have used West System, Raka , Us Composites, and currently have the Tap Plastics brand in my shop. All of these have been used on boats exept the Tap plastics. I needed a smaller amount for laminating a couple paddles and I could source it locally. I prefered Raka over Us composites. Both have good price and I had less blush with the Raka. I am doing my first hollow wood decoys right now and plan on using the Tap plastics epoxy thickened with the cabosil. I think all of these will do a good job and I would go with which ever one works for you from an availability and price standpoint.
 


There are a lot of good epoxy brands. I started with MAS epoxy on my last two boats -a 14' sneak boat and a 16'Joppa Flats sculler- and was really pleased with the results. I glassed the outside and encapsulated the inside. Using the same material on a Great Bay float that Iam currently repairing. A good source is Jamestown Distributors in RI.-extensive product line for marine applications and fast service.
 
There are a lot of good epoxy brands. I started with MAS epoxy on my last two boats -a 14' sneak boat and a 16'Joppa Flats sculler- and was really pleased with the results. I glassed the outside and encapsulated the inside. Using the same material on a Great Bay float that Iam currently repairing. A good source is Jamestown Distributors in RI.-extensive product line for marine applications and fast service.
Click to expand...

I have also used MAS with good results.
 
Neal:
You may want to rethink using cabosil when gluing up your decoys. The cabosil/epoxy combination is so hard that you may have tear out along the body joint when you power grind because it's so brittle or you will have a noticable bulge where the softer wood has been taken down when trying to sand the joint. I suggest using microballoons. It's much more workable, your body joint will disappear (if you sand across the joint). I wouldn't worry about it being a "weaker" joint, I would imagine it's still stronger than the surrounding wood.
 
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