: I put one full layer on the hull + a 2nd "football" layer over that
: using system 3 "clear coat". I have seen no problems at all with
: the finish where there is only one layer, but I have noticed tiny bubbles
: in the second layer area. It is not a big problem, but I am real curious
: as to what caused this (I am only putting one layer on the deck, but am
: still hoping for no bubbles there :-)

I had the same thing happen to me on my Outer Island -- it was only on the hull and primarily in the 'football' layer. I won't attmpt to soak epoxy thru 2 layers of 6-oz. at the same time again. I may have not have laid quite enough epoxy in certain areas, or I may not have squeegee'd well enough. It was hard to see the bubbles until the fill coats were applied -- then they became more apparent. George's tip of applying the epoxy first, then laying the cloth down makes a lot of sense, but I didn't do it because I was working solo and didn't trust myself to be able to lay the cloth down without wrinkling/bunching. Once the cloth starts to soak in epoxy, it's tough to pull it around and adjust things. I think I'll be trying the epoxy-first method next time...

: More questions about glassin' ...I have read about George Roberts method of
: multiple layers of light weight "satin" cloth and it does sound
: good (too late for me now anyway) but I would really like some input on
: his point about adding a "sacrificial" layer of glass to sand
: "flush". Specifically 2 points : His point that the epoxy layer
: over the glass is "soft" and not really "hard" enough
: for the final finish (the epoxy "seems" really hard to me but
: that is a relative term and it doesn't seem to me that the epoxy alone
: will be as hard a the epoxy/glass right together at the final surface).

Glass is crystalline and very hard -- epoxy is plastic and farly soft, compared to the rocks you'll be scraping your hull on. Also, his point is that glass is lighter than epoxy, so why not fill with glass rather than epoxy?

: Secondly how is the finish "look" of the "sacrificial,
: flush sanded" layer. I have been warned (appropriatly) not to sand
: this deep into the glass (but that applies to the "structural"
: layers) and I understand that it would loose strength thereby, but as this
: layer is "sacrificial" I am asking here about the
: "finish" look of using this proceedure, because it seems (from
: just sitting on the couch thinking ... not the best way to find something
: out) that this would result in showing the "weave" and also that
: it would "whiten" where the glass was sanded. I know I am
: missing something here, because I do not think that George would be using
: a method that left his hulls showing the glass. Perhaps this is not so
: with the "satin" weave, but I do not understand all the factors
: here and would like to talk about it more. I am not trying to start a
: "pissing" contest over who's method is best .... just think that
: this is a real good point for this BB to address in a courtious and
: profesional way :-)

The glass weave will show up as a white checkerboard pattern when you sand it, but it will disappear again when you finish the boat with varnish or clearcoat.

: Stripping the deck now and looking forward to my best glassing ever on the
: deck:-)

: Arthur

You'll do fine. I had the same hull errors you did, but my deck came out perfectly. Not only do you have better experience for when you go to do the deck, but you have only one layer of glass to put on (most likely) and the deck surface area is smaller so you can focus on each square inch more closely.

Tip: When you go to do the fill coats, lay the epoxy on and squeegee it smooth. I just applied it with a foam roller and let it settle on my first kayaks. The low spots do fill in, as intended, but the high spots get built up a little, too. The weave of the cloth is 'telegraphed' through subsequent fill coats. They do get smoother, but don't go away completely, and you end up having to do more sanding later on to get a smooth finish. Squeegee now and save yourself some sanding time later. It's much more preferable to remove the epoxy now with a squeegee rather than later with sandpaper...

Dean