: I considered eliminating the sheer clamp altogether, as I'm stripping the
: deck, but decided to keep it as the NBXL's deck-to-sheer angle is almost
: 90 degrees. Tape would be less effective going around a turn like this...
: so, I'll keep the clamp.

: So, how does this sound. 3mm ply, 2oz glass on the inside (applied
: pre-assembly per your technique) 4oz tightweave outside, further 2oz layer
: on bottom of hull. Stripped deck, 4oz tightweave top and bottom, bottom
: supported by foam/graphite ribs and stringers. Extra reinforcement around
: cockpit, aft-deck for re-entry.

Nathan

I'd recoment against the clamp, and just use a small fillet, and some lighter glass tape, maybe cut from some 3.25 oz. satinweave glass. Also you may want something besides microballoons in the fillets, maybe 50/50 using either cabosil or wood flour for some strength. A microballoon fillet may be prone to failure. One big weight item though is big fillets, so make them as small as you can to get the glass to cover the joint without air bubbles.

I've used 3.25 oz. satinweave glass from Raka. It is wonderful stuff. It is very strong glass, and requires less resin to wet out, and hardly any to fill the smooth weave. I have heard that it is stronger than standard 4 oz, because of it's high thread count. Another plus is that the stuff goes much clearer than standard weave glass. The only drawback is that it does take longer to wet out, so use a slow, thin epoxy.

I'd use one layer inside and out, with at least one (maybe two) more layer on the bottom. of the hull, for abrasion resistance, also adding extra layers anyplace you require more strength.

I also like the idea of 3mm ply.

Mike Hanks