: I just tried some Raka for the 1st time several weeks ago. I used it for the
: final fill coats on my Guillemot. I like it better than the "other
: stuff" I was using for several reasons. First, it seams to aquire
: less air bubbles when mixing and rolling. It worked way better than
: rolling the other brand epoxy, OR maybe my technique has just improved.
: The second thing is the long pot life. Even with 1/2 slow and 1/2 fast
: hardner, the working time was much longer than just the slow of the other
: brand. This can be a problem for impatient people though. Experimenting
: with just the slow hardener, it took about 14 hours at 72 degrees to get
: to the non-sticky-don't-leave-fingerprints-point.

: With just the fast hardner, the residue left in the mixing cup was still
: flexible at least 3 days later. This surprised me because by this time,
: the other brand had always set hard and very firm...you could break or
: snap it apart. The Raka would just bend.

: This stuff seams to take much much longer to fully cure. Two weeks went by
: without touching the first fill coat. It still had a pliable nature, but
: it scraped nicely. I think it would quickly gum up sand paper. I could
: definately still smell the stuff. Since I am working in my appartment,
: every day I run a box fan in the window to exhaust the stale room air and
: replace it with fresh air by cracking a window at the other end. The only
: problem with this technique is there is always a bit of dust getting into
: the epoxy, but it cleans up quickly with a scraper or a light sanding.
: Also the furnace needs to run a lot. Most of March we still had below zero
: in the evenings and highs of 10's to 20's.

: I would think that I should wait about 3 to 4 weeks before applying any
: varnish since its obvious the stuff is still curing after 2 weeks.

: Any other thoughts or comments to what I have noticed are encouraged.

: Thanks

: Tom

Tom I was kinda curious what brand X was? I have been using system 7 and have was thinking of switching to raka for the kayak that Im working on know. your new cure time seems a little long but that could work out to be a good thing.

Thanks, John