Hi guys. Thanks for the info on your experiences with us composites epoxy.
US Comp's site says there's no blushing with slow hardener, and there is
blushing with faster hardeners (similar to MAS). And you guys, Gerald and
Scott, verify this. Thanks much.

What I'd really like to know is how US Composites' epoxy fares over time.
Gerald, you said you'd built several boats with the stuff? How old is the
first one? Still ok structurally? Any degrading, softening, flaking, or
peeling?

Thanks again!

: Hi there crchr/gerald
: Sorry I didn't respond sooner, I rarely get a chance to use a computer on the
: weekends. Great story about your first play boat, sorry to hear you lost
: your glasses. I too have lost $100 sunglasses from my kayak on an
: unplanned swim.

: I did get a chance to use quite a bit of the US Comp epoxy and had a mix of
: results. First of all, the medium hardener caused blush on several
: projects and the greasey film had to be washed and sanded off before the
: next coat. This was the first time I had experienced anything like that.
: It was as though it got sprayed with WD-40. Not very pleasant. But for the
: most part it seemed to do its job with respect to wetting out glass. Still
: a few bubbles.
: But I also mixed blue pigment into it for the first couple coats on my 13ft
: 8oz Dyson nylon SOF (pics coming) and it worked great. Sanded most of the
: first coat off with 180 grit and the ROS set to slow to get it smooth and
: to help get a good mechanical bond. The second thin coat went on perfectly
: (other than a few runs).
: So, now with a little more experience, here's my opinion: This US Comp epoxy
: (with medium hardener) is great (although it blushed terribly) for the
: price and I will continue to use it mostly for models and small projects
: that don't require the Raka with slow hardener that I'm used to. I would
: still like to order the US Comp slow hardener and try it out. The blush
: from the medium is not fun and requires alittle more work sanding and
: scrubbing. It is, however, a very inexpensive, clear, thin, light epoxy
: that will work just fine for many projects, but I still have my favorite,
: Raka.

: If I may ask, what have you used for varnish over the US Comp epoxy?
: Smf