Hello All,

Looking for some advice. I've spent days sanding and recoating my guillemot trying to achieve a perfectly smooth/fair finish before applying varnish. It seems whichever technique I use (foam roller or foamie brush) I end up with a surface that isn't mirror flat... it seems the epoxy goes on too thick even with my best efforts to apply it sparingly. So now my questions:

1) how smooth must the epoxy be prior to varnishing and is their a trick to getting the viscosity to help to this end?

2) does varnish need to go onto a mirror like finished surface - or can it be the final saving grace to achieving a perfectly gleaming hull?

3) will I do any catostrophic UV damage if I go for a week long paddle without having applied any varnish? (assuming we get some nice weather!)

Thanks all in advance

-AJ