I waited over 24 hours after the first coat before applying the 2nd, and wet sanded 180/220, then subsequent coats I just did within 6 or 7 hours wet-sanding only areas were sags or small drips occurred. I plan on doing the last 2 or 3 coats using the fully-cure then sand method. My problem is that I don't know anything about my varnish, so I'm guessing at these times. I didn't realize that varnish won't chemically bond...seems kinda strange, but I'm not too worried since I won't get to use the boat much this year and plan on storing it in the garage. As far as epoxy compatability, guess I'll have to wait and see. What's the average time after varnishing is done before you can put in in the water? It was almost 6 weeks since the epoxy went on the boat, and 2 weeks since doing the last epoxy job (seams), so hopefully that will help with compatability issues.
Thanks for your responses,
James

: In fact, it is important to let one coat of varnish dry completely before
: applying the next. Epoxy is catalyzed, and will react and cure given
: sufficient time and temp. But varnish relies upon air for the solvent to
: evaporate and to create chemical bonds in the film. If you apply a second
: coat too soon, the first coat will be deprived of its air supply and will
: never harden. The first coat is slowest, because epoxy can inhibit the
: varnish hardening. (This is not entirely a theoretical argument--I had to
: scrape off a gummy mess when I got impatient.)