: Okay, thanks for your input everybody. Lots of good tips here. I'm
: not sure if the cratering was due to blush, or to oil
: contamination from the air compressor, or possibly even from the
: bucket I had the water in when I was wiping it. All good
: hypotheses. In any case, I'll use the vacuum next time to clean
: it, as well as scrapers instead of sanding. I'll watch for
: blush, and clean it properly if necessary. For getting good even
: coats, I'll use squeegees and rollers, set it as thin as
: possible, and use medium or fast-set epoxies to speed up the
: hardening process. (Also I'll keep the shop and epoxy warm-- my
: basement isn't cold, but it ain't exactly warm, either...)

: Now I want to finish this train-wreck so I can start over on a NEW
: boat!! :)

Personally I only use the squeegie to lay up the initial coat on the inside of the boat. Hard for me at least to get a smooth finish using one as they tend to cause ridges along the edges. I use West brand (yellow) rollers cut down to 3" width and a 3" roller to apply most all finish coats of epoxy using the roll and tip method with a foam brush to burst any bubbles formed from using the roller.

I find this much faster and creates a nice smooth surface.

Bill H.