: Thanks for all the advice guys. I think for me; being brand new to
: this, I'd feel more comfortable going the seal coat route. I am
: also using multiple wood species, so Bill's point about
: different absorbtion rates would apply. Here's my next
: question.... I'm using MAS epoxy with slow hardner and was
: watching some of their demonstration videos yesterday. They
: suggest that when using the Q-tip method, once the resin is no
: longer tacky (won't pull Q-tip fibers) that you need to sand
: before subsequent coats. I really don't want to mess this up, so
: I'd appreciate if anyone has any experience with MAS epoxy and
: applying glass after the tack has left. I sure like the sounds
: of this method, but I want to be sure it will work.

: Also....before I took the deck off the forms, I seal coated them
: with the MAS epoxy using a foam brush. It seemed like it worked
: OK, but after it has hardened, it's splotchy looking. I'm
: guessing some areas saturated with wood, and others were still
: drinking when the epoxy kicked. I don't think this should be a
: problem and will disappear when I get around to glass the deck
: right?......

Well first off, epoxy cures much slower than MAS indicates, as Dan mentioned the thumb nail method works, if you can dent it, it's not cured all the way and will still chemically bond to the next layer. Unless you're doing this with a fast hardener (which you said you're not) at elevated temperatures, the next day should be just fine.

The splotchies is why you pre-coat, the wood sucks up the resin at differing rates, it's done what it's supposed to do, sealed the surface.

Bill H.