working with fiberglass

pheel

hi, i want to ask if anybody knows where to get fiberglass surface mat ,its for sculpture work , like paper thin fiberglass in dublin, i was thinking of ringing some insulation stores but not sure? aslo whereis a good place to get polyester resin?
thanks

mossie110

u can get what your looking for from any good motor factors.

foamcutter

http://www.grs.ie/ they have glassfibre & epoxy in small kits.
They are based in Cork but do a good postal service.

coolwings

In Dublin? Call Green Hobby & Model.
They have carbon fibre and fibreglass cloth in weights all the way down to 25 grams/sq metre, polyester and epoxy resins, hardeners, and useful thickeners

You mentioned polyester resin. Are you sure about that?
PU resins don't "glue" onto previously made structures very well, they delaminate (peel / lift) over time.
PU resins shrink a tiny bit as they harden which tends to begin the delamination. That is why polyester glass boats are all made in one session, the next layer is added while the last one is still wet.

Epoxy resin is more stable, and retains the dimensions laid by the operator, as it hardens the glass cloth. So an extra layer can be added at any time or years later. But being a better glue, epoxy is far superior for the adhesive function of coating an object with glass cloth.
So you might consider to get epoxy resin instead if those properties suit your purpose better.

pheel

thanks for the advice, i ended up taking the trip to RPM moulding supplies and purchased, resin, hardner, and fiberglass surface matt, although i painted the resin on over the matt it did not dry,I was told i needed cobalt , does anybody know where i can purchase cobalt?

coolwings

pheel wrote: »

thanks for the advice, i ended up taking the trip to RPM moulding supplies and purchased, resin, hardner, and fiberglass surface matt, although i painted the resin on over the matt it did not dry,I was told i needed cobalt , does anybody know where i can purchase cobalt?

I wonder did you get the right stuff? Epoxy resin is not compatible with fibreglass chopped strand mat.
Polyester is used with fibreglass mat.
Fibreglass mat for polyester resin
Because the powder coating in FG mat is for PU resins only.

Epoxy is used with fibreglass cloth.
Fibreglass woven cloth for epoxy resin

The compressed mat should be coated/hardened with polyester resin/hardener.
I've never used cobalt. Why such a requirement for an accellerator? Something is wrong is you need one.
Did you use the correct mixing proportions for resin and hardener?

pheel

yeh i think i dont have the correct resin, i got just general purpose resin, which i think is epoxy, i dont think they have polyster resin in RPM

coolwings

Well if that's the case, maybe you bought incompatible materials. But you don't seem too sure about the hardener (If it says MEKP it's PU hardener.) So this guessing is based on insufficient information. It needs to be checked more.
For example there are other reasons why it might not set for you. They are mostly due to incorrect mixing (hardener + resin), cold destroying hardener in storage (winter outdoors temperatures and less likely during summertime) though we had a frost last night, or using direct from the same container as components were mixed in (newbie mistake).

I suggest a trip to Green Hobby to get yourself sorted out. Bring the materials or labels you've got so they can identify the problem for certain and a cure to your difficulty.
(If you are correct above) you either need fibre glass cloth to go with the epoxy resin you've got, or PU resin to go with the powder coated glass mat you've got.
Then you can get on with it.

Meanwhile I guess you have a horrible sticky mess all over the sculpture you wanted to cover? Acetone is the way to clean it .... hope the underlying object isnt plastic.
EDIT: In case you have not used acetone. Acetone evaporates at an amazing rate. The air is flammable, a naked flame can jump 10 feet no problem. And your lungs ....... For safety, work outdoors with it, on a breezy day.

pheel

ok well its off to green hobby then,can you get cloth there ?
because the resin was almost twenty euros , yes the underneath is plastic:eek:

coolwings

Cloth .. yes they do both types, woven cloth and mat.
The cleaning up job .... some plastics are proof against acetone. You can ask the guys.
You could also do a test on a small piece of the same material.
The acetone cleans it up best, since it destroys the resins.
But if acetone is too agressive for the material you're cleaning, then other spirits, particularly white spirit, are useful, if slower.
They dilute the resin, and slow down the hardening process, but don't destroy it. That makes white spirit (and methylated spirit) useful for thinning resin to the consistency of ink, so it will penetrate into small cracks, & so on.
I use both white spirit, and acetone.
But the acetone I use is called "fire retarded" version acetone, which evaporates less. I have never found it available anywhere else but at Green Hobby at Harolds Cross. It's maybe 10% dearer, but definitely worth it. The air is better to breathe while using it. I'd like to have a full life!

edd1

Hi new here and interested in getting some training in fiberglass mold making is there anywhere in Ireland that do this ?.ty

fergal.b

This might be of some help http://www.donedeal.ie/for-sale/boats/4628040

Or if you want to ask any questions on fiberglassing here I will try and help you out. West system have alot of info on their web site http://www.westsystem.com/ss/ and on youtube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTlHmJKLNRc

.

kwalsh000

Youtube is your friend, alot of tutorials online. The main thing to remember is wear a respirator as the fumes from the curing polyester resin are nasty and the fibres themselves are not nice either.