fiberglassing sharp corners

davlacey

im glassing in ribs and stringers and im having trouble with sharp corners its not taking leaving air bubbles anyone any suggestions im using 300gsm mat. how are they doing it on this boat in the pics cheers

fergal.b

The best way is to round the edges of the rib and stringers or another way is to put a bit of resin an inch or two down the side of the corners let it set a bit till it's tacky then lay the cloth on one side and pull it across to the other, this should hold it in place while you wet it out and stop it from spring up with air bubbles.


The one in the photo might have been vacuum bagged.

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davlacey

cheers ill give it a shot tomoro i thought i was doing something wrong when i seen other boats with 90 degree bends. ive ordered woven would that be a bit better for taking the shapes

fergal.b

It would be better, easier to work with and you will get a much better finish but it can still bubble up if the corners are sharp.




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breghall

i usually find the light woven does best for me when try ing to do corners, mat always seems to get messed up on me while i try to get it to fit..

fergal.b

You will also have to put a fillet bead into corners I just use thickened epoxy and run a spoon along it to give it a rounded shape. Cloth may seem soft and pliable but the strands are glass and will always want to be straight that is why it lifts up on sharp bends.