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[RODDERS]

I f/glassed the outside of my hull yesterday. Due to circumstances I'm pretty sure I didnt put enough hardener in the resin! Although I did mix it well,Im thinking the small amount of hardener I did put in didnt mix-in enough!Overall the job APPEARS to look OK .
 Some parts of the finished job have hardened ,and some havent!
 So..what to do? Will the resin eventually harden,even if a small amount of catalyst was mixed in to it? Theres no way Im going to clean off the 'snotty' mess,so if it doesnt 'go off' Im going to abandon the project.
 Any help from the gurus appreciated!
          Regards
           Rod

[boat captain]

Hi Rod

Try putting it in somewhere nice and warm for a few days.  This often helps it to cure.

Joe 

[RODDERS]

ok thanks, I'll give that a try! I was wondering if that may work. Cant believe I messed this up tbh!

[andrewh]

Rodders

Type of resin?
  If it is epoxy then only heating it will finish the cure

If it was (the smelly) polyester then it is sometimes recommended to smear catalysyt on the outside of the moulding which triggers the cre of the outside and generates a bit of heat to help the rest.  This works only with the luquid catalysy - not the paste

BUT, if you give this a try please remember that the hardener is a pretty potent chemical  - a peroxide -  so protect your hands well, use a throwaway brush and DON'T put the brush in the dustbin afterwards - it could spontaneously ignite.

Probably better to get some heat into the hull - I put it in a cardboard box with a couple of 60W lightbulbs  - not too close to the hull.  For smaller peices you can use the hot-plate mosquito killers as safe heat sources.
andrew

[RODDERS]

Well ..........tried warmth without sucess,so have now painted it over with catalyst. If that doesnt work then Ive decided to dump the whole lot . Will have a look at it tomorrow.

[dreadnought72]

Before you dump it - resin will tend to go off over time, even with little to not-quite-enough catalyst. If it offends you now, can you store it away for a spell? Somewhere out of the dust and above freezing? You may well find that in a month or three you've got a hull you could well use.

Andy

[boat captain]

Hi Rod as I said put it somewhere warm for a couple of days are so.  Dont give up after one day.  The last time I had this trouble it took a week in the airing cupboard to cure fully.

Joe   

[RODDERS]

Yeah ,you guys are right!You can imagine how peeved I am! After building it on and off for a good many years,(and just had a look at the prices of complete kits( )I s'pose I can wait a bit longer so may just store it away again!I have one more option ,which is to store it long term in the boilerhouse at work ,which is always very warm. Cant do any harm to try I s'pose. Thanx for the words of wisdom . Will keep you posted!