glass skin vs ply

[chinslip]

Hi guys, newbie here again. I have a question concerning deck skin material. From what I here, most people are using a 1/16 ply for all upper surfaces. My question is would it be better to use a fiberglass skin? Lighter and/or stronger. I was thinking of making some glass sheets then covering the deck with it. The glass sheets would be made by using a large perfectly flat surface like a large mirror (or something like this.) then covering this with some wax paper...then laying 1 or 2 layers of fiberglass cloth over the wax paper then epoxy the cloth. The wax paper will peal off very easily after the epoxy has set and the mirror will create a perfect flat surface. Then fit and trim the epoxy on the boat. I have tried this with a small leftover cloth and epoxy and turned out perfect. What do you guys think? Lighter? Stronger?

thanks

Norm

 

[SayMikey]

Hi guys, newbie here again. I have a question concerning deck skin material. From what I here, most people are using a 1/16 ply for all upper surfaces. My question is would it be better to use a fiberglass skin? Lighter and/or stronger. I was thinking of making some glass sheets then covering the deck with it. The glass sheets would be made by using a large perfectly flat surface like a large mirror (or something like this.) then covering this with some wax paper...then laying 1 or 2 layers of fiberglass cloth over the wax paper then epoxy the cloth. The wax paper will peal off very easily after the epoxy has set and the mirror will create a perfect flat surface. Then fit and trim the epoxy on the boat. I have tried this with a small leftover cloth and epoxy and turned out perfect. What do you guys think? Lighter? Stronger?

thanks

Norm

Glass or mirror just needs a really good waxing with partall,say 4 times. You will want to vacuum it and use peel ply. This will make a skin you can glue without having to sand the skin for adhesion. All this said id just use wood.and if you want extra strength cover the decks with a layer of glass like this http://www.fibreglast.com/product/Style_120_E_Glass_573/Fiberglass_Fabric

 

[Bill Gibson]

WOOD!

 

[Hydro Junkie]

If you're building a hull of wood, stay consistant. One thing to remember when building a hydro is that all the strength is in the skin, not the framing, so using only one or two layers of glass will probably not be enough to keep the deck from distorting as the wood reacts to temperature changes and impacts. If you want a glass deck, either add it to a wood underlay or go with a complete glass hull

 

[chinslip]

Thanks guys...so wood it'll be

 

[Mike Hughes]

I sheet with 1/32 and use a 1.5oz cloth over that. Just got done doing Tboat. The 1/32 makes it easier to lay the deck down. Have a few areas were the 1/32 dented in some inbetween the frames. So I took some pink foam and glued it to the deck. Sand the to shape after it dried. Then I covered with cloth and epoxy.

Mike

 

[Bill Gibson]

I sheet with 1/32 and use a 1.5oz cloth over that. Just got done doing Tboat. The 1/32 makes it easier to lay the deck down. Have a few areas were the 1/32 dented in some inbetween the frames. So I took some pink foam and glued it to the deck. Sand the to shape after it dried. Then I covered with cloth and epoxy.

Mike

Not to hijack the thread, but Mike, the last couple of hulls i built i started using foam in several areas of the frame work, especially towards the front of the boat , inside the sponsons...i did this with an 1/8 scale 73 PAK and boy, does the boat feel solid!I also like the fact that along with the balsa stringers i glue along the frame work, the more suface area there is to adhere the skin to , the better....seems like its worth the slight weight gain...have you built a boat in this fashion? Just curious....

 

[Mike Hughes]

No I have not. I like the frame build up. It is the way I have always done it. The deck does not give the boat its rigidity. If the frame work is done correctly. It is rock solid before deck. I also do not spend a lot of time trying to make the boat lite, but they all ways come out that way. Plus my buddy Russ has some killer plans for scale boats. He lets me borrow them.

Mike

 

[Kevin Lloyd]

There's no reason to glue all the framework before applying deck skin, glue only the perimeter or outline of decking. The skin is laying on top of the stringers, there is no vibration or strength issue and after hot and cold expansion you will never see your framework lines in the sunlight. Two cents from a guy with only a nickles worth...got 3 left.