Making a Fiberglass unit for my boat, how do i go about doing this?

Question

How would i go about this, i'm pretty new to fiberglass and dont know what i have to do. i believe its these steps make the unit out of wood and then add the resin and fiberglass. Am i right? i also want to put holes for my gas tanks and and speakers amp ect. thanks

Answer 1

You don't want to add a lot of weight to your boat.  I think most units are made out of a mold without anything but fiberglass.  I would try to make the form out of a Styrofoam and then the resin and fiberglass.  It will not rot and be very light weight.  You can buy the Styrofoam in sheets just like plywood.

Answer 2

Well, it seems you have the right idea. But it all depends on what you want to make.

The way you describe it, it seems you will be making some sort of a console. If you make it out of wood, and coat it with fiberglass, it does not guarantee that it won't water rot.

If you have the talent, instead of fiberglass, why not make that console out of teak wood? It will look a lot better and teak will generally not rot.

I have duck decoys that are 30 year old (at least) that are made of teak, and they are not even close to being water damaged.

(Former boat builder)

Answer 3

Shape it with foam and then fiberglass over it. Don't use the cheap chopped strand (CSM) mat. Use the fiberglass cloth. Otherwise you will have a lot of sanding and filling to do and the CSM uses more resin and is very heavy. You can get cloths in weights from 18 oz to 2 oz. The 18 oz stuff is used for repairing big stuff and making moulds quickly. I use 8 oz as a general purpose cloth. Maybe 2- 3 layers.

If you don't want to keep the foam in the piece, you will need aluminum or wax paper between the foam and your FG. I like to use aluminum duct tape. Or you can just use the pink foam and when you are all done, just pour some gas or something in your piece to disolve the foam.

If you use the pink foam, you will need to use epoxy resin to prevent the resin from melting the foam. If you are going to use the cheap polyester resin, then you need to use special foam -- or the green florists foam to prevent it from melting