Easy acces to drinks AND water ballast. NiceHmmm recessed battery case or cooler!!!!
Loctite PL 3X wins.I found a left over west system activity kit (101-6) in the paint job box and there is one packet left. Ill test that "neat" against the pl 3x.
Next weekend Ill have to remove the cores from the luran.
Can I ask for clarification on the foam used in your test?Loctite PL 3X wins.
First test involved grabbing one core in each hand and alternating pulling them apart. Some cracks were heard.
Next test involved grabing the luran and then placing my thumbs down on each core so the luran bends away from the core. Epoxy cracks immediatly, and after working it a little there was just a little bit of epoxy holding down the core. The epoxy did a great job of sticking to the core but only a couple remnants if epoxy are on the luran.
I spent a few more minutes doing the same to the PL3X and its not coming off without breaking the panel or the foam.
Yep. The makers of urethane foam mixture advertise it is safe for poly resins and expoxy. Styrene foams (blue and pink foundation insulation) would be risky, but not urethane foam. PL3X, Gorilla glue, 5200 i expect are all the same since they are all moisture curing urethane products as well. i did dab water on the luran before appling the PL3X (but did NOT wipe it clean at all)Can I ask for clarification on the foam used in your test?
It looks like you used two of the “cores” you removed from the cockpit floor without the Luran layer, turned upside down so FRP is on top and stuck them with epoxy and the Loctite product to the big piece of Luran you had removed. In other words the foam is the stuff Hunter used during construction. If that is the case it proves that neither the epoxy or the Loctite “eat” the original foam.
If you made up new cores with the foam you just bought for the project it also proves the two products you tested don’t “eat” the new foam.
#105 resin & #205 hardener. I think the ratio was 5:1Do you still have the West System containers you used and if so can you post what “version” of product it is?...
I was thinking that it might be possible to put them under the foam layer & push it up to meet the outer skin when you are trying to glue them back together. The later suggestion of using an inner tube also seems to have merit.Those are cool. I want one in the car trunk and another in the hurricane box.
How would you use this for the deck? From underneath?
Thank you for the heads up. This is good information.No epoxy will not properly 'bond' to the Luran. Sorry while it may seem hard to get off it is not structural.
I have played with trying to fix many plastic things over my life. I have always been a fix it kind of person.
The reason why you should not consider epoxy as a fix is because the plastic of Luran, plexiglass, lexan, plus a whole lot of others have a tight molecular surface with no good place for the strands of epoxy to lock into an create a bond. Even if you do proper sanding based on the instructions it still never really bonds to the plastic. I know I have tried. I have made many repair attempts to plastics only to have it come apart in use. Usually sooner then later.....
No doubt! Youve had a core in your hand...brittle indeed. Im just trying to pull the deck up to the original level. Im thinking i will also need to put some weight down on the deck. The picture early on that shows the hollow space under the deck, indicates that the deck core may aready have cracked over on the right at the end of the centerboard trunk. The starboard side is nowhere near as low as the port side. Id like to release the suspension clamps some before pouring the foam columns so that the suspension force is not left transferring to the lower hull afterwards.I don't know how much give the foam has. If it is brittle, then pushing it up may be a bad idea.
My 170 has a group 27 battery (for a trolling motor) that is in a box that is just held down by the 4 screws it came with. So far, so good, but yes, backing plates would be preferable.Battery Mount:
Not sure if i got a factory install or not. Im guessing no.
The battery is about 50lbs and these mounting straps are simply 4 screw ran through the luran.
Shouldnt this have a backing plate and have an epoxy plug that seals the core? Ill never see the backing plates once that core is filled back in.
I really dont want to put this back on...
Are there better ideas? Is there a good way to anchor into the foam without going all tje way through. Make a hollow cone and fill it with epoxy, or get a gas motor?View attachment 165430
My motor mount repairs were well documented in a 2-part write up -@JimInPB did you use any fillers for your repairs.
MMA is the best product for repair of luran, and I know from experince that expoxy is a terrible glue, but epoxy with fillers is solid for building up mass.
As soon as this deck is fixed im moving on to the motor mount to emulate your repair. You still happy right?
Did you abandon this idea?On the other hand...Near the mainsheet swivel, it is 1foot from the skin to the hull. Might be ideal for placing a recessed battery case there...then use that big hole for using adding and removing expansion devices. Then sink the recessed battery box to seal the hole.