Yes, you can use Black Diamond pigments in thickened epoxy. In thin applications of unthickened epoxy, “liberty copper” is not opaque. But add Cell-o-fill and you’re in business.

I am a bit stressed by boat work today — did a couple of “misguided” things, recovered. In retrospect, quite a lot worked out. “What happened?” you ask. None of yo…

This for one thing: the inspection hatches are to be sealed with silicon caulk, not plumbers’ caulk. What made me think the latter was the ticket? It’s not yet time to install the seals on the hatches, but I thought the caulk might be good for sealing the top corners of the bulkheads, too, so I worked some in there, then went online to see how long it would for the caulk to set and be paintable. No. It doesn’t set. You can never paint it. It doesn’t belong anywhere in this project. The plumbers’ goop came out surprisingly easily. I went on to something else and came back to the bulkheads.

The bow and prow needed work. In prepping the bow for a patch, I trimmed a little too deeply. Two layers of 3mm okuome wasn’t quite enough, but a stir stick added just the right depth (this will make more sense after I add some pictures). I thickened some epoxy with Cell-o-fill and glued up a nice try. I used a few ounces of weight to hold it together until the goop got really gummy, then changed to a couple of pounds as the epoxy cured. Six hours later, I sanded it some. It’s solid and durable, but I’ll wait till tomorrow to keep at it until everything is polished flush (or flush-ish).

The repairs at the stern needed far less thickness. There, I used only a dollop of thickened epoxy with a microscopic amount of “Liberty Copper” pigment added to it. I think it will be fine. If not, I can add another layer or have a second go, but that small experiment was encouraging. I won’t know exactly what needs doing until after I add the final layers of epoxy to the deck (which needs to wait for stain for the dowels), but yes, you can certainly tint thickened epoxy. You can also sand it: six hours after mixing it up, I hit it with the orbital sander (120) to smooth the surface. It smoothed out well and the color seems to come back under mineral spirits. We’ll see what happens when I can add more resin.

I found some 3/8-inch dowel stock in the scrap pile and shaped one end of it with sandpaper to made a custom plug for the messed up dowel hole a couple of feet back on the portside bow. That went well.

So back to the bulkheads. The instructions say to use an epoxy fillet to seal the tops of the bulkheads. I mixed up 30g of epoxy, a generous heap of Cell-o-fill and then reached through the inspection hatches to apply it to the seam between the top of the bulkhead and the underside of the deck (the corners are yet imperfectly sealed). This worked well enough, but it goes against all instincts to intentionally stick your (gloved) hands in the epoxy pot. The only way to do those fillets blind is to scoop up the epoxy, reach in and up, and go for it. Hours on, all seems solid there.

Now: I’d really rather not buy more slow hardener for the few remaining epoxy steps. I think I can work with the fast hardener by using a few simple techniques: after mixing, pour it into a larger pan and maybe chill the resin and hardener in a cool water bath. It goes off a lot faster at 72F than in the low 60’s. I’m just trying to buy 15-20 minutes working time. I do not have large stretches of cloth to wet out, so that should be time enough for any single step I anticipate. I do expect to need more brushes (I opted for good rollers instead of more marginal brushes).

Day 62

It seems that I’ve entered the “hell, don’t scrimp now” phase of this project. You know the one: I could really use X to be sure Y doesn’t spoil everything at the last minute; you’ve invested Z hours in this, why risk much of anything on the lack of Widget XYZ? It’s a dangerous and expensive phase generally encountered in the weeks prior to total eclipses.

On the way: scuff pads (maroon, Scotch-Brite, about 320 grit, for the final epoxy coat before varnish), West System roller covers for the last two epoxy coats and for varnish (“why mess up the finish after all this work?”), Epifanes varnish and Gorilla silicon sealant (pretty much had to buy those), stain (“look, it may be all about function, but there’s no reason to look at something I’d rather have done differently every time I take it out”). I’m taking a big chance trying to use fast hardener, but if that’s not going to work out, it should be apparent soon enough to avoid damage. [ETA: It’s fine, just don’t dawdle.] And I really have to draw the line on costs somewhere. I may need to buy slow hardener for the rigger lay up, but we’ll see how the deck coverage goes first. And sooner or later, there will be some pricey paint for the interior and maybe for the bottom panels.

I applied Black Diamond’s hazelnut pigmented epoxy to the areas of the bow where I want copper accents to conceal my amateur joinery (advice is that this stuff will look better against a really dark background, and I didn’t have any appropriate black). So far, so good. It was good practice and can be sanded as needed without hurting the finished look. A little Cell-o-fill makes a big difference in how well pigmented epoxy covers and stays where I put it.

Another commandment has been given to me: once the epoxy begins to cook off, accept thy fate. Set it aside rather than making a mess; nothing good will come of trying to use it once it begins to gel. I really want to get on with the next epoxy coat since it will determine much about the final look. Stain first, epoxy later.

I tried to make sense of the splash box pieces. I am certain only about this: there will be some judicious sanding to get rid of discoloration from long storage.

I’ve been wasting lots of thought trying to figure out a way to use this boat as a simple fixed-oarlock, fixed-seat rowboat if ever appropriate (or to simplify things at the very beginning if needed). The best thing would be a modular adapter between the rigger (the actual outrigger arms with oarlocks at the ends) and the clamping mechanism on the floor of the office. I’ve been thinking about ways to lock the slide, but nothing practical has come to mind, online examples notwithstanding. It ought to be simple to cobble up a post with no mechanism apart from a latch. The latch would be just like the one on the bottom of the sliding rigger machinery: two bits of aluminum and a few screws. So stop squandering attention on that detail at least.

And as for a light, simple, adjustable seat. Of course I have ideas.

It’s really only fun if you take this One. Thing. At. A. Time.