Best Above/Below Water Line Filler

[AnthonyAllen72]

In your opinion which is the best Filler to repair gelcoat scratches and non-Structural Repairs which will be sand for new Top Coat????

[Capt Chuck]

http://www.classicseacraft.com/commu...353#post244353

[FishStretcher]

3M vinyl-ester filler. Defender and West Marine should have it.

[flyingfrizzle]

Water tight filler from interlux is a good epoxy based filler that you can commonly buy anywhere. It sands easily and is super smooth and goes on like a glaze puddie. The 3m vinyl ester stuff mentioned works well too for larger spots but not as thin and smooth as the water tight interlux. There is also a ton of other products out there as well just like the one captain chuck mentioned that would work well too. Just stick with a vinyl-ester based or epoxy based product that dose not have talc in it. Talc it a common additive in fillers but it will absorb water and cause problems. Stay away from products with talc in it.


http://www.westmarine.com/buy/interl...8?recordNum=22

[shine]

You can make all the different putties with the same epoxy if you mix the fillers in yourself. This means hardly any waste vs, buying individual putties.
If you run out of below the waterline fairing putty and you need just a little bit more, that half tub of structural putty isn't doing you any good.

Phenolic microballoons are for fairing below the waterline

glass bubbles for above waterline

wood flour, milled glass, chopped glass - all structural

silica - used to thicken all the other fillers so they dont sag, can be used as a glue if mixed with epoxy alone

Get a few fillers and a kit of epoxy and your set. I use pre-mixed putties is on very large projects where I know I will use it all. Really, I only use pre-mixed fairing putties as they go on smoother than what you can mix yourself (packaged under vacuum)

My site gulfstreamcomposites.com has all the fillers and epoxy. free shipping on orders over $200

[AnthonyAllen72]

Thanks for all the reply's this will surely help.

[AnthonyAllen72]

Shine check PM.

[erebus]

Originally Posted by fg1

I've never fully trusted product data sheets nor listened to salesmen so my own testing has always been the norm. Occasionally someone will ask why we use 3M Glass Bubbles below the waterline. Never had an issue in 30 years but just to be sure we started a test. One test article was WEST epoxy thickened with cab-o-sil only, the other was WEST with glass bubbles only. The two were submerged for 2 years and weighed every month. After 2 years of submersion the glass bubble sample had not changed at all. The cab-o-sil sample gained 1 gram (its total weight was 52 grams)
I think the lesson learned here is whatever you use below the waterline, USE EPOXY!

As a boatyard glass guy, this is hilarious.