Re: Stags' Triumph


"Flash" <NOSPAM@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:S_SdnUuoR_c8FpzYRVnyhw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Driving home slowly through a high banked Devon lane this afternoon, and
a stag jumps from an eight-foot high wooded bank ON to the front wing of
my Falcon.

http://digdilem.org/code/tmp/stag.jpg

(Tuft of hair still caught in the headlamp)

Considering the size of the thing (fully grown stag, about four feet to
the shoulder - red deer?) I think the damage was remarkably light. A
little bit faster and he'd have landed in the cockpit next to me.

Given that my excess is £500, how hard exactly is it to repair something
like this in fibreglass?

Fairly easy, but time-consuming. What you have to do is use a disc-type
sander (I use a d/a air sander) and remove all the damaged fibreglass i.e.
anything that is disbonded/torn/cracked/de-laminated etc, then finish the
edges to a shallow tapering profile both sides. lay up some new matting cut
accurately to size on one side, when cured to give a solid shape to work
from, apply a layer to the other side followed by a second layer on the
first side. Due to the taper, each "patch" will be slightly larger than the
one directly under it, repeat the process until the thickness has been
restored, allow to cure then sand all edges to remove any steps in the
patches, then apply a further layer to the underside, overlapping the solid
original material by 1" all round. The top surface can be built up in
similar fashion, sanded slightly under profile then build up a few good
coats of resin alone to make the repair slightly proud. Allow to completely
cure (2 or 3 days at least) then finish-sand the resin ready for
primer/paint.
It is important to only use enough resin to achieve full wetting of the
cloth/matting, excess resin weakens the structure and can be avoided by
careful stippling with a small brush.
As for materials, any decent boat suppliers will have chop-strand matting
(the material originally used) and either polyester or epoxy resin systems.
My personal preference is to use woven cloth as opposed to chop-strand,
alternating the weave each layer at 45 degrees to the previous (for ultimate
strength), and polyester resin. This was the system I used for years working
on aircraft composites.
Badger.


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