Tag Archives: Polyester

WEST SYSTEM project vanguard 15 fiberglass and gelcoat repair befores and afters


Dont miss the completed video www.youtube.com This is the repair of a vanguard 15 done by me. using west system epoxy, an then polyester gel coat with patch aid and at first a coat of “pva mold release” at first for full cure then towards the end I used wax (surfacing agent polystyrene) much easier in my opinion

Fiberglass Sailboat Repair – fixing a big hole on a small sailboat


Repairing collision damage on a Laser sailboat. The Laser is a lightweight boat that’s decked over, so most repairs have to be made from the outside. I used epoxy for the structural repair because its stiffer and bonds better to the original polyester layup. I switched to polyester for the filler (Bondo) and gelcoat. Many people warn not to do this. I find it works fine as long as the epoxy has cured at least a week, and has been thoroughly cleaned of amine blush and well sanded. These techniques can be used on any fiberglass repair where only one side is accessible. Be sure to extend the bonding area well outside of the original damage. This repair was done over 3 weekends. Don’t despair – fix that boat and get out there again!