Glueing wood to fibreglass

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kashurst

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In a rash moment I have bought a project boat. It is a Fairline Corniche 31. Mechanically all good but the interior is literally falling off every where. Good news in that it won't be difficult to get it all off. Once I have got all the soft materials out etc I plan to panel the interior like modern boats with the usual thin ply covered in foam backed vinyl etc.
To do this I will need to glue thin strips of wood here there and everywhere to the fibreglass hull so I can velcro/hook/hidden fixings the panels to the hull sides.

What would be the best glue to use and ideally will work at 10 degs C or above? I have searched on here and elsewhere but a lot of the posts are 20+ years old now and I am guessing glue technology has moved on. Any suggestions welcome.
 
kashurst said:
In a rash moment I have bought a project boat. It is a Fairline Corniche 31. Mechanically all good but the interior is literally falling off every where. Good news in that it won't be difficult to get it all off. Once I have got all the soft materials out etc I plan to panel the interior like modern boats with the usual thin ply covered in foam backed vinyl etc.
To do this I will need to glue thin strips of wood here there and everywhere to the fibreglass hull so I can velcro/hook/hidden fixings the panels to the hull sides.

What would be the best glue to use and ideally will work at 10 degs C or above? I have searched on here and elsewhere but a lot of the posts are 20+ years old now and I am guessing glue technology has moved on. Any suggestions welcome.
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There is a self employed boat fitter Ed Engels who used to be the line manager for the Corniche. He nows does a lot of relining work work.Sure he would advise.
Don't have his number but sure others ie PeteM will know.
 
The problem with using epoxy is that it does not flex very well and will create hard points on the hull. I have always used sikaflex for this as its flexible and any battens stuck with it will be self supporting while the sika hardens off. Most people think its only a sealant but its actually a good high modulus adhesive.
 
I would use 3M 5200 for this. It's what a lot of boat builders use for this task

Or an equivalent high strength polyurethane from another manufacturer, like Sikaflex 292i
 
I can send you photos of how Fairline did it if you wish. I have the interior of a 1997 43AC apart at the moment. They used fibreglass sheet and resin
 
You need flex. So use a Sikaflex of choice. Mine would be 291i in Sikaflex or more nowadays puraflex 40.

Edited for fat finger syndrome
 
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I'd strongly suggest that epoxy is not the silver bullet answer to all boat issues!

Have a look at this video - guy knows what he's talking about. One of the good things about using polyester resin is that you can build on it very easily - epoxy requires some additional work.
 
boatmike said:
The problem with using epoxy is that it does not flex very well and will create hard points on the hull. I have always used sikaflex for this as its flexible and any battens stuck with it will be self supporting while the sika hardens off. Most people think its only a sealant but its actually a good high modulus adhesive.
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In the motor trade they use Sikaflex to glue the refrigerated backs to lorries, the frame round the edges are pop riveted but it's Sikaflex that is holding the backs of this together
This is one we built earlier :)
7Tms1Xysm.jpg
 
Canopy Locked said:
I'd strongly suggest that epoxy is not the silver bullet answer to all boat issues!

Have a look at this video - guy knows what he's talking about. One of the good things about using polyester resin is that you can build on it very easily - epoxy requires some additional work.
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That is completely irrelevant to the OP's question.

He merely needs an adhesive to attach thin wood battens to a GRP surface. The battens will bear very little load and are not structural. epoxy used as an adhesive is one way. Polyester is NOT - as it is not an adhesive, although it could be used to laminate glass over the battens. However that is messy, time comsuming and totally unnecessary for this job. A polyurethane adhesive such as CT1 or sika would also do if you can hold the batten in place while it cures. Even everyday grab adhesives such as No Nails or Sticks Like S**T will work.
 
Everyone keeps referring to just "sikaflex", like its a standardised product. It isn't. You can use Sika 291 for this if you want, but you would be mad imho not to use the much stronger 292i (if you like Sika brand) or the 3M equivalent called 5200. Sika 291 and 292 are both polyurethanes, but 292 is much stronger, making it good for this job (but of course unsuitable for plenty of other jobs).
 
jfm said:
Everyone keeps referring to just "sikaflex", like its a standardised product. It isn't. You can use Sika 291 for this if you want, but you would be mad imho not to use the much stronger 292i (if you like Sika brand) or the 3M equivalent called 5200. Sika 291 and 292 are both polyurethanes, but 292 is much stronger, making it good for this job (but of course unsuitable for plenty of other jobs).
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Sika is a brand like Unibond or Soudal and there are lots of different types with different applications, the ones we used were in the 500 and 700 number range, but it has been a long time since I used it in the early 1990s, and the stuff we used was tailored for the automotive industry.
 
Alicatt said:
Sika is a brand like Unibond or Soudal and there are lots of different types with different applications, ...
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That's exactly what I said. You were among those referring just to Sikaflex and not distinguishing the several different products that are made by Sikaflex (in #13).
 
This is not a high load application as Trenona said. I suggested Sikaflex as a generic brand as its widely used in marine applications. While higher modulus and better adhesives are available in the range its academic. I defy anyone to remove battens stuck with 291 without a hammer and chisel. My point was its better than epoxy whatever grade you use and yes Trenona I agree Sticks like S***t or gorrilla glue or any other such would probably work too but I have used Sika 291 with perfect success for precisely this purpose and its been fine.
 
A lot of those 'grab' adhesives which work with a mastic gun are excellent when one surface is porous, brilliant for wood to GRP.
 
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