Brush applied GC50 gel coat


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GROPIUS
GROPIUS
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Thanks Warren for making this clear.
I do appreciate the knowledge and support here.
An absolute fantastic forum w00t
GROPIUS
GROPIUS
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TomDesign (07/05/2013)
i pmed you
Sorry buddy,
just found the notification of a pm in my spam filterBlink
Will post laterWhistling
Jess8bit
Jess8bit
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Does it make sense to apply the GC50 on the mold surface using the gel coat roller ? => https://www.easycomposites.co.uk/resin-application-roller

what would be the pros and cons of it ? (compared to spraying and brushing)

I'm asking because, when you have a small part to do, it's pretty time consuming (and quite difficult) to prepare the cup gun for a small quantity.

thanks for your support Smile
Ortonporton
Ortonporton
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Hey Jess

I thought the same thing, I'm pretty sure you could use the roller, but when I did I found it quite tricky as with a small mould the roller is a little bigger than I expected!! Also if you have any awkward corners its a bit tricky. I still have had the best results on my small moulds using a small sponge! How are you getting on with the spraying? I'm just about ready to call it quits as I have had to many weird looking parts!!! Cheers 
Jess8bit
Jess8bit
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Ortonporton (24/06/2013)
Hey Jess

I thought the same thing, I'm pretty sure you could use the roller, but when I did I found it quite tricky as with a small mould the roller is a little bigger than I expected!! Also if you have any awkward corners its a bit tricky. I still have had the best results on my small moulds using a small sponge! How are you getting on with the spraying? I'm just about ready to call it quits as I have had to many weird looking parts!!! Cheers 


Hi, 
I will certainly try the roller very soon. If it works, then it means one can find and use smaller rollers, like those you can buy for painting on small surfaces or into corners. Perhaps the one dedicated for lacquer paints with short bristles, don't know yet. I'd like to hear some feedback about it. I guess we need to test Smile

thanks for the trick about the sponge by the way Wink

I'm still quite young in the compositie business, but so far I'm happy with the result of using gun sprayed gel coat. It requires some practrice though. For example, you don't want it to be too thick. But the result is really awesome as I only have to polish the final part to make it looked like a clear coated part with a gloss finish.

What do you mean by weird looking ?
Ortonporton
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Sorry not the best description!! But weird as in, the outside is mirror like glass, which I love, but depending on how well it's sprayed and thicknesses the actual weave underneath can look really Strange. ill have a take a pic.  Maybe I need to keep practicing! I'll get there in the end I'm sure.
Jess8bit
Jess8bit
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Ok Smile

yeah if you have a picture I'd like to see. Maybe I have the same without knowing it ^^
Jess8bit
Jess8bit
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So, I've just tried a couple of GC50 application tests :
- brush on one mould
- roller on another

We'll see the result but, I don't expect class A work here. 

- brushing GC50 as is is just unfeasable properly, IMHO, as it leaves tracks and you can't controlled the thickness, it's not even, well, you know. But maybe the result will not show these...

- using the roller seems more promising, I guess I can improve the result with a bit practrice (to find the right pressure on the roller and the right quantity of GC), but first, you really need different roller shapes/sizes to access corners, recesses etc. (so the use of a sponge can help indeed Wink ), and second, it does not beat the spray in terms of even coating, and sometimes it leaves empty spots that made me adding some more material to covers them. But again, we'll judge by the result.

Problem of spraying is that you project material everywhere in the workshop, which is really bad as you risk to contaminate fabrics if they are close, and everything get sticky as hell, as I don't have nor a cabin neither an air extractor to work safely.  That's quite a problem.
Jess8bit
Jess8bit
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look at that :

http://www.talkcomposites.com/Uploads/Images/e88cc2f7-3297-4cc9-9105-eed4.jpg


on the left I used the roller, on the right the brush.

On both sides fisheyes have appeared. You don't see them on the left because they are smaller, but there are a lot of them, while there are only a few - but huge - on the right.

The brush left tracks, and he roller high spots.

I'm bagging that and will infuse it as is to see how these holes and tracks and spots transfer to the part.

Drop test in progress.... had to struggle against a leak as usual Smile
Warren (Staff)
Warren (Staff)
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What we do in the workshop with polyester gels is to use a applicator rollerin a special way to take out the lines and smooth the surface.

All you do is push your finger onto the edge of the roller plastic cradle to stop the roller rotating, then very lightly float it over the surface of the gel to remove the highspots and fill any gaps.  You dont need to apply any force as such.

Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
GO

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