I've made up a spreadsheet that will calculate the mass of epoxy and
resin required by a specific mass of glass in order to avoid any fat
fingered fractional fumbling with my abacus. (The balls don't slide
worth a darn when you get epoxy on the rails). All I have to do is
weigh the fabric, find that number on the sheet and read off how much
sticky stuff to mix.
Here's my question: what glass/epoxy weight ratio do you use? I've
seen figures of 40% epoxy/60% glass, 45/55 and 50/50, with the former
being described as the perfect ration and the latter as deliberately on
the heavy side. Any thoughts on which would be the best number to plug
in to the formula?
Regards,
Steve Genotte
PS. For those that may find such minutiae interesting, here are some
revelations I've (re)discovered as I get closer to being an actual
builder.
* Darkness sucks. I will be spending about US$100 on fluorescent
lighting for my garage/shop. One 60 watt bulb just won't cut it.
:-)
* Comparison shopping is your friend. I've already found several
examples of 200-300% markups on items such as sanding blocks,
utility knives, and other items listed in a popular aviation supply
catalogue vs. my local DIY superstore. A little pre-purchase
planning can save more than a little money.
* If you're waiting to build your airplane, get started on something
in the interim. It's really helped me see the deficiencies in my
current set-up. I'd like to think that it's better to get the
steeper part of the learning curve over with now in order to avoid
the frustration of messing up on the airplane parts. I recommend a
Composite Builder's Starter Kit, like the one offered by Aircraft
Spruce. I've already gotten extremely adept at the fine art of
accepting the fact that the piece I spent a half day laying up,
once cured, is totally UNacceptable and must be destroyed. (If
only I'd used the hair dryer like Tony K. told me too. Sigh.)
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