The Epoxy Thread

[burrito]

Fixed a tail split a few weeks ago with G/Flex 650. Holding up perfectly so far.

https://www.westmarine.com/buy/west-...32?recordNum=1

[tuco]

Not many Marine shops in NW Montana that I'm aware of, but I'll check. Is the loctite Marine epoxy any good?

Sent from my Pixel 2 using TGR Forums mobile app

No boats in NW Montana?

But yeah, use the Loctite- used plenty of it in past mounts-- I still prefer the G flex, but I use the epoxy for a few things.

[rfconroy]

Wanted to resurrect this thread since I had some more modern questions.

I need to fix a large sidewall separation, typically I would use Gflex for these types of things, but the viscosity of it is too thick. Has anyone messed around the West Systems 209/105 mixtures at all?

[Shorty_J]

Wanted to resurrect this thread since I had some more modern questions.

I need to fix a large sidewall separation, typically I would use Gflex for these types of things, but the viscosity of it is too thick. Has anyone messed around the West Systems 209/105 mixtures at all?

No experience with the other epoxy you listed but if you warm up your g flex it will flow better.

2 options are a heat gun on low, or even just submerging the bottles in hot water before you mix.

[NW_SKIER]

Might be in this thread already, but I'll ask anyways. How do I keep my g flex from going bad after it's been opened? Or is that not a thing?

[XXX-er]

No experience with the other epoxy you listed but if you warm up your g flex it will flow better.

2 options are a heat gun on low, or even just submerging the bottles in hot water before you mix.

Yeah I usually warm the epoxy bottles in hot water to get epoxy flowing better

I used to thaw my own frozen AQS in boiling hot water after taking it out of the freezer but at the shop I go thru so much I don't bother

I've never tried freezing epoxy to see if it lasts better

[rfconroy]

No experience with the other epoxy you listed but if you warm up your g flex it will flow better.

2 options are a heat gun on low, or even just submerging the bottles in hot water before you mix.

How much does that reduce your pot life, since epoxies are thermocured?

[detrusor]

I used to use g flex to get it all back together then urethane on the sidewall. File to match when cured.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[Shorty_J]

How much does that reduce your pot life, since epoxies are thermocured?

Don't know.

I don't warm mine up much but it's going on 15 years and it's probably not up to full spec but I continue to use it.

Which is to say I'm not an expert as much as I'm an experienced hack.

[tuco]

Yes, heat will kick off catalyzation of epoxy. I've stated this many times, HEAT THE WORKPIECE, NOT THE EPOXY!
Conroy- g-flex comes in 2 viscosities. 650 is regular, 655 is gel.

NWSkier- unused epoxy should last year's. Storage is key. Cool, dry area, devoid of light and squeeze all the air out of bottle before storage
zi

[margotron]

I know GFlex is expensive compared to other stuff in this thread, but it really isnt. ive been using the same gflex size as Tuco for oh gosh. 5 years? for both skiing, archery (building arrows), and random stuff.

[tuco]

It's cheaper per once than the double plunger kits, by quite a bit, for way better epoxy. I spent $18 for 2 4oz bottles quite a few yrs back now

[rfconroy]

Ended up pulling the trigger on West Systems 209/105 combo. I'll report back to the Mag Brain Trust on my findings for this type of thing.

[tuco]

^^^good shit too.

One thing I like about the g flex for ski repair is the increased bond strength especially since you may not be able to prep the substrates like new materials and it's potlife is equivalent with 105/209

[rfconroy]

^^^good shit too.

One thing I like about the g flex for ski repair is the increased bond strength especially since you may not be able to prep the substrates like new materials and it's potlife is equivalent with 105/209

According to the datasheets I was looking at yesterday, Gflex is significantly less strong compared to the 105/209

[tuco]

Not bonding strength.
G flex sticks better to high density woods plastics and metal than 105

[Cocximus]

G-flex does not stick to whatever syringes are made out of of. I got some dental irrigation syringes. They have a small tip, but warm g-flex flows through them without much effort. After the epoxy hardens poking the tip makes all the leftover epoxy just pop out.

There are the syringes.

[J. Barron DeJong]

G-flex does not stick to whatever syringes are made out of of. I got some dental irrigation syringes. They have a small tip, but warm g-flex flows through them without much effort. After the epoxy hardens poking the tip makes all the leftover epoxy just pop out.

There are the syringes.

Shit. I literally used a syringe that looks just like that last time I used G-Flex and just threw it away assuming it was toast. Not a huge loss, but don’t like wasting stuff unnecessarily.

[XXX-er]

Products are often different in furin countries so this side of the line the quality epoxy I see at the local building supply in small amounts in small town BC has always been the SYTEMTHREE products, I'm using G2 right now

The local pharmacist believed me when I told her i wasn't a heroin addict so she told her assitant to give me a syringe, medium sized (10CC) was a good size for ski work, I mixed the 2 part in the syringe using the CC markings, use it once and thro it away

For a binding pullout/ partial delam injecting a syringe full into one of the binding screwholes was IME a great way to get product into the ski clamp & let cure 2 days

[Cocximus]

Not selling syringes at pharmacies is one hell of a dumb policy. I used to ask them if they preferred I shared a syringe.

[XXX-er]

Well they might sell syringes but its a small town eh

the pharmacist is my lawyer's wife so she just gave me one

Cuz she knows I am in fact a ski gentleman with a skiing problem

as opposed to a heroin addict

[nord]

How about urethane adhesive for delaminated tips. This what our shop used on K2 "GS Race" model skis back in the day. K2 gave us these skis if we sold 10 pairs of "high end" K2s. So the ski sales staff were all on this ski. Almost every pair of those skis had tip delaminations until K2 changed their process or adhesive. The tips had too much shear force/load to be fixed with epoxy.
https://www.tognar.com/urethane-green-pack-3-5g/

[Core Shot]

Hard man orange.

I think it is a urethane. Sells in easy to measure single use pouches.

And yes. Heat gun to make it flow.

[Westcoaster]

West system technical support is extremely responsive fwiw, If you shoot them an email with the use case and question they respond promptly.

[rfconroy]

Ended up pulling the trigger on West Systems 209/105 combo. I'll report back to the Mag Brain Trust on my findings for this type of thing.

Ok mags, got a bit of experience with teh 209/105 and can compare it to loctite marine, and the TGR favorite: G Flex

209/105 is much thinner in viscosity, which means filling small holes is easier to do. Also makes adding fillers like: glass fiber, kevlar pulp, carbon, chopped steel wool more manageable.

It seems to cure a little longer than Loctite Marine, and G Flex even though on paper it should be about the same.

Most importantly, it cures much harder than G Flex, and is a little more brittle as well. So keep that in mind when you're using it. So, if you're using epoxy for inserts, or popping in hardwood plugs this stuff is ideal, but not sure how well it would work for a top sheet delam...

Biggest drawback I have with it now is the volume required. Its a 3:1 mix by volume, which means that you're mixing a ton for small projects. Therefore I've lined up a bunch of epoxy work in a row, and still end up trashing most of the epoxy that I mixed.