[Rhodes22-list] Delaminating tiller handle

[Cary Tolbert]

This seems like a good thread to tie into, Tabernacle pulled out of the
mast step. Filled with epoxy and silica. My question is: what size hole do
I drill for a # 12 SS sheet metal Screw?  I have found info on hardwood,
soft wood, sheet metal but  I can't find anything for epoxy drilling.
Thanks guys. I know someone on the list has experience in this matter.

Cary
S/V Whisper 86

On Tue, Nov 7, 2023 at 1:45 PM Graham Stewart <gstewart.gm at gmail.com> wrote:

> Roger:
>
> This is really useful information! I have always wanted to know the best
> way to thin epoxy.
>
>  Just to be clear,  both the epoxy and the hardener are
> separately thinned before the two are mixed together. The ratio of the
> epoxy or hardener to acetone is one part epoxy/hardener to 10 parts acetone
> - or do I have that backwards?
>
> Thanks for this!
>
>
> Graham Stewart
> Agile 76
>
>
> On Tue, Nov 7, 2023 at 11:03 AM ROGER PIHLAJA <roger_pihlaja at msn.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Hi Peter,
> >
> > At one point in my career at the Dow Chemical Co, I was chief engineer at
> > a plant where we made C fiber insulation for the, then new, C-17 cargo
> > plane.  As I recall, a 10%wt solution of epoxy in acetone was thin enough
> > to spray with a conventional paint sprayer.  The thinned epoxy/acetone
> > solution would flow by capillary action along the fibers and tended to
> > gather at the fiber/fiber intersections.  Here, the acetone would
> > evaporate.  When the epoxy kicked off, it bound the fibers together.  I
> > would use the West System 209 extra slow hardener and 105 resin.  Mix up
> > the resin/acetone & hardener/acetone separately and then mix them
> > together.  At 75 degrees F, this will give you ~45 minutes of pot life
> and
> > ~24 hours to fully cure.  This will be plenty of time for the acetone to
> > evaporate and diffuse away.  Until the epoxy kicks off, the mixture will
> be
> > thin enough to inject with a hypodermic syringe.  But, you could also
> just
> > brush it over the crack and let it be drawn in by capillary action.  The
> > thinned epoxy will also soak into the wood along the crack.  So, there
> will
> > be very little squeeze out.  This will greatly strengthen the repair.
> Once
> > you have the crack filled, clamp the piece to force the crack faces
> > together and clean up any squeeze out with a cloth damp with acetone.
> You
> > will end up with a solid epoxy/wood composite that will last so long,
> > you’ll be able to pass it down to your grandchildren.
> >
> > Roger Pihlaja
> > S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
> >
> > Sent from my iPhone
> >
> > > On Nov 7, 2023, at 10:16 AM, Mark Whipple <mark at whipplefamily.com>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > I just repaired a delaminated tiller I got from Stan. I used epoxy and
> > > syringes made for use with epoxy. The epoxy I use is from a company in
> FL
> > > called RAKA and is pretty low viscosity - thinner than West as I
> recall.
> > >
> > > I laid down some wax paper (epoxy doesn't stick to it) and put the
> tiller
> > > on its side - after digging out as much of the gaps as possible. After
> > > mixing the epoxy I used the syringe to direct the epoxy into the gap. I
> > > clamped the tiller to close the gap. I think I probably used
> unthickened
> > > epoxy first to coat the surfaces and then added some silica to thicken
> it
> > > and put some of that in the gap as well.
> > >
> > > There were a number of gaps in this tiller and I also drilled out and
> > > filled several holes, so it took a few days to get it all done, but it
> > > looks pretty good now. I may drive some screws in from the bottom of
> the
> > > tiller to further reinforce where the cracks were.
> > >
> > > Mark
> > >
> > > Boston, MA
> > > 2000 R22 *When and If*
> > >
> > >> On Tue, Nov 7, 2023 at 10:00 AM peter beckerman via Rhodes22-list <
> > >> rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> wrote:
> > >>
> > >> Hi All,   My tiller handle has some delamination to the point that you
> > can
> > >> see light through a gap in the wood.  I want to glue it back together
> > and
> > >> then revarnish it.  I'm wondering if anyone has any good techniques
> for
> > >> getting glue into the gap.  I was thinking of trying to thin some glue
> > and
> > >> injecting in with a small needle, but it needs to be pretty thin to
> > force
> > >> it through such a tiny lumen.  Anyone know of a better approach?  Any
> > word
> > >> glue that can be made pretty thin?
> > >> Thanks,   Peter
> > >>
> >
>