Chesapeake 17 Kayak - Epoxy Fillets and Fiberglass Tape - February 16, 2015

Today I started to glue the boat together. It will hold it's shape once these steps are completed. I put clear backing tape along the bottom or keel joint and that wide space by the bow so that the epoxy fillets would not squeeze through.

The idea behind the fillets is to make a smooth radius where the panels meet. You want this smooth radius because the fiberglass tape will not lay easily in or over a sharp angle. To get thin fillet use masking tape about half an inch on either side of the joint where the panels meet. I actually used the edge of the wires as my guide.

The boat is now ready for me to  apply the fillets and the fiberglass tape. First I cut the tape to the lengths I need. I do this by simply rolling it out over the masking tape and cut it to length with my scissors.

Stern with cut strips of fiberglass tape.

Bow section with cut strips of fiberglass tape.

Cockpit section with strips of fiberglass tape.

Whole boat view from bow.

Detail in the bow section where the strips of fiberglass tape meet.

Detail in the stern where the three strips of  fiberglass tape come together.

I then took all the strips out of the boat and draped them over the sides so I would know which one went in which location.

Yes that is snow you can see out of the window on the right.

Time to mix up some epoxy with wood flour to a peanut butter like consistency and apply the fillets. I use a plastic bag with a corner cut off like a pastry bag to extrude the thickened epoxy between the masking tape.

Below the thickened epoxy transferred from the mixing cup to the plastic bag. You can see on of my filleting tools in the picture it looks like a big tongue depressor.

Photos below of the fillets applied.

Bow section looking toward the bulk head

Bow section looking toward the bow

And with the tape remove...

Masking tape removed.

Masking tape removed.

Next the fiberglass tape is applied and the wood is sealed with unthickened epoxy.

Bow section with fiberglass tape applied over the fillets and the other wood sealed with a coat of unthickened epoxy.

Here is a close up of the bow section looking forward where all three pieces of fiberglass tape come together.

I did the stern section the next day and the center section the day after that using the same technique. All surfaces including the sheer clamps should be coated with two coats of epoxy to seal the wood.