Trojan Boat Forum

Need to rebuild my bow pulpit over the winter. Will be made from laminated strips of teak. Wondering what glue would be recommended.

I prefer using West System slow curing epoxy for that type of job. Prep the mating surfaces first though just before you glue, it must be free of the wood's natural oils.

Prep the mating surfaces first

I do this by cleaning the surface with lacquer thinner on cheesecloth. Wait until the solvent evaporates, then get right to gluing before more oil migrates to the surface.

+1 to what Aaron says and another hint. Do not buy the cheese cloth at a big box hardware store. Go to a local professional paint store and pick it up. I've been burned many times by grabbing the cheap stuff at Lowes or Home Depot and have found that their products have a light wax in the cloth. By wiping it on the teak surface, you basically are laying down wax that acts like a "mold release". After you have everything all glued up and dry for a day, you remove the clamps and it will all fall apart! Very disheartening when that happens. So please, get the good cloth!

I think you're referring to a tack cloth/rag which is supposed to be impregnated with a tacky substance usually petrolium based and is used to remove dust, dirt, lint, etc. from surfaces prior to painting. It basically starts off as something similar to cheesecloth like a cotton weave but that's where the similarities end. There are several different additives available depending on the application one intends to use it for. While the petrolium type might be suitable for an oil based paint application, the water based impregnated stuff would be best used for a latex paint application for example. These should not be used anywhere epoxy is being applied. A cheese cloth would not have this same property, at least it shouldn't because it is used for completely different purposes, some of which are food related and as such are not impregnated with anything. If tack cloth/rag is labled as cheesecloth, it shouldn't be!

Thanks for the replies. Called West System and they recommend a product called G-Flex at about $72.00 CDN for 16oz each resin and hardener, good for about 50 sq ft of coverage. Any thoughts on this product.

I haven't used it yet but I also haven't gotten any feedback about it that would help me decide whether I should use it.

Its good stuff . But i have not used it on teak