FIGURE 10-3 FIGURE 10-4

Use of a fillet ojjoam between the bulkhead and the hull pre- Solid fiberglass hull liner, showing limited accessibility ojthe

vents a ridge from printing through the hull, and eases the hull for repair. Sometimes the liners is made up of subassem-
curve for taping. (From The Fiberglass Boat Repair Man- blies, particularly in the head area; these can ease access.

ual, by Allan Vaitses. International Marine, 1988) The headliner is almost always a separate molding. (From
The Fiberglass Boat Repair Manual, by Allan Vaitses.
International Marine, 1988)
single skin
deck

layers of \U
fiberglass |
^
tape rabbet
in bulkhead

to receive
laminate

FRP boats this is generally accomplished by ply\\'ood

bulkheads and joinerwork, which are bonded in

place by fiberglass tape. Some builders use a com- For these reasons it is not used on production boats.
plete FRP interior pan that forms the cabin sole and It is increasingly used as a final coat over polyester-

much of the furniture, and which is then taped into bonded FRP craft to reduce or eliminate blistering.
place to reinforce the basic hull. A distinct disadvan- Also, epoxy is the resin of choice for bonding fiber-
tage of this mtenor pan is that it may make it difficult glass cloth to awood hull, as well as for gluing and
to inspect or repair the mtenor of the hull. coating laminated wood vessels.

Resin and Blisters Cores

The most common resin in use is polyester resin. Cored FRP panels are stronger than single-skin

However, polyester resin can result in blisters form- FRP panels of equal weight. The core, laid in between
ing below the waterline in the gelcoat after a few the inner and outer laminates of glass, acts like the
years of use. Today many builders use an outer layer web in an I-beam and contributes to stiffness as well

of \inylester resin to reduce the chance of blistering, as adding both sound and temperature insulation.
and then finish up the rest of the laminate with the Coring is used in large, flat areas such as decks and
less costly polyester. cabin roofs, and is also used to build many light,

Epoxy resin is supenor to polyester resin. It is strong hulls.

more watertight and more durable, but it is expen- Many different materials have been used for cores.
sive and severely irritating to the skm of the workers. One of the most common is edge-grain balsa wood.

UNDERSTANDING BOAT DESIGN

92