BoatBanter.com - View Single Post - reinforcing fiberglass with different kinds of mesh

Bruce in Bangkok

On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 08:09:24 -0700, wrote:

Oh okay thanks for your inputs.

"But the "pouring in resin" part makes me wonder what the heck you are
thinking??? "
sorry I didn't literally mean "pouring the resin" I just meant
applying it (with a hand brush or squeegee)

polyester resin doesn't bond well to glass sheets either, but it does
to glass fibers.
perhaps the resin would also adhere to thin nylon mesh or a rough
surfaced wire mesh would.
try applying resin to a nylon or wire mesh and I think it would still
be difficult to separate the two.

carbon fiber and kevlar is very expensive so I'm just thinking of the
possible alternatives.

it's just that metal is used to reinforce cement for structures and
rubber in tires.

just thinking out of the box.
it may sound crazy to some people but it's still worth a try.

Has anyone here ever tried doing that?

On Oct 17, 8:27 pm, wrote:
On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 03:23:16 -0700, wrote:
Hi!
Can you use stainless steel wire mesh or nylon mesh to reinforce
fiberglass?
Has anyone ever tried doing so?

I was thinking perhaps after pouring the resin, I lay the glass fibers
then the wire/nylon mesh, then repeat....

What do you think?

First of all glass roving is going to be stronger then nylon mesh so
using nylon is going to result in a weaker then normal laminate.

Second, epoxy resin is not going to bond extremely well to stainless
mesh so regardless of the strength of the stainless it may well not
contribute to the overall strength of the laminate.

Third, by using a combination of glass, carbon fiber and kevlar it is
possible to build laminates that are literally bullet proof.

Why bother with nylon or stainless?

Bruce in Bangkok

It is difficult to understand what you are trying to do here.

Are you trying to build a GRP structure like a boat? Or are you trying
to make a repair in an already built structure?

Your statement that polyester doesn't stick well to glass sheets is
confusing. Do you mean previously laminated fiberglass structures or
an actual piece of glass?

If you are building a new fiberglass structure then glass roving and
chopped mat will produce a stronger structure then will nylon.

If you are trying to make a repair then polyester is not the material
to use.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
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