The main thing I think you need to consider is the viscosity. In my
experience the less expensive brands tend to be a bit thick to penetrate the
wood pores unless they are specifically for encapsulation. To apply, sand
the wood to #120 at most, lay on a first coat and let it cure until it
almost looses its tack before laying the second. That way you will have a
chemical bond between the coats. If you wait more than 24 hours you will
have to wash and sand again.

Epoxy develops a waxy water soluble surface film as it cures so let the
second coat cure for at least 3 or 4 days then wash and sand before laying
the primer. Do some research before settling on the primer to make sure it
will bond to the epoxy. I would also use the epoxy as the assembly
adhesive.

The UV varnish is needed if you are clear coating. If you are using a good
opaque primer and top coat you don't need the UV varnish to protect the
epoxy but it will make your top coat last longer.

--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

wrote in message
ups.com...
Alright, thanks for clearing up that confusion as the guy in the Marine
supplies shop told me I should do it the "backass way" I described,
guess he didn't have a clue!! So, in summary, I should apply ...

- the epoxy first against the bare wood (encapsulating the parts in two
coats of epoxy before assembly)
- then the wood primer
- then apply the color coat
- then finish it with a UV resistant varnish to avoid sunlight epoxy
degradation.

Now, I'm sure there are different varying types of epoxy so can anyone
please recommend a god epoxy or is one just as good as another? Do I
need to sand in between application of coats? Is there any special
method of application or any tools that would make the above method
quicker?

Thanks for all the advise and help to date.