matt colie wrote in message ...
Wow -

There is a lot going on here.

If you read all the MSDS (I have had to do so), Epoxy is less toxic
than polyester, and as it does not outgas in curing (notice - no new
epoxy smell?). The exposure sensitivity can and does happen with almost
anything.

When I was 20 I began rebuilding an airplane using epoxy glues.
After a year of part-time work on the project, and getting the stuff
on my skin, I had to abandon the epoxy and go to urea-formaldehyde. My
eyelids would swell up just in the presence of epoxy curing, and my
immune system got all screwed up and I became allergic to a range of
things like milk, many pollens and dust. 30 years later I still suffer
the effects and have to be really careful around any epoxies.
On the other hand, I have worked extensively with polyester
resins and had no trouble at all.
On the subject of polyester vs. epoxy, I have found that
polyester won't cure if applied over an old epoxied surface. Stays
gummy. Had to scrape it off and remove all the old epoxy, then
re-glass it.

Dan