Hi,

Ray - the only thing I've ever read was that you might be able to add up to 5% acetone to thin the epoxy, but that comment applied to an epoxy used to apply fishing rod guides to rod blanks ...I'm hesitant to do this to a kayak, although I think I will use the 3M to glass the interior of my stich and glue kayak when I get to that stage.

Spidey - It sounds like you got an outstanding deal- I paid $77 for 1&1/2 gallons! Never heard of "Ding-All", but if it's good enough (and tough enough) for surfboards, it must be great stuff. It's funny - we can dicuss soft woods, hard wood, and plywoods and make our own decisions, yet the epoxy area is a mystery. I know that the distributors "cut" their resins with some non-volatile thinners to make a less viscous product for wetting fiberglass, but I always wondered if it makes a difference in durability, flexibility, etc. Hey, I'm just doing a stich and glue, but if I invested the time to make one of those outstanding strippers with all that detail, I would probably be going ape-shit, worrying about the epoxy qualities. In reality, probably nothing to be concerned about, and my "stripper" endeavors won't begin until next winter. And about 3M, I expected their technical pages on their homesite to go into detail, but there is nothing there, expect strength at various temperatures and vicosity. ( didn't get a chance to view their technical specs on those crummy straps they sold you).

Thanks for replying.

PS - Don't throw out epoxy resin that has been frozen or outdated ... some manufacturers claim only a one year shelf life, but that is a lot of crap ... I've used epoxy that was 12 years old, and the wood to wood bonds still wouldn't break at the joint - the stuff just cures slowly - like 5 days instead of 2-3. And if the resin has been frozen (UPS guy left it on your doorstep during the winter), just place it in a 100 degree F water bath or some other heat source for a few hours and the "crystals" will go back into solution. (let it cool back down to room temperature before you use it).