fiber glass resin

[SCOTT EVANS]

This mybe a stupid question, But I have a gallon of good ol Home Depot fiberglass resin. Wouldnt that and a little fiberglass be better than plain Phenolic tubing. Hate to just let it sit around or throw it away. Where else would I use it.
What makes epoxy resin better? If Im not going Super Sonic does it really matter??? If I fill the Back of the rocket with foam it would be insulated from the heat! I know someone has had to try plain old fiberglass resin before! ??????????

Scotte

[Mike Bennett]

The resin that Home Depot sells is polyester based not epoxy based. It will easily crack and chip under the stresses of rocket flights and landings. Phenolic tubing is also brittle in its own right but still usable without glassing.

Epoxy based resin is much stronger, more expensive and handles heat better than polyester. The working time is the big factor with the home improvement store types of polyester resins. The accelerant is fast so the working time is about 5 to 8 minutes. Certainly not enough time to work with glassing a tube properly. There are many more reasons why epoxy is better than polyester resins but those are the main ones.

I have seen people use it for bulkheads and other smaller connection points but I personally would not use it. I know they use it in the boat industry for non critical joints and on table tops and bar tops.

[SCOTT EVANS]

Thanks Mike

You have a nice web site by the way.

Scotte

[Mike Bennett]

Your welcome and thanks.

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