polyester Hi-Bond Boatyard Resin top coat help

I am doing a repair on a kevlar kayak, not a build, but you guys seem to have the expertise I am looking for.

The kevlar cloth on this old kayak was exposed on the floor in front of the seat. In fact, in an 8" by 6" section the kevlar was worn through and at two points all the way to the outside gelcoat from the heels of the paddler from working the rudder.

After talking to QCC, the manufacturer of the kayak, I used Hi-Bond polyester laminating resin to glass in 3 layers of fiberglass mat by the foot pegs.

After that cured somewhat I applied a thin coat of resin to the entire floor of the kayak. Once that cured I applied another layer of resin and sprayed Evercoat mold release immediately over the uncured resin and tipped it out with a brush. (Should I have waited some time before applying the mold release?) I used a lightbulb inside the cockpit for a few days to keep the temperature above 65 degrees while the resin cured.

The resin appeared to dry hard and tack free. However, as soon as the resin gets wet it gets tacky as if it never cured.

I am tempted to use Evercoat Gel-Kote (http://www.evercoat.com/marine/page/3/us/ part105670) over the resin which is supposed to cure hard without the mold release but I am afraid of continiung down the wrong path.

 

The other thing that concerns me is is seems that the rest of the kevlar in the cockpit is exposed and absorbs water, even behind the seat which should not have seen any wear. I am worried that I have created an area where the water will travel by osmosis and get sandwhiched between the bottom of the boat and the resin I added.

I am looking for advise as to what to do next. Unfortunately with the weather here getting colder, I am running out of 65 degree days.


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RE: polyester Hi-Bond Boatyard Resin top coat help

   And I should add that I made sure the hardner was well mixed in with the resin. The left over resin cured inside the mixing cup used for each batch.

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