I went through your delema  and unfortunately I can not answer you question. West System  is available locally here but I was told that yes the blush can be a factor, you may as a resident of this area be charged an additional fee for a hazardous waste classification product, and the materials with tax were more money than the MAS shipped from CLC. I sent for the MAS and glass from CLC today.

jeffh - Let me address your questions about epoxy in general then talk about Six10 in particular. Epoxy formulations (without being specific to any manufacturer) that cure at room temperature are basically blends of bisA on the resin side and amines on the hardener side. Follow this link if you care to learn a bit about the chemistry:

http://www.pslc.ws/macrog/index.htm

 What this means is that different formulations of epoxies are very compatible with each other both in a cured state or uncured as well. An extreme example would be to mix MAS at it's designed ratio in one cup and West System correctly in another, stir them up and mix them both together - the mixture will cure just fine. So if you had a fillet of Six10 and you decided to laminate a tape over the fillet using MAS it will all cure together. Once any epoxy is well cured, assuming it was mixed at the correct ratio, it is an inert plastic and once sanded will form excellent mechanical bonds with more epoxy or most paints.

cz375hh is wrong in saying the Six10 is a hazardous material - it neither ships nor is classified as hazardous waste under current US EPA RCRA regulations. Section 13 of the MSDS states this clearly.

The issue of blush is made into much more of an issue than it is by the MAS guys. Blush (amine blush) is a reaction between the reactive sites in the hardener that are exposed at the surface/air interface with CO2 in the air. It is a surface phenomena and will form more readily in the presence of moisture - high humidity. Any hardener formulation that uses amine chemistry has the potential to blush. That said, a formulator can choose a hardener chemistry that can minimize and even hinder the blush reaction. West System 207 Special Coating hardener is as low a blushing system as found on the market today, despite comments made about the MAS system. The MAS no-blush system cures extremely slow particularly when compared to the 105/207 combination.

In the end the whole blush controversy is little more than a marketing gimmic. Blush is easily removed with clear water. Often times, say if you're prepping a canoe or kayak surface for glassing or additional coats of epoxy, it's easy to wet sand the surface - so you're killing two birds with one stone. If you don't want to get the surrounding area wet it is easily removed with a damp paper towel.

Finally, CLC will supply you with West System products if you request them.

I've used six10 to install my gunwales. I am very happy with it. Much less mess. Be careful where you fillet with it though because it cures whitish, not clear. 

My only real complaint is that the cartridge doesn't go as far as it looks like it should, if that makes sense. 

Awesome.  I want to be as neat as possible and the whole concept of using the caulk gun is appealing.  Now that I know it is compatible with the MAS epoxy in my kit, I'm going to give it a try..

Thanks guys.

In response to the remark that "cz375hh is wrong in stating that 6-10 is hazardous"--- I did not say it was hazardous I was told that the particular area that I dwell in may it consider it so. They in their effort to make our little corner of the world a better place may decide that alot of products are undesirable and seem to classify them in any manner that they please. My son lives in California and in his area only water based stains and finishes are allowed. Sorry I needed to get that off my chest--I do feel better ---Oh my MAS and glass has arrived today--thanks CLC !!!

No worries cz375hh, I knew what you were saying.  I don't live in California and will not have to worry about any hazardous substances charges.

No problem Jeff--I do not live in California either, but I live in Colorado were some of California's "advanced thinking" is creeping in--we usually refer to these area's as "The People's Republic of---{fill in the city or county}"

I did appreciate your explaination of resins and compatibility etc. with all the tecnical terms--I know a lot about wood, woodworking, and I have all the tools, but I know very little about resin and glass--Thanks

cz375hh, I can't take the credit for the explanation of resins and compatibility.  That was someone else anwering my inquiry (I assume someone from CLC).

Thread drift here, sorry.  cz375hh - I live in Boulder . . . . What are you building?

Anyway, some of us CO boatbuilders are kinda sorta considering holding a little "messabout" sometime this summer. Drop me a line if you're interested, or need a paddling partner. Where in CO are you?

 Dave Gentry

[email protected]

I will add to the drift in my response [sorry guys]--I live in Loveland-Ft. Collins and I am working on my first boat --Wood Duck Hybrid-12---the bottom ply is assembled and epoxied and glass taped. The shape you get out of the ply is pretty amazing--I will try your web site--thanks for the contact and sorry again for the drift --at least this is helping keep this post alive.

I've read my construction manual three times now and probably 100 individual build sites, this forum and a book on fiberglassing wooden boats.  I think I'm ready.  I'm going to my local West Marine to buy some Six10 just for fillets.  Tonight, I'll glue my biige panels, sheer panels and bottom.