Boat Builder Central - Builder Forums

anyone have experience with this material or consider using it? specifically the sphere.core SBC? seems like a good alternative to foam core.

The fact that you would need to build in/on a solid mold would increase the complexity of the build (unlike the foam core method using a strip form). The fact that the resin forms part of the core material would substantially increase the cost of the construction.

There are a lot of core materials sold, only a few are suitable for one off boat building. We attend the IBEX every year to look for new materials. Foam core and Nida-core honey comb can be used in some places in any of our boats. DO a search and you can fins out the +/- of each.

There a severl brands of the 3D "web core" material you are talking about, but it use in infussion - which is well out of the realm of what an amature can do.

Joel

thanks for the replies!

Shine wrote: There a severl brands of the 3D "web core" material you are talking about, but it use in infussion - which is well out of the realm of what an amature can do.

http://www.amateurboatbuilding.com/arti ... r_f39.html

Tony
(couldn't resist)

There a severl brands of the 3D "web core" material you are talking about, but it use in infussion - which is well out of the realm of what an amature can do

i spoke with a salesperson today.the spheretex sbc is actually made for hand layup. sbc "ip" is made for infusion.

what i was thinking of doing is building a very cheap mold out of cheap thin ply and laying the sbc over it. i ordered a sample to do some experimenting with.

Yes, you can make a female mold. Its a lot of work to make fair.

If you want a no-wood boat, you can always do what several builders (myself included) have done and build it out of foam core using the same stitch and glue building meathod. Its a lot more work than plywood, but if your willing to build a female mold, then you up for this.

Hate to be the resident pedantic, but if you follow the procedure outlined by roob:

what i was thinking of doing is building a very cheap mold out of cheap thin ply and laying the sbc over it.

I believe that you are making a male mold.

so.... i searched in the syte of spheretex and they have there a lot of information and also a exemple of use in transoms that u can download...

as anyone used it as a alternative to wood in transms??

Other materials in that type exist. I tried some but most, despite what they say, soak up a lot of resin and the resulting laminate does not hold up to the properties of foam sandwich. I stay with quality foam sandwich.