shit Shit SHIT!

So, I'm using West System epoxy (availability, reputation, documentation, some would say marketing, etc.) They have this handy "pump system" where the 5:1 ratio of resin and hardener is measured for you - all you have to do is count the number of pumps of resin and hardener. Not so bad. Worked great the first time I tried it. About as idiot-proof as they could make it, really.

Well, after finding the epoxy still tacky last night, four days after finishing the job, I began combing through old emails and rereading the West System User guide, trying to figure out what the heck was going on. Then it hit me. 5:1 ratio. 5:1 ratio. Wait a minute! The pumps... The @#!$# pumps! I had actually done it. I had outsmarted the idiot-proof "pump system".

I don't know, I guess I was really preoccupied with other things, like: Am I doing the scarf joints properly? Should I be using the 17oz biax, or the 8 oz cloth now? Have I washed and ground down the previous layer enough? Can I get this done before dark?

And I kept thinking 5:1 ratio, 5:1 ratio. Don't screw it up. So that's what I did: 5 pumps of resin, 1 pump of hardener. Over and over and over again. I did indeed mismeasure every single batch of epoxy I mixed last weekend. ALL of them. The entire day's worth of epoxy and glass and filler on the starboard side deck. What I did in reality, was mix a whole bunch of 25:1 resin goo.

Needless to say, I'll be learning how to remove and clean up uncured epoxy this weekend...