With one V-berth panel veneered, I got busy on the remaining two. The epoxy print-through problem I was worried about that didn’t manifest on the first panel …turns out it’s a real thing.
Interior panels are looking good
It’s time to veneer the face and top cabinet panels.
There’s just enough veneer leftover
I cut it pretty close on the veneer, but fortunately there was enough to do all of the panels. I didn’t want to have to buy another sheet just to do the top.
Brushing on epoxy to wet out the panel
Then brush on some wood four-thickened epoxy
I used wood flour-thickened epoxy on the first panel I veneered because the Douglas fir marine plywood I used there isn’t flat; something had to fill the low spots between the grain. That approach worked pretty good, but the more I think about it I’m not so sure I needed to do the same thing with these okoume panels. They’re nice and flat already. Too late now, I suppose, but lesson learned.
Wetted out and topped with thickened epoxy
Next, I wetted out the veneer and applied it to the panel
Then I clamped it all together
Good squeeze out = good contact
Next day, the clamps come off
Nice!
Uh oh…epoxy leaked through
That spot isn’t too bad. It’ll sand out…nobody will ever see it once it’s top coated with varnish.
Gad!
The epoxy not only leaked through here, enough came through to soak into the plywood panel I used as a table top. Fortunately, the fir pulled out of the panel and stuck to the mahogany. That can be sanded off. It would have been unfortunate if the mahogany had pulled off.
Fortunately, a bit of sanding fixed it all up
Lessons learned:
- Epoxy makes a good veneer adhesive;
- Thickened epoxy is probably unnecessary for flat plywood, like okoume;
- Brushing on the epoxy puts too much on the surface; a roller would be better;
- Clamping helps ensure 100% contact while the epoxy cures, but it also pushes epoxy through the veneer if too much is applied; and
- A non-stick surface for the table would be much better than bare wood…a sheet of shrink wrap plastic might suffice.
That’s it for the veneer work on the V-berth cabinet. Now the panels have to go off to the paint shop and get coated with ICA base coat clear before I install them.
Next up in our 1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Final Dry-Fitting the Last V-berth Cabinet
1969chriscraftroamer46 