South Florida Bluewater Build.

    Quote from Reefchief

    I was wondering the same thing dan. I wonder if anyone has any experience with the two? I was hoping that as long as the epoxy stayedoff the wood surface it where it would be oiled it would be fine. I wont cry if the gun ends up epoxied. But im gonna have to beg Xan to tell me his glassy finish magic.


    Also I just realized I should have put magnets in the track. Damnit!


    I almost asked if you did,,, no biggie

    Scupper Pro Gives You Wings!

    What's stopping you from adding magnets? Anyways the layer of epoxy between the magnet and the bottom of the track should be minimal. Cut the track, drill the magnet hole 1/16" deeper than the magnet, put in the magnet and add a drop of epoxy on top.

    The magnets I was planning on using are wide flat neodynium magnets. .5 x 1/6 pancakes. But I could use smaller taller ones like you're talking about.

    Quote from Dan

    What's stopping you from adding magnets? Anyways the layer of epoxy between the magnet and the bottom of the track should be minimal. Cut the track, drill the magnet hole 1/16" deeper than the magnet, put in the magnet and add a drop of epoxy on top.


    Exactly what I was thinking

    i like to spear fish

    I tried to see if I could fill just the spaces around the mech but it was basically not possible so I instead just filled the entire pocket back in with epoxy. Going to cut it back out with the router. This time since my mech is .50 it will slide right in like butter. Its also going to look really good finished with the track leading into the black edges around the mech.

    The secret to a good finish is OCD. Seriously though, the key is in the prep. The cleaner the surface and the better you prep it the better the finish. Keeping the surface oil free is extremely important. Then minimizing the dust in the room is all thats left.


    It takes a lot of sanding and a lot of patience. I think I put a total of 12 coats on my gun. You only need 3-6 for a waterproof barrier. After the first 4 I wasnt happy with the finish so I sanded it almost back to bare and started over. Then someone told me a brush would be better so I tried that and found a bristly in the epoxy the next morning and that took a bit to sand out. I would recommend the expensive foam brushes at west marine. They sell cheap ones at home depot but they start to degrade after a few minutes and leave flecks of foam in the finish. It took a while but in the end I think it was worth it.

    What grit did you use between coats? Im probably going to epoxy because of the track pocket etc.


    I have a shower in a bathroom thats unused I can paint the gun in. Thanks for the info.

    I think I used 220 between coats and 180 for the initial prep sanding. Since your using teak I would recommend rubbing the blank with acetone half an hour before the first coat. Make sure the blank no longer smells like acetone before you start. After youve rubbed the blank with acetone wear latex gloves whenever you handle the blank.


    When I moved mine to the bathroom I started getting better results. I pulled all the rugs ran hot water till the bathroom was steamed up and then let everything cool, dry and settle. Then ran the fan to evacuate the fumes while I applied the epoxy.

    Thanks for more good info.


    Any tips on planing the blank flat again? Im thinking of a few different methods but they all seem pretty darn tedious (like plunging with a hand router over and over)


    Im also planning a 2x.5 slot for 4 5/8 bands. Does anyone have any input on this size? With epoxy will this be too small on the bands?

    Woke up early. Knocked out the handle before work. Still Needs some sanding but I'm very happy with how it feels. Will have room for lead too.


    Looking really nice buddy. That is so cool to see the same grain in a perpendicular juxtaposition.


    I have always been a big fan of taking in the grain if an entire piece. Like a table or book shelf or cabinets. The craftsman uses, intentionally or by accident, the grains to make a pattern. Sometimes you get a loud mess and it is turbulent and noisy and sometimes a beautiful flow emerges.


    You have achieved the latter!

    i like to spear fish

    Thanks Judah, I think the grain and Lams going perpendicular at the angle of the handle gives it really nice effect. On the gun it looks even better since the tones of the teak match perfectly.

    Thanks :D Right now its just being held on by the register pins that stick out of the Speardiver handle. Im not quite sure yet how Im going to attach it in the end. Maybe epoxy, There are some holes in the handle so it could be bolted too.


    Im totally with you on the woodworking thing. Thats why I woke up and went right for the handle. Although its just as important to know when enough is enough. My mech pocket knows that all too well.

    Quote from Dan

    Well done. You've given new meaning to "over pour". What I've seen others do runs all over the top of the blank. This is going to turn out sweet.


    I'm not sure how teak oil combines with an epoxy track. An epoxy coating is a natural companion to an epoxy track stock.


    I have done a Teak oil finish on my all teak gun, with a poured West Systems Epoxy/graphite track.
    It has been in duty since 04/2012. It has seen service in the Keys, In Mexico, and Locally. But not lots of water time.


    So far perfect condition with ZERO sign of delamination or cracking. Just like lamination of a teak blank, break the grain with course sandpaper or cross gouge with a sharp tool. Before the track pour I even made some small divots with a drill.


    Seen here: http://spearfishing.world/spea…losed-track-teak-gun.html
    Originally a very slightly ET, then opened up to an open track

    Dustan Baker

    For the handle I used wooden dowels through the speardiver handle holes and just epoxied them into drilled holes on the handle sides. If you don't drill too deep they will never protrude or be seen. Epoxy the whole thing together for a slick hardware-less look :)

    Thanks for the tip I like that and its what Ill do. I dont really need to hide weight in the handle either. I can just put it in the back of the gun and it will be hidden by the rubber butt pad.


    For the front of the gun. Now that I think I am going to epoxy coat it I plan to do a poured led slug with clear epoxy over it. Would be cool to do some letting inside too, but idk how I could achieve it.


    I really like the look of teak, but becuase of the track, and also after bumping and scratching this blank up working on it I think an epoxy finish is a better long term solution. The damage will be to the coating not the wood. I dont mind doing a bajillion ADD coats and sanding wishihadgills style to get a nice finish. I was mostly anti-epoxy becuse of all the horrible globjobs ive seen.

    Quote from Reefchief

    Dan pointed out to me. The mech just needed to be squared a little bit more. I could have saved myself the trouble if I had just bent it a smidgen to .50. A few smacks with a hammer and thats it.


    I guess I was just too excited to flex my chisel skills :rolleyes1:


    You had to smack your mech with a hammer?

    Dustan Baker

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