Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Eagle , joining anything can be done in so many ways ... boggles the mind ... Which one is better ??? Seems not to matter as much with the Skin being the strength ... Sure dowels and such would be stronger , but how much is really needed ... ?
In one of my other pursuits , Archery , a friend made a bow out of dominoes with just a sinew skin (backing ) made from “harvestedâ€

on that one link i posted, they have "nails/tacks" whatever they are called for foam. pretty cool.

'Came across this web site the other night. It should be useful for background info and such.

http://www.epsfoampro.com/

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo

'Just noticed that loaderman posted these links on the 'Cardboard Skin' thread and I
felt they'd be usefully 'preserved' here on the sticky about web sites w/ info ... .

They are for a surfboard repair site but it has good useful info we can use on Foamies.

I thought the EPS covered w/ a thin PVC foam then the fiberglass-n-epoxy was an
interesting set-up.

'Thanx' loaderman for the link(s):

http://www.boardlady.com/index.htm
http://www.boardlady.com/sandwich.htm
http://www.boardlady.com/trailer.htm

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo

eaglesdare wrote:hey mel, i am not sure if its been tried here yet or not (i just can't remember) but, have or could you do a test with the gorilla glue and the hot wire foam fushion glue?

i watched the vid of the guy testing that against wood glues. the guy had to really use some power to seperate the foam using that foam glue. was curious about gg.
i don't think gg is as good at all, because i can peel it right off when i get too much on my foam. but i never tried to really seperate any pieces once it has cured.

i am leaning towards using the hot wire foam fushion glue, but am still curious about the gg.

i do have a piece out back that i think has gg on it, i may go out and look. but its too cold right now.

I set up samples of 2" foam and glued one set of samples with GG, the other with the Hot Wire Foam Factory's Foam Fusion.

Here's the pic of the end to end joint






In front is the GG, In the rear is the FF

I let these samples cure for 36 hours and then put downward pressure on the joint until it failed. You can see that on the joint made with GG, the foam failed, on the FF joint, it came apart at the glue. After 36 hours the FF glue had not yet cured. It was still damp. On tests I had done previously with the FF on 1" foam pieces the glue had cured and the foam failed, the joint did not.

I do not recall with certainty, but I believe that I let the FF glue for much longer ( a few days) and at a higher temperature. It's probably mid 50 in the room I worked in. I may go out again and repeat the FF test and let it cure longer and let it cure in the warm part of the house.

So with certainty I can say that GG makes a good edge to edge joint. It also foams as it cures, so be ready to do some clean up while it cures

I also have face to face samples and corner joint samples that I am going to let cure longer before I test the bond to destruction. I'll post those results mid week

Sorrry, don't know why the image doesn't show. I'll work on it and see if I can fix that issue

thanks mel, i appreciate it.

I have to write a cheat sheet for images...

But in a nut shell...

The only time you can copy and paste the URL out of the browser address bar, is when only the picture is showing.

The better and safer way to do it is to copy the Image URL from the field on that page...



Mike...

Thanks Mike

I promised that after working with Foam Factory's styroplast that I would post pics and my thoughts. Here goes: I love the fact that Styroplast makes a very smooth and flexible surface. I did not detect any odors while working with this stuff and I took normal standard precautions (gloves and eye protection). The gloves are a good idea just because Styroplast can be a bit messy to work with, the eye protection a good idea just because...

Unfortunately I found it impossible to get an even finish with the Stryoplast. I tried to brush it on and tried to use trowels and the like and only came away unhappy. If you could spray your entire trailer at one time, you could be on to something but otherwise I think it is too difficult to get that even surface.

Below is the photo that I took when trying to coat a sample of the wall/ceiling joint curve using the "trowel" method.



You will notice the coat is very uneven. What you won't see is how smooth it is.

If anyone at the HWFF wants to give me other application ideas, please let me know. I had really high hopes for the product!!! I still think that under the proper conditions and using the proper methods of application, it could work well for you.

For me, I'm thinking that I will finish the exterior by wrapping my foam in a fiberglass cloth sock and coat with a thickened epoxy to get the smooth finish. A bit of sanding here and there to touch up the imperfections, then paint over the epoxy for UV inhibition and I should be good to go.

Now if my shoulder would hurry and heal, I could get back to work on the Road Foamie.

Thanks for the Test !!! That says a LOT !!! Your plan sounds really Good , hope your shoulder gets better soon !!!

Did they not send you any foam coat and bounce to try out?

I tried both the Bounce with Foam Coat and the Boost with Foam Coat. I liked the finish on both. (remember to "tap" the object being coated to help level the coat) They both stick like crazy so I doubt that delamination would be any issue. The HWFF recommended the Boost with Foam Coat for our application because it is a bit more forgiving (flexes better). The Foam Coat is a concrete based product so the weight may be an issue. Somewhere back in this thread I think I posted photos.

Keeping it to a minimum thickness and directly on the foam might make it only slightly heavier than a canvas/glue setup as canvas in different varieties can be rather heavy in itself. If its that sticky with the bounce added then directly on foam dry and paint seems rather simple now question is can it be applied vertically at all or does it have to be horizontal?

atahoekid wrote:

eaglesdare wrote:hey mel, i am not sure if its been tried here yet or not (i just can't remember) but, have or could you do a test with the gorilla glue and the hot wire foam fushion glue?

i watched the vid of the guy testing that against wood glues. the guy had to really use some power to seperate the foam using that foam glue. was curious about gg.
i don't think gg is as good at all, because i can peel it right off when i get too much on my foam. but i never tried to really seperate any pieces once it has cured.

i am leaning towards using the hot wire foam fushion glue, but am still curious about the gg.

i do have a piece out back that i think has gg on it, i may go out and look. but its too cold right now.

I set up samples of 2" foam and glued one set of samples with GG, the other with the Hot Wire Foam Factory's Foam Fusion.

Here's the pic of the end to end joint






In front is the GG, In the rear is the FF

I let these samples cure for 36 hours and then put downward pressure on the joint until it failed. You can see that on the joint made with GG, the foam failed, on the FF joint, it came apart at the glue. After 36 hours the FF glue had not yet cured. It was still damp. On tests I had done previously with the FF on 1" foam pieces the glue had cured and the foam failed, the joint did not.

I do not recall with certainty, but I believe that I let the FF glue for much longer ( a few days) and at a higher temperature. It's probably mid 50 in the room I worked in. I may go out again and repeat the FF test and let it cure longer and let it cure in the warm part of the house.

So with certainty I can say that GG makes a good edge to edge joint. It also foams as it cures, so be ready to do some clean up while it cures

I also have face to face samples and corner joint samples that I am going to let cure longer before I test the bond to destruction. I'll post those results mid week

I have a feeling you used too much Foam Fusion Glue and that's why it was still damp after 36 hours. The Foam Fusion glue is made to dry even without air. If you are using a nonporous foam like the pink foam, then it might take an extra long time to dry, but if it is put on too thick this will greatly impede the drying time. Less is more with this glue.