Wood filler

[risoam]

I am building a 12' cedar strip boat. I am new to boat building. Though i've made many mistakes along the way so far, it is coming out fairly well. I have some areas where there is a small gap between the strips, and also a gap where the strips meet the transom and am looking for the best filler to use. I have thought about using wood glue mixed with sanding dust from the cedar. Is there anything better or recommended? Thanks.

[Bruce Hooke]

If by cedar strip you mean the type where the strips are glued together with epoxy then the obvious filler would be epoxy with some filler in it to make it thick. If the fill needs to be structural then you can use some high-strength filler, otherwise some lightweight filler would do fine and be easier to fair.

[Thorne]

More info needed. "Cedar strip" could be one of several building techniques, so be specific.

As Bruce says above, if this is the technique where you cover thin strips of cedar with light fiberglass and epoxy, then some thickened epoxy should do the trick. Using cedar sawdust to color as well as thicken it would be a good idea.

[JimConlin]

The filler should be epoxy-based.
Using only the dust of the planking wood will finish much darker than the strips. I use a mix of sanding dust and quartz microspheres which are white. Getting the proportions right takes some experimentation.

[David G]

As Jim says. But - keep in mind that a filled area almost always looks better (reads less like a patch) when it is darker than the surrounding wood. So... err in that direction.

[AndreasJordahlRhude]

Famowood