Hi All,
The old kit I purchased off eBay is making slow progress but the worst of it is done. Found I was highly allergic to the CA I used and after 3 weeks I'm still tight chested. The first time I tried planking the hull I put the nasal congestion and breathing problems down to sanding dust but by the second weekend I knew I had a problem with the glue.

As you can see from the photos I tried to pre-stain the king plank etc but this proved to be a waste of time and a big mistake. I just hope I can mask off the wood and use a steady hand to do it right next time.

I have to say the boat is typical of all things from that era - the peak of beauty and functionality.
Looking forward to getting it in the water this summer and growing another pair of lungs.

Cheers,
David

Kiwi David-I thought I would give you some incentive to get the finished and running. This is one sweet running model and handles just like the real deal.

As for the king plank and covering boards, I finished my with black paint after I had the build up of the polyurethane on the mahogany, then I over coated the black paint and the mahogany with a few more coats of the clear polyurethane, wet sanded and buffed out for the high gloss finish.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=437635

Hello,
Many thanks - that's much appreciated and I'll try to offer similar incentives to future builders I may be able help.
I have drooled over this and woodybob's boat for a while and hope to join this select club before long even if not up to the same standard.

Cheers,
David

David, I ended up in the ER due to the reaction also. This is the glue you need, Never had another issue after using this. No fumes at all.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXKAV9&P=0
Bruce

Hello Bruce,
That could be a real life saver.
I have never been troubled by glues, solvents etc before but this was/is an awful experience. Hope it's not too late to reverse the damage and make another boat using your prefered glue.

Cheers,
David

David,

Just because it doesn't smell don't count on not having a problem. After building several Dumas runabouts I can't even get near a drop of the stuff without having symptoms. I haven't found any adhesive that works better than ca so it's curtailed my building of these type of models.

Regards,

Ron

Hello Ron,
Yes I accept that no smell does not always equate to no damage and like yourself I was compelled to continue with the CA because of the ease of assembly when planking.
I'm relatively new to "woodies" and bought my first as a second hand boat about 18 months ago. (attached pic) This was when I learned that you couldn't just bog the mistakes and paint over with undercoat and top coat to hide it all. Even with balsa sheet hulls you could use any glue and hold it down to dry with a zillion pins.
I have used CA before to assemble a robot chassis and never noticed a problem but this was some "Happy Duck" brand from the local $2 shop. It worked well on some woods and not on others whereas the stuff I'm using now works on everything.
I'll certainly try the recommended glue and see how I react to it. It does offer assembly options that no other glue provides - fast drying, 15 second clamping time (fingers usually).

Cheers,
David

I hope no one thinks I am being funny when I say this, but why don’t you use a good full face respirator. They are the same type used by auto body shops when painting cars. I use a little cheaper one when we are sawing the mahogany veneer, because that to will raise hell with you.

A guy on one of the other boat sites is planking a Riva using carpenters yellow glue. He just pins the planks in place and it looks very well done.

Hi All,
Yes a respirator may be the way to go. I usually work in a double garage with the door up , the back door open and a fan on high right next to the work sucking the air away. It helps but is not the total answer.
Yellow aliphatic resin is my preference but it needs a couple of hours to go off and the mahogany on my kit was way too hard to pin so I used masking tape and a sandbag (fine kitty litter actually).

Mahogany dust a problem? Could this be why I was confused about what was affecting me. While I was gluing there was not much sanding going on so perhaps a bit of both. I'll keep aware of that as it's the first time I've used mahogany.

Cheers,
David

Frankg
Your suggestion of a respirator is great for solvents and styrene monmers (polyester resins), but I tried the one with the chemical filters and still had trouble breathing after using odorless ca. Had the fan running and the windows open as well. I really miss using ca glues as they are terrifiec.
Ron

Hi Ron,
That really does sound like extreme sensitivity but I suspect I'm in the same boat so to speak.
I've a few more bits of styrene I need to glue and I'm dreading doing them with the current glue I have and need to try the other brand suggested. I'll also take more care when sanding following revelations here.

Cheers,
David