Sanding the Fiberglass

After the third coat of epoxy dried, the next step was to sand the fiberglass smooth. Especially near the fiberglass tape and the double draped cloth towards the stern, the fiberglass had to be sanded down smooth to create the "glass" look. Starting with 80, 120, and 220 grit, the canoe felt smooth yet some of the cloth was nearly exposed after the sanding. So I mixed up another batch of epoxy, and spread it smooth over the entire canoe. Even though there were very small streak marks from spreading the epoxy, I decided that wet sandpapering the canoe would be futile because it would have to be done again. Also, I waited to apply Marine Varnish for the same reason. The canoe looked very "canoey" but I still had the entire interior of the canoe that needed to be finished.