We have restored small boats for decades and for fiberglass repairs often used WEST System 105 Epoxy Resin with 206 Slow Hardener. During our 2013 restoration of our 1953 wooden Sunfish ZIP we decided to finish the fir plywood hull bright, and our marine carpenter friend Keith suggested WEST System 207 Special Clear Hardener. We tried it and have been very pleased with the results, even seven years later. We used the 207 Special Clear Hardener and 105 Resin on our old plywood Sunfish. The 207 doesn't yellow like the other hardeners do. The two coats we applied in 2013 gave the boat lots of shine, and since it does not spend a lot of time in the sun, we skipped the UV varnish. It epoxy coating looked good for 7 years and I only sanded the boat down when I needed to apply a patch under the starboard splashboard. The old application of epoxy sanded easy and two new coats had the Sunfish looking grand again.
Photographs by the authors
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I have been using 207 hardener for years. I still sand it and apply varnish for a final coat as you can never get a perfectly smooth coat with epoxy. I no longer take chances with blush issues since I ruined a kayak due to blush.
I used West 207 to finish the mahogany marine plywood hull on my Sharpie Skiff. It’s been stored outdoors, and mostly uncovered, since July 2018, and still looks like new. A year after launching, I used 207 to touch up some dock rash, and laminate 8oz. glass on the bottom. Worked like a charm.
I used it on my sharpie skiff, and it still looks like new two and a half years on.
Under tropic conditions, it still hardens in less than 20 minutes. Great product, but be aware of that.
West Systems hardener selection guide makes no mention of yellowing properties. It advises to select hardener based on the amount of time you need to complete the work. This article confuses the issue, I no longer understand how to choose a hardener.
All of the hardeners are used for “general bonding, applying fabric, and barrier coating.” If you also want a clear finish, use 207. It will do all the other things if desired, but is more expensive.