Category Archives: Weird & Wonderful

Wood & Epoxy Car


Courtesy of Wessex Resins & Adhesives, Romsey, England

Peter Warner has always been interested in old cars. Late in 1990, he saw an old Citroen 2CV in a car scrap yard. After some negotiation, he paid about <£60 to have the “donor” vehicle delivered to his home. He wanted only the chassis, tires, wheels and the steering column. The old body was collected and taken back to the scrap yard one week later as part of the £60 deal. Continue reading

Pedal Boat

Bass Straight Crossing in a Pedal Boat

On December 13, 1996, Stuart Andrew became the first person to cross the Bass Straight alone in a pedal boat. On completing this goal he remarked, “I’d never do it again. I’d never think of doing it again. My legs feel like big lumps of wood, my eyes are stinging, but I’ve finally made it.” The following article was published by Epoxyworks in Fall 1996, a few months before Andrews made his record breaking journey in a 7.45 meter pedal boat constructed of Durakore® and WEST SYSTEM® Epoxy.

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An Air Cushioned Launcher

By Captain James R. Watson

I thought Jan Gougeon’s idea of an air-cushioned boat launcher was crazy at first. Then I thought if I could build a platform narrow enough to fit between the hulls of my catamaran, low enough to fit under the beams and powerful enough to lift the entire catamaran, it would be feasible to levitate the boat over yard, beach, sand bars, virtually anywhere. Continue reading

Restoration of a Figurehead

By Allan Eugene Mechen

The 200-year-old wooden figurehead from the ship H.M.S. UNITE’ was in a serious state of rot in March of 1994 when restoration experts began work to save her. They completed the painstaking process in October, 1994.

Examining the figurehead on site, we saw that it had been previously sheathed in fiberglass. This was probably done because the 200 year old timber could no longer be maintained using conventional methods and materials. Continue reading

Plaque on the Figurehead of the HMS UNITE'

A Brief History of the H.M.S. Unite’

The title signed on the figurehead repaired with WEST SYSTEM® products and featured in Restoration of a Figurehead in Epoxyworks #6, gives the following history of her host ship:

H.M.S. UNITE’
Fifth rate frigate ~ 38 guns
Captured from the French in 1794
Previously named Imperieuse. Renamed Unite’ in 1803
Was in three Successful Actions against the
French, on 1st May, 4th July and 29th Nov 1811
Converted for use as a Convict Hospital Ship in 1836
Broken up at Chatham in 1858.

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Big Shoe Repair

by The Restoration Clinic staff

The Restoration Clinic of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. completed major repairs on the Cartagena Shoes statue, a pair of seven foot by four foot shoes weighing one ton each. In Coral Gables’ Cartagena Plaza near the University of Miami, the shoes are a well-known fixture. They were smashed by a falling tree during Hurricane Andrew, and appeared to have been ruined. One shoe was broken into several large pieces, and the other was crushed. Continue reading

Home-Built Station Wagon

By Grace Ombry

Bill Dauser couldn’t find an automobile to suit his needs, so he designed this home-built station wagon himself, using epoxy, among other things.

The Muskegon, Michigan carpenter welded two Eldorado front ends back-to-back to create the frame. This arrangement allowed for front-wheel drive and four-wheel independent suspension. The auto also has four-wheel disc brakes and a Buick 231 V6 engine. Continue reading

The Whalebone Arch after restoration with WEST SYSTEM Epoxy. The monument, built in 1933, stand outside the Christ Church Cathedral in Stanley, Falkland Islands.

Restoring the Whalebone Arch

Courtesy of John Smith

Epoxyworks 1

Cover Photo: The Whalebone Arch is a historic monument in the Falkland Islands, restored with WEST SYSTEM Epoxy.

The problem of how to restore two tons of decaying whalebone daunted John Smith, curator of the Falkland Islands Museum in Stanley. The Falkland Islands Company had built an arch of four enormous blue whale jawbones to commemorate the Centenary Celebrations in 1933. Fifty-eight years later, the logistics of restoring the historic monument added up to a whale of a headache. Continue reading