Lamicor in boatbuilding

Ryan · Post by **Ryan** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 8:44 am

Has anyone here had any experience with Lamicor (made by NVF Corp.) sheets? From everything I can gather, it is a polyester/fiberglass product that is used for electrical insulation. I have the opportunity to get a pallet load of 1/4" thick, 4'x8' sheets. I'd like to use this in place of plywood for some interior projects, particularly because of moisture/rot resistance, but I have no experience with it other than the aforementioned electrical uses. It is a horrible red color, but I see no reason that it can be painted.

Post by **Tim** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 9:35 am

I don't know that much about insulating/electrical fiberglass products, but I will bet you this: it's very heavy. Do consider the weight factor if using this product. I bet it's significantly heavier than plywood.

Also, the 1/4" thickness will lack sufficient rigidity to use on its own, forcing the need for a framework or additional stiffening. Suddenly, what seems like a good deal might actually become false economy.

None of this is cast in stone or unequivical in truth; just some general thoughts off the cuff.

Post by **CapnK** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 9:52 am

I Googled it, couldn't find any photos or written descriptions of the stuff, did see a MSDS for one grade that stated its Specific Gravity was 1.8. What is it used for? I'm trying to think of a way to use 4x8' sheets of electrical insulation, but I'm not coming up with much. :) I saw that it is fire resistant - is that what it is used for perhaps?

As an aside, you've reminded me talk to my surfboard-making friend about whether he can get sheet polyurethane for me at a good price. I get West epoxy from him for $40/gal, and since he buys polyester resin in 55 gal drums, that is even much cheaper. Polyester might not be good below the waterline outside the boat, but I've considered using it in building internal parts for the boat. 1/2" foam sandwich would be considerably lighter than 1/2" ply, and easily engineered to be as stiff (or stiffer).

Ryan · Post by **Ryan** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 11:15 am

I haven't put much thought into the weight issue, mostly because the price of free was staring me in the face! I had considered laminating multiple 1/4" sheets to provide sufficent thickness/stiffness, but that makes the weight problem even more substantial.

FYI, we use the sheets to provide barriers between high voltage electrical gear (2.4kV+) and the common low voltage stuff you see everyday (120, 208, 277, 480V).

Post by **Tim** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 11:42 am

Fiberglass is not light, at best. I think a laminated sheet of several 1/4" thicknesses might be ridiculously heavy. I bought some premanufactured pieces of fiberglass to use for seacock backing plates, and was amazed at the weight of the 12"x12"x1/2" sections.

Still, for free, you might grab the stuff anyway. It'll be good for making backing plates (ad nauseum, if you have a pallet load...), smaller bits, and so forth. But I don't think it's practical to use as interior parts, unless you can use the 1/4" thickness alone.

Here're some technical data for GP03 electrical fiberglass.

Fiberglass Technical Data

Mechanical
Tensile Stress, LW D638 PSI 30,000
Tensile Stress, CW D638 PSI 7,000
Tensile Modulus, LW D638 PSI 2,500,000
Tensile Modulus, CW D638 PSI 800000
Compressive Stress, LW D695 PSI 30,000
Compressive Stress, CW D695 PSI 15,000
Compressive Modulus, LW D695 PSI 2,500,000
Compressive Modulus, CW D695 PSI 1,000,000
Flexural Stress, LW D790 PSI 30,000
Flexural Stress, CW D790 PSI 10,000
Flexural Modulus, LW D790 PSI 1,600,000
Flexural Modulus, CW D790 PSI 800,000
Modulus of Elasticity Full Section PSI 2,600,000
Parallel Compressive Shear Stress LW D3846 PSI 3000
Shear Modulus, LW ----------- PSI 425000
Short Beam Shear, LW D2344 PSI 4,500
Bearing Stress, LW D953 PSI 30,000
Poisson's Ratio, LW D3039 in/in 0.33
Notched Izod Impact, LW D256 ft-lbs/in 25
Notched Izod Impact, CW D256 ft-lbs/in 4
Notched Izod Impact, CW D256 J/mm 0.214

Physical
Hardness D2583 45m
24 hr Water Absorbtion D570 % Max 0.6
Density D792 lbs/in3 .062-.070
Coefficiant of Thermal Expansion, LW D696 10-6 in/in?F 4.4
Thermal Conductivity C177 Btu-in/hr- ft 2 -?F 4
0.58

Electrical
Arc Resistance, LW D495 Seconds 120
Dielectric Strength, LW D149 KV/in 35
Dielectric Strength, PF D149 volts/mil 200

Flammability 1/16" UL94 VO
Tunnel Test E-84 25 Max
NBS Smoke Chamber E-662 650-700