This rather uninteresting picture is of some 2 oz chopped strand mat and I include it in response to an e mail from an On Board reader who asked what was the best weight mat to use with epoxy. The quick answer is none of them.
Binders are used when the mat is made to hold it all together which dissolve when used with polyester resins. If you have ever used polyester resin you will never forget the smell, that smell is styrene and it is also the thing that dissolves the binders. Epoxy does not contain styrene which makes it more pleasant to work with but it also means that it is incompatible with CSM. I repeat that epoxy should not be used with chopped strand mat.
Chopped strand mat is most often used in production boat building to 'bulk up' the initial layers and is next to the mold and prevents print through of the woven and knitted fabrics.
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