Fiberglass Fish Failure

Well, over the weekend I attempted to cast the first fish in my new, 2 part bondo/resin fish mold.  Remember, I was very happy with how the mold turned out.  I followed Gary Bruschs' instructions and the mold came out just exactly like his articles showed in BreakThrough Magazine.

The rubber mold and cast of the interior of the fish mouth also worked out extremely well.  The detail is awesome.  This part was easier than I expected.    

As hard as it is to admit, the first fish casting was an complete failure, to the point that I may have rendered the mold unusable.  The fish came out of the mold in pieces.  Where did I go wrong?  If I had to guess, I would bet that I didn't wait long enough for the wax and release to dry before I started to apply the gel coat. I immediately noticed that as I applied the gel coat, it was not "sticking to the mold", each time I picked up the brush, up came the gel coat...I knew right away that I was in trouble.  Then, to make matter worse, the first layer of resin mixed in with the gelcoat.  I think I was supposed to wait for the gelcoat to cure before I added the straight resin layer?  Two layers of resin and some fiberglass chop....what a mess, it didn't apply or lay into the mold evenly.

I'm going to try to reclaim the mold, make some minor repairs and attempt to cast again this weekend.  I'm embarrassed to show you a picture of the failed fish casting until I can show it next to a casting that I'm proud to put my name on, Murphy's Fish Taxidermy.

Obviously, the YouTube videos and the articles in BreakThrough Magazine leave out some minor details regarding casting a fish. I questioned how long to wait after waxing the mold?: How much catalyst to add?;  do I let each layer cure before adding the next? 

After this weekends re-attempt, I will share with you where I went wrong and try and include some of these very minor details that will make a big difference in your success if you attempt to mold and cast a fish.