I would catalyze the resin first at minimum 2 percent  using acurate scales then mix in the filler.  Mix a small batch and note the work time and set time. You may have to up the catalyst a bit more if it doesnt go off in reasonable time. Im no fibreglass expert but have fixed enough surfboards in my time. 

Takes alot longer to harden in winter than summer.

 Epoxy all the way every day if you want the job to last for a long time. Screw holes need to be countersunk before filling. 

 How is your small ship coming along ?

710 man hours in it over the last seven months Crano. All of the hard yards have been covered and I'm definitely on the home stretch, she's been an interesting can o worms to say the least. Here's a few interesting stats for you on my consumption of stuff so far.

80 kg of epoxy resin

65 meters of 450 gsm biaxial glass 

eight sheets of 12 mm marine ply 

two new 360 litre fuel tanks

500 blue nitrile gloves 

35 litres of paint

25 tongue depressors for epoxy filleting

100 plus foam rollers for epoxy work

50 50 mm brushes for epoxy work

one munted vacuum cleaner

150 ice cream containers for mixing epoxy

50 disposable paint tray liners

a stupid amount of paint rollers

300 m of various grades of garnet paper 40,60,80,120 grit

15 pairs of sanding gloves 

half a dozen multi tool blades

Its been a complete rebuild from the hulls up, the only original stuff are the two outboards and the fly by wire gear for them. Everything else was removed and binned, all the electronics,windows, wiring ,kitchen, decks got the flick leaving me with a ( very ) blank canvas. Not one part of the boat hasn't been touched and she's looking like a million dollars at the moment.

All going well she will be back in her pen in two to three weeks time. Doing all of thee cool shit now like installing water heaters, toilets and auto pilots and getting new clears and covers for the flybridge and rear deck.

Pretty sure this is going to be my last boat project for a while...... until the next one arrives on the back of a low loader! 

 That is mental. Couple of questions. Did you have any idea  you would have to go this far? Did you already have much glassing experience?

I have to admire your persistance.

 I had a choice between my Shark Cat (40k ) and a Gulfcraft ambassador ( 70 k ). The Gulfcraft was turn key yet it didn't quite have the room that I was looking for, in saying that neither did any other boat that my wife and I had crawled over in the last 12 months. The Shark Cat had more room than you could poke a stick at with a cabin up the front which now has a 2.1 x 2.5 m bed in it. A mid section with two 1.8 m couches which can sleep two extra folk and room enough for a kitchen split in two on either side, one side we've put in a 133 litre fridge and freezer with a 900x600 benchtop  and the other has got a massive sink and prep space with the same size bench top.Step outside onto the back deck which has a full hard top on it and I've built extended cabin sides under the roof awning for the flybridge. One side has got a gas hot water storage system and a gas cooktop with grill all living in a nice cabinet with a rubbish bin and the other side has a toilet and shower in a cubicle sitting under the ladder ( which was wasted space ) going to the flybridge. The rest of the back deck has been fitted out with two 250 litre wet lockers under the deck which drain into the bilges on either side. Go upstairs to the flybridge and there's seating for the skipper and two more people, step back off the flybridge deck and you're on the hard top for the rear deck. There's 400w of solar panels up here with a crane for my little 2.4m inflatable putt putt and storage space for her. 

This is my third complete boat rebuild project so far and I'm not too shabby with the fiberglass these days. A Penguin Phantom and a Farrier trimaran have had the Silver Fox treatment over the last ten years and they've both gone to good homes up here in the North. So I wasn't going into this one blindly ( I'm a sucker for a good project).

I had no idea that this project was going to be this big. But once you pull a rear deck and ribs out of a boat to fit new fuel tanks you're committed to a full makeover!

Would I choose the Gulfcraft over my Cat if I could go back in time?. Nope.

I was pissing and moaning to a mate the other day about buying a boat that was cosmetically good yet lacking sadly in other areas and he politely pointed out the fact that I could have spent 100k on a boat and still have had the same experience....

Bottom line is when you do a full no expense refit on a boat like this when it's done there's no saying " if only it had this or that " . It's got everything that you want, where you want it to be. I've done all the work myself apart from reglazing the windows, upholstery and motor services. This has saved me about 70k so far.

Ive always wanted a Shark Bay floating caravan that can do 30 kts and now I've got it!. Let me know next time you're heading through C'Von and I'll take you for a fang Crano...:)

Sounds awesome, chuck up some pics if you got time, would be great to see. 

Also, if you need a low loader(100t) for another job let me know, im sure the boss would do a cheap rate and id love to cart a big boat!

 I would love to see you start a new thread about this project with lots of pics. I am sure most people here would be very interested.

I have to admire someone seeing something like this through to the end. Will it be finished before the windy season starts?

Would love to have a look at it some time.

I'm not much of a photo man ( too busy f2@#$4g working to take piccies...:) I'm looking down the barrel of it being finished in the next week or three. Windy season Crano?!?. You need to toughen up! 
The big duck will eat the wind.