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I think what you are smelling is uncured resin. Most fiberglass resin products wont (quite) cure on the outside surface if just left in open air...leaving a sticky and ...as you've noticed smelly.
I've never used the stuff for this hobby, so I won't comment on it's safety.
There are several ways around this problem.
One way is to keep air from getting at the resin while it is still curing.
This can be accomplished in a number of ways. You could make and use a mold, use a vacum bag, or there is also a spray-on product that some people use to form a barrier.
The cheapest way is to simply sand off the uncured layer. Probably easier said than done for artificial rock...how would I sand something, and still have it look natural?
When I've used f-glass and bondo for my car-audio projects, I sand the layer off before painting. The smell usually goes down a lot after the piece is sanded and the dust cleaned off.
That being said, If the piece is to be painted, it probably should be sanded first, as I don't know how well the paint will stick to the uncured layer.
http://www.selectproducts.com/ Might have some materials, tools, and info that might be useful to you.
I've never used the stuff for this hobby, so I won't comment on it's safety.
There are several ways around this problem.
One way is to keep air from getting at the resin while it is still curing.
This can be accomplished in a number of ways. You could make and use a mold, use a vacum bag, or there is also a spray-on product that some people use to form a barrier.
The cheapest way is to simply sand off the uncured layer. Probably easier said than done for artificial rock...how would I sand something, and still have it look natural?
When I've used f-glass and bondo for my car-audio projects, I sand the layer off before painting. The smell usually goes down a lot after the piece is sanded and the dust cleaned off.
That being said, If the piece is to be painted, it probably should be sanded first, as I don't know how well the paint will stick to the uncured layer.
http://www.selectproducts.com/ Might have some materials, tools, and info that might be useful to you.
