The tensile and flexural properties of new thermosetting composites made by the free radical polymerization Of a Conjugated soybean oil (CSO)-based resin reinforced with soy hulls have been determined for various resin compositions. The effects of reinforcement particle size and filler/resin ratio have been assessed. The thermal Stability of the new materials has been determined by thermogravimetric analysis and the wt % of oil incorporation has been calculated after Soxhlet extraction (the extracts have been identified by H-1-NMR spectroscopy). The resin consists initially of 50 wt % CSO and varying amounts of divinylbenzene (DVB; 5-15 wt %), dicyclopentadiene (DCPD; 0-10 wt %.), and n-butyl methacrylate (BMA, 25-35 wt %). Two soy hull particle sizes have been tested (<177 and <425 mu m) and two different filler/resin ratios have been compared (50 : 50 and 60 : 40). An appropriate Core sequence has been established by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis. The results show a decrease in the properties whenever DVB or BMA is substituted by DCPD. Also, larger particle sizes and higher filler/resin ratios are found to have a negative effect on the tensile properties of the new materials. (C) 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 112: 2033-2043, 2009