HELP! fiberglass issues on the hull.

natchalkley · #1 01-11-2008, 10:46 PM

So today I started to grind off the delam on the hull. the problem can be seen here:

http://www.classicseacraft.com/forum...b=5&o=&fpart=1

It was advertised as only cosmetic damage, so I wanted to make sure that I got any and all glass off that was delaminating before I started laying up new glass. I kept grinding the last piece that came off exposed the inner most layer of woven roving that is not exactly structurally sound.

my question is: can I grind back all of the bad glass and just float the new stuff over the place where it is bad? If so, is this something that could be permanent solution, or is it something that I will need to open stuff up next year and repair it from the inside. I dont really have time right now to do a full job right now( take deck out and do it from the inside). I currently at my folks house working on the boat full time and not working elsewhere, so I will probably run out of money pretty soon if I dont go back to work soon.

I will try to post pictures tomorrow if I have time. I got my next batch of epoxy and need to put the second stringer back in and finish tabbing in the transom as well as the last layer of glass.

natchalkley · #2 01-12-2008, 05:50 PM

[image]http://s255.photobucket.com/albums/hh135/natchalkley/?action=view&current=DSCF0562.jpg[/image]

vcs · #3 01-12-2008, 10:16 PM

Bigshrimpin · #4 01-13-2008, 04:46 AM

Yikes!! That's going to be a tough to repair . . . Those curves are tricky. You almost need to be an artist to fix that repair . . . Use epoxy and some type of flexible board material (1/8 hardboard) to support the glass after you laminate . . . do section at a time . . . That's quite a challenging project. If you flip the hull it'll be much much easier. Repairing from the outside is perfectly acceptable.

Here's my ideas for fixing that area with the complex curves . . . Find someone on cape there who will allow you to pull a mold off a portion of the bow of their hull . . . don't make the mold too stiff 4 layers of glass max . . . so it's still flexible.

Drill a bunch little holes in your hull 1/4" bit (in the area you are repairing. Lay a bunch of glass into the flexible mold . . . wet out the busted area. Line the mold with the wet glass up with the lines of your hull . . . drop it on. Work the mold back and forth gently until you think you got it lined up perfectly and that any air pockets are gone. Let the repair harden. Pop the mold off and fair out any imperfections. I've never done a repair like that before but I'm sure it would work and save hundreds of hours sanding and shaping.

The long repair area is pretty easy to fix . . . Just build it up. Get some glass the right width and laminate away.

JohnB · #5 01-13-2008, 09:21 PM

That has to be one of the worst I have seen yet.
I have seen some with many surface delams, where it got between the first layer of glass, and the second.
Was there water in these? Did the boat have bottom paint on it, or spend a lot of time in the water/at the dock?

As for how to fix it, the snap mold method described above seems like the only thing I could think of. Make sure you use a lot of pva release agent.

natchalkley · #6 01-14-2008, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Was there water in these? Did the boat have bottom paint on it, or spend a lot of time in the water/at the dock?

As for how to fix it, the snap mold method described above seems like the only thing I could think of. Make sure you use a lot of pva release agent.

the previous owner said that he had hit something one day on the water and it put a pinhole in it. It obviously put a LOT more than a pinhole it it. I took off the "surface" repair that he had done and found that in fact that all of the glass under the front of the delam was severely fractured, and was probably holding lots of moisture. Instead of grinding off all the bad stuff like he should have, he tried to cover it up with Polyester resin and fiberglass cloth. the leftover moisture in the other fractured glass(which was not at all structurally sound) combined with his poor surface prep resulted in it coming off again.

I will probably end up using the mold method after I get the spot structurally sound. I ended up having to gring through about 8 layers of glassto get it to a point that I am comfortable put new stuff on.

Lesson Learned: If there is more than just gelcoat blistering type spots that are delaminating, then there is probably something that is seriously wrong with the hull. Long story short: I GOT HOSED ON THIS BOAT.

I will be sure to keep yall posted.

JohnB · #7 01-14-2008, 04:06 PM

Sorry to hear about the apparent "hosing".
The reason I asked is I always try to find a "root" cause when fixing something, so I don't have to fix it again. It appears your boat was the victim of Capt Crunch

. I have seen delamination in boats that didn't have a "sealer" on the bottom, and water came through pinholes/etc, and blistered, but those rarely get through the second lamination. That stuff is hard to find without a moisture meter, and even with that, sometimes it's hard to discover on curved surfaces.

Billybob · #8 01-14-2008, 09:24 PM

Here's the ad for the boat:

http://www.classicseacraft.com/forum...b=5&o=&fpart=1

Does this make you think it's cosmetic?

Did I say there was a pinhole, how the hell is a pinhole gonna cause the bottom to delam? When it first happened, I said I did a crappy job fixing it.

Dude, if you think you bought a 23 Seacraft with gelcoat blisters for 5k on that trailer with that power, don't consider it hosed.

You bought a project, maybe you got in over your head, but you didn't get hosed.

thehermit · #9 01-14-2008, 09:46 PM

Quote:

You bought a project, maybe you got in over your head, but you didn't get hosed.

Billybob, I would have to agree. I thought you were clear that the boat needed work and that your repair was not ready to go the distance and needed to be re-done. I thought you listed the boat with a very fair price and wish I could have moved on it.

Bigshrimpin · #10 01-14-2008, 11:29 PM

The trailer, motor, and rigging are worth 5k . . . there's no hosing. Don't panic . . . it's totally fixable! You just have to put that grinder away . . . and focus on building a mold. Practice on a few things . . . use gelcoat Mat and cheap polyester for the mold. I have a Tub of mold release wax "part all". If you send me your address . . . I'll mail you a tupperware tub full.

If you decide you want out of the boat w/o motor, trailer, and rigging. PM me.