1977 Cruisers hole in hull

[pete s]

A bad end to salmon fishing trip last Friday. Going to start repair this weekend. Just want to run my plan of attack by here, any suggestions welcome to improve my idea. Going to start by grooving out the cracks to get the hull as close as possible back to where it was. Thinking two layers of 1708 on the inside and fill outside with thickened epoxy then gel and paint. Thanks

 

[mattsmall1972]

No suggestion, just a comment. Holy sh_t! How did you do that?

 

[Woodonglass]

Uhmm NO!! It's gunna take a bit more than that I suspect!!! Got any pics of the inside??

 

[DeepBlue2010]

That is one hell of a "hole", sorry to hear about that ma8. This is not a gelcoat crack that lends itself to the "grooving out" technique. It is - IMHO - major damage to the hull. The fix will be much more involving than what you have described.

I would first check with my insurance company, if you have good policy and low deductable, it might be good time to use them.

But BEFORE you do this, be aware that some insurance companies are obligated to report the incident even if you elect not to file a claim. They will put the incident in your records to begin with. Check with your agency before you talk to them about an actual incident.

Also, get an estimate from at least two good and reputable marine service facilities. Some insurance policies will pay you the choice of

1. Pay you x% (about 75-80%) of the estimate and you handle the rest (this also means that you can do it yourself using your insurance money)
2. They will handle all payments to it can only be paid to the marine service facility not you.

If you decide to do it yourself, let us know, we can talk you though it but the results will be as good as you execute the steps, of course.

BTW, you can't use gelcoat on top of epoxy. If you are going to gel at the end, you have to use poly resin

 

[Scott Danforth]

thats a serious gash. more like a grind a bunch on the inside, gut away the strip of ripped fiberglass, grind away a bunch on the outside and repair. the repair area looks to be about 3' tall and at least 6' long

by the looks of the picture, you have a cuddy, in that case, the compartments on the inside will probably need to be removed to properly repair the hull, then they can be re-glassed in.

 

[Bondo]

No suggestion, just a comment. Holy sh_t! How did you do that?

Ayuh,..... Ditto,........ Green buoy,..??..??

 

[pete s]

No Title

I am going to do the repair myself. The hole measures 1 foot tall by 3 feet long pic was somewhat deceiving. I do have a cuddy it did not go through to the inside. I am going to start by removing the interior ect from the cabin, then cutting the inner fiberglass liner out on that side. Was then going to use a cut off wheel going along the "cracks" removing the ripped glass then grinding the inside and outside of the hull with a 36 grit disc. From there starting with re glassing it in.

Going to go with poly resin for the repair. Is 1708 suitable for this application? I have done glass work in the past, gutted 20 foot, all new stringers floor. Thanks again

 

[Scott Danforth]

based on the hole and the displaced surface, it did go thru to the interior. otherwise you have one heck of a delamination issue.

1708 may be a bit overkill, however based on what I see, you will also be using multiple layers of CSM.

My guess is you will have about 60-120 hours in repairing it depending on how easy the interior tub come apart.

 

[Woodonglass]

The repair can be done. Once you get the interior demo'd and we can see the extent of the fractured glass on the inside and what the total extent of the damage actually is, we can give better guidance as to how to proceed with the repairs. IMHO it's to early to give proper advice.

 

[DeepBlue2010]

What he said ^^^^. Take a lot of pictures from inside and some closeups

 

[pete s]

Well after years in storage and 3 boats later I decided to get this one going again. Took everyone’s advice and cut out all the “dead” glass. It has 2 layers of 1708 from the inside and one on outside. Hoping to get good run at it today I’ll post pics tonight.

 

[kcassells]

Yea the liner inside concealed the damage to the outer hull. Well whats the scoop? What did happen to the boat.
Now it's a hole.
Looks like the liner intact..did you cut it out to add glass on the inside of the hull.?

 

[Scott Danforth]

Looking good. You may need to regel or paint the whole hull

 

[pete s]

Yeah I am planning on painting the entire hull with base/clear.

 

[pete s]

Yeah I am planning on painting the entire hull with base/clear. I did cut the liner in the cabin to gain access to the hole from the inside. Unfortunately I seem to have taken no pictures . I just tabbed the cut out back in place and covered with carpet. Easy finish work lol

 

[kcassells]

Well nice job and you saved yourself alot of $$$$ Keep posting. Looks good.

 

[kcassells]

Bag the clear. From what I've heard it's a nightmare to repair just a scratch. Never matches up.

 

[Scott Danforth]

I wouldnt do base/clear. as kcassells stated, its a pain to repair. However it is your boat

We use Axalta coatings (Dupont Imron) at work which is a fantastic product,easy to repair....... however even with my discount, I cant afford red (at $250 a quart), so I am going gel on my '88 Cruisers. it will cost me a total of $300 for materials to re-do the entire cockpit/hull in White, Red and Grey gel

 

[pete s]

I’ve never worked with gel on a large scale project. I’m going to look into gel now. Sounds like it would be cheaper than base clear.

 

[pete s]

Can’t get other pics to upload for whatever reason. After kitty hair build up for the hull line just have to block it. Should be ready for finishing this week!