Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

PiratePast40

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Mar 21, 2009
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Like the title says, I ground all the way through the hull. I was trying to cut out a 6" wide piece of 1/2 " plywood they had in the bilge from just forward of the engine compartment to the transom. Thought I would just run the saw up the sides but slipped on one cut and then slipped with the grinder a few minutes later. Here's a few pictures. The cuts are about 2" an 4" long.
P1010079.jpg
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P1010078.jpg
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So how do I fix the holes? Cover them from the bottom with something slippery (waxed) and then pour resin and then mat from the inside? I can get to the spots from underneath to do the outside if necessary.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Oh - something else I should mention. This area is painted (?) gray and has a different consistancy than the transom and stringers. It looks suspiciously like bondo over mat. If it is, I suspect I'll need to remove all of it. Believe it or not, I can get a pry bar under it and separate it from the hull. Is it a good idea to remove all of the gray stuff covering the engine compartment bilge area?
 

zach103

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Mar 11, 2008
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

the way i did it. was marine tex on the outside of the hull . than on the inside two layers of glass
 

PiratePast40

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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

I just did a quick search for MariTex -it's an epoxy product and I'm planning on using poly for the transom and stringer replacements. Since I'm going to be mixing plenty of poly, is it allright to just use that for the repair? Since the slots are about 1/8" wide, do I still need to make them larger or can I just clean them up with acetone like I plan on doing for the other bonds I'll be doing? The only reason I'm asking is that I don't know if it's really advantageous to get an epoxy product since I'll be mixing plenty of poly.

Thanks
 

83mulligan

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Feb 7, 2009
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

What kind of an idiot would do something like this??????????









Oh wait, I did this on Friday, so I need to pay attention to the responses, lol.
 

Bob_VT

Moderator & Unofficial iBoats Historian
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

Your NOT the first and you will not be the last.

Figure you are in the restoration mode so it just gets added to the list.
 

PiratePast40

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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

What kind of an idiot would do something like this??????????









Oh wait, I did this on Friday, so I need to pay attention to the responses, lol.


LOL ... figured I wasn't the first. Wanted to make sure I had the right idea of how to fix the #@*& holes. I'm just afraid that the stuff that looks suspiciously like bondo all needs to go so I can get a good bond. Think I'll just rip the stuff out anywhat since it ticked me off so much! I feel pretty good about all the work I got done today. Old transom is now all the way out -all 3 layers. I've got all the old wood out that I can with a chisel so I'll be sanding it down next. Might grind a little more to reduce the thickness of resin on the sides from the last replacement. Hopefully be able to start tracing and laying out the new transom pieces. Hope to get things laminated Tuesday and maybe in the boat by the end of next week. Then comes the next fun part - grinding out the old stringer residue.
 

PiratePast40

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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

Anyone willing to give an opinion of my proposed repair method? Thumbs up or down? How about the bondo issue - any opinions or experience?

Thanks
 

lowkee

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Dec 13, 2008
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

What kind of an idiot would do something like this??????????

Me! I put an ice scraper through my hull last week, trying to scrape up some fiberglass.. Apparently it was adhered to the adjoining glass (the hull) pretty well :(

With slices like you have, I would think epoxy would be okay as long as it backed well with glass in the inside. Keep in mind, epoxy isn't 'filler', just glue. It is brittle when gooped on, so that 1/8" is probably as wide as you should go without a 'real' repair (ie oops' putty or marinetex).
 

proshadetree

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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

First grind back on hull inside v ing into repair.Then clean area.I would then tape wax paper on outside of hull,Just like you use for cookies.Cut 3 layers of cloth 1 wide than next to kind of match v.Resin in fisrt then second overlapping first then third.All should have 1 to 2 inches contact with inner hull.should be as sound as new.
 

PiratePast40

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Mar 21, 2009
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

Thanks everyone. After making a mistake like that, I'm a little gun shy so wanted to step back and get some advice first.
 

erikgreen

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Jan 8, 2007
Messages
3,105
Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

First grind back on hull inside v ing into repair.Then clean area.I would then tape wax paper on outside of hull,Just like you use for cookies.Cut 3 layers of cloth 1 wide than next to kind of match v.Resin in fisrt then second overlapping first then third.All should have 1 to 2 inches contact with inner hull.should be as sound as new.


(Applause)

Exactly what I was going to type.

Pouring resin of any kind in a hole may seem like a good "quick fix" but it's a lousy repair method. Marine tex is better, but if you're already reworking the boat with glass and resin, why not do it right?

Erik
 

Robj

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Mar 22, 2007
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Re: Dang it - just ground a hole in the bottom of the boat!

First grind back on hull inside v ing into repair.Then clean area.I would then tape wax paper on outside of hull,Just like you use for cookies.Cut 3 layers of cloth 1 wide than next to kind of match v.Resin in fisrt then second overlapping first then third.All should have 1 to 2 inches contact with inner hull.should be as sound as new.

Bang on. The only thing that I would do differently is not use cloth, use 3 layers of 1708, staggering as described above. Or you could also use matt/WR. Poly resin works fine, just do the proper prep work and it will be as good as new. Been there, done that, I think I cut my hull twice while doing my restore.

Marine Tex is used when you cannot access the inside of the hull to do a proper repair. Since you are in there, might as well do it right.

Have a great day,

Rob.
 
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