Fix up gunwale?

[rusirius]

Hopefully a quick question for you folks...

I've got a small (15') fishing boat (it's an '84 fiberglass Sears gamefisher tri-hull). The gunwale has been scratched/worn in several places over the years. In fact, in several places it's scratched/worn down so much that fiberglass fibers are being exposed... (i.e. leaning up against the gunwale with bare arms leads to a very uncomfortable experience about 30 minutes later)

What's the best way to go about fixing it up? Like I said, it's just a fishing boat so I'm not really concerned about pristine looks or anything like that.. I just want it to not be a "Rash hazard" for my family, especially my 2 year old when they go out on a ride with me.

Would plain ol polyurethane do the trick? Just how terrible would it look? Like I said, I don't care if the scratches still show or anything like that, I just want to make sure the fibers are no longer exposed...

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

Just about any paint will stick to it and Rustolium has a good reputation here.

 

[danond]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

If fibers are exposed you could mix up a batch of thickened epoxy or polyester resin and coat the really bad areas, then sand and paint with your choice of marine paint.

 

[rusirius]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

Good info, but I guess I should have been more clear... Basically the "gelcoat" is worn off... If I paint I'd pretty much have to paint the whole thing to make it come anywhere close to matching... I know I said I wasn't concerned with looks, but I really didn't want it to be a huge eyesore either... That's why I was asking about the polyurethane... I figure that will come closest to looking like the gelcoat that's already there? If pictures would help I can snap a couple tommorow and post up...

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

Is this one of the green boats with no gel coat to start with?

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

I've seen a few of the late 70's Gamefisher boat, (Made by MFG, same as their Challenger model), get 'fuzzy' on the surface. They really weren't a glossy gel coat when new, I've seen them in Green, blue, yellow, brown, and white. Generally all I do with them is to sand and repaint them with a couple of coats of sandable primer/filler, then repaint with a good automotive paint. They are a laminated type hull, there's an inner and outer hull with foam in between.

Those boats were know for that problem, they just didn't age well if left out in the weather. The only real solution is to paint. Trying to gel coat over a boat that had little to no original gel coat would be a nightmare at the very least.

I fished with one I had like that for two years before just painting it. I've seen a few around here just painted with plain Rustoleum that worked out fine. The number of coats will depend on how bad it's gotten and how many fibers are surfaced. This is where the sandable primer/filler comes in handy.

 

[rusirius]

Re: Fix up gunwale?

It's white, definately fiberglass, and it APPEARS to have gelcoat everywhere except the areas in question... Can't swear to it, but it definately is shiny... I don't think it's a layered hull either... Where I've drilled through very lower part of the transom to mount transducer, speed pickup, and smart tabs there was only about 1/4" of fiberglass or so... I haven't drilling through any other area of the hull so maybe so...

I'll try to remember to snap some pictures tomorrow when I get home from work and post them up so you guys have a better idea of what I'm talking about...