Hull repair questions.

[Franki]

Hi peoples.<br /><br />I have a few questions I'd like you guys to comment on.<br /><br />1. transom.. how to get it dry chemically???<br />I have two small holes I made in the bottom, and its wet in there. .I'd like to dry it out before sealing the holes.. it hasn't been in the water for over 3 months.. I heard that there is a very thin substance that you can soak into the transom wood that goes rock hard,, have you guys heard of it???<br />2. hull gelcoat damage.. the entire gelcoat on my hull and cabin is riddled with scratches..<br />I plan to paint the whole boat.. I understand two pack is the best paint for the job??<br />Also, whats the best stuff to use for filling the scratches?? I can open the smaller ones out abit for filling, but I want to fix them strongly and cleanly..<br /><br />The hull is structurely very strong, its just cosmetically ugly.. none of the cracks are a danger to the saftey of the boat.. the hull fiberglass is the thickest I have ever seen. (i weigh 120kg and I can jump up and down on the inside hull, with the floor out, between rollers and the hull barely moves.. they made this thing thick, so I am not concerned with strength.. but would love to improve the appearance.<br /><br />any tips ???<br /><br />thanks guys (and ladies if applic...)<br /><br />regards<br /><br />Frank

 

[terryc]

Re: Hull repair questions.

Frank, i had a similar problem when I purchased my Seafarer Viking from a professional Crabber, he had dragged his crab pots up each side of the fibreglass hull.<br />I Sanded back the hull and used normal automotive car filler for filling and smoothing out the Hull, then undercoated with 2 pack polyurethane undercoat, sanded lightly, then top coated with 2 pack polyurethane white. The end result is a hard coat that shines, and is easier to clean, mine is 3yrs old and still going strong. i have been told since that i would have been better off using a mix of fibreglass resin and powder for a bog, than the automotive. I used the fibreglass car bog from "Super Cheap" on the large gouges, it works really well.<br />Can't help you with the drying process.<br /><br />By the way, where do you plan on getting the pourable transom from, is it available in australia. sounds like a great product,

 

[Franki]

Re: Hull repair questions.

I was a bit of a loss about where to get the pourable transom from myself, but recently, I came accross a guy that knows a guy that knows a distributer.. so I am waiting to hear back on that..<br />don't know if its seacast, but apprarently its much the same thing.<br /><br />I'll be sure and let you know as soon as I do.<br /><br />regards<br /><br />Frank..<br /><br />PS, I just got my ADSL connection and this list is really really fast.. woooohooooo !!!!

 

[outonbizniz]

Re: Hull repair questions.

Frank...the only product I've come across that comes close to the checmically dry out is CPES.<br /><br /> Rot Doctor CPES <br /><br />My "boat" also has extremely bad crazing (spider cracks, scratches) in the jelcoat. I spoke a local Mainer that has restored MANY old fiberglass boats. He sands the entire hull so that it is smooth with the small indents where crazing has occured (i've found that crazing produces high spots on both sides of any crack). Then he uses 2 coats of primer to fill these very shallow cracks, sanding between coats and followed by paint. I was skeptical so he showed me a boat he restored 8 years ago in this fashion. After using it all this time in rough waters it still looks great. I don't know if this is the best way to do it...I only know it worked for him.<br /><br />PS..got in late last night....I'll post some pics tonight.

 

[epresutti]

Re: Hull repair questions.

I have been going through a restoration of my 18ft Mitchell, which had all of the problems one could expect from an old hull, including spider cracks etc. After doing some research, I came across a product by West Systems, it is a high density adhesive filler that is also structural, can be mixed thin or as thick as peanut butter, It can be sanded and provides great bonding to glass.<br /><br />I used it with the epoxy resin (recommended or required), the disadvantage is you can't EVER use polyester resin for patched areas where it has been applied.<br /><br />In my case I am rebuilding the hull from the stringers up and have used epoxy for the entire project. I haven't painted the outside of the hull, but have painted the bilge and used a linear polyurethane (one part) by interlux, it was very thin and took three coats on raw glass, but gave the bilge the finish I was lookinig for. (I know anal, but wanted the bilge to be easy to clean).<br /><br />Hope this helps.<br /><br />Cheers.

 

[Franki]

Re: Hull repair questions.

Thanks for that..<br /><br />I have decided not to worry about it..<br /><br />for now I'll just give it a few days to dry out and seal it up..<br /><br />then I will find seacast or equiv and replace the entire innards,, if it can last another 2 or 3 months.. I'll be happy. Thanks for the painting tips Ed, I guess later on after the transom, I'll spend a month sanding the boat and from there I'll start painting.<br /><br />rgds<br /><br />frank,<br /><br />PS, Todd, look forward to the pics.<br /><br />rgds<br /><br />Frank

 

[letsbarbq]

Re: Hull repair questions.

terryc<br /><br />u can get more information about the pourable transom at www.transomrepair.com u can order it online.<br /><br />soory frank, didnt mean to get off the subject.

 

[Franki]

Re: Hull repair questions.

Hi BBQ, <br /><br />the problem Terryc and I have is that Seacast is made and distruted in the US.. we are both in Australia.<br /><br />it would be prohibitively expensive to ship the stuff over here, so we are looking for a local variation. (or distributer)<br /><br />rgds<br /><br />Frank

 

[letsbarbq]

Re: Hull repair questions.

frank,<br />sorry, didnt read the last part of the messages.