Hey everyone, I've been reading these forums for the past few months and finally now have time to spend on daysailor maintenance. I'm hoping to get some feedback on my boat as well as some suggestions on where to start and what to do for repairs.
Some History:
I inherited this boat from my grandfather when he passed several years ago. It was in great shape at the time and i took it out on the water a few times but i have limited sailing experience. My grandfather used it as a racing boat and I'm told it has some racing type improvements made to it. A relative of mine once told me that the hull was stiffened...not too sure how...maybe someone else can tell from the pictures? It has sat for quite a while now due to other obligations and lack of time for me to maintain or sail it.
I decided the boat has sat for long enough and have the sailing bug really bad lately. My daughter and i cleaned it as much as we could. I bought some new tires for the trailer and started writing down things i think it would need in order to put it back in the water. I recently took some pictures in hopes of getting feedback from these forums.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53282694@N04/
I bought some mahogany from a local hardwood store in order to replace the wood that goes under the traveler. I was hoping to get some suggestions on varnish or epoxy to use to treat it. From reading other posts i'm liking the epoxy suggestion but i dont really know where to start.
There are alot of cracks and blisters on the floor area towards the front of the boat. I took a few pictures. I'm not sure how to go about repairing them. Any suggestions on what the damage is and how i should go about repairing it would be appreciated.
There seems to be some minor hull damage on the side that looks like it was repaired, i took pictures of it.
Anyways...please take a look at the pictures and let me know what you think. My main concern at the moment is getting the boat in the water and then ill start looking towards long term cosmetic repairs after that.
Also any rigging suggestions would be helpful too...in the past ive always sailed with minimal rigging.
Newbie seeking repair advice
Moderator: GreenLake
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Newbie seeking repair advice
by mcomeaux » Tue Aug 24, 2010 2:51 pm
- mcomeaux
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by K.C. Walker » Tue Aug 24, 2010 4:58 pm
It seems like the exterior damage looks pretty repairable and not too difficult. It is a little difficult to tell from your pictures where the damage on the "deck" is. If you could be more specific about that, I think that would help us. It's just that you seem to use the term deck for the floor area as well as the top side.
The cracking along the centerboard trunk and along the seats could possibly be that the floor area was stiffened and that is coming loose in those areas. If the floor area was stiffened with structural foam I would think that these cracks could be repaired without too much difficulty. If they are indeed cracks that show from the outside of the hull, as well is from the inside, then you've got a little more work to do.
What you are calling cracking and blistering in some of the photos looks like paint coming off of fiberglass and not original gelcoat over fiberglass, so this may be previous repair work. You might just have to dig at that and see where it takes you.
You might want to just remove the traveler and go with a simpler set up. You could plug all the holes in the seats and go with the stern bridle and swivel block on the centerboard trunk, that's what I would do/did. Many of the top sailors and national champion's use the simpler set up. Click on Phill Root's name and look at his gallery of photos for a lot of the rigging questions that you might have.
For structural and cosmetic repairs I recommend checking out the West System repair manuals. http://www.westsystem.com/ss/assets/How ... enance.pdf
Good luck and welcome aboard!
KC
The cracking along the centerboard trunk and along the seats could possibly be that the floor area was stiffened and that is coming loose in those areas. If the floor area was stiffened with structural foam I would think that these cracks could be repaired without too much difficulty. If they are indeed cracks that show from the outside of the hull, as well is from the inside, then you've got a little more work to do.
What you are calling cracking and blistering in some of the photos looks like paint coming off of fiberglass and not original gelcoat over fiberglass, so this may be previous repair work. You might just have to dig at that and see where it takes you.
You might want to just remove the traveler and go with a simpler set up. You could plug all the holes in the seats and go with the stern bridle and swivel block on the centerboard trunk, that's what I would do/did. Many of the top sailors and national champion's use the simpler set up. Click on Phill Root's name and look at his gallery of photos for a lot of the rigging questions that you might have.
For structural and cosmetic repairs I recommend checking out the West System repair manuals. http://www.westsystem.com/ss/assets/How ... enance.pdf
Good luck and welcome aboard!
KC
KC Walker, DS 1 #7002
- K.C. Walker
- Posts: 1335
- Joined: Sun Jul 06, 2008 10:50 pm
- Location: North Stonington, Connecticut
by GreenLake » Tue Aug 24, 2010 4:59 pm
More than can be handled in a single reply. Just picking off a few things.
Epoxy. Get Laminating epoxy. If you can, for example, from SystemThree. You initially won't need all that much, but epoxy keeps forever. (Other makers, like WestSystem, sell comparable stuff, check their website).
Mix according to directions (follow very closely). Coat your wood 2-3 times all around (it must be dry, and all holes should be drilled already).
Get a varnish to protect the epoxy from UV. SystemThree linear LPU works, Bristol Finish works. Epifanes should work. Your choice. If you keep it in the sun, you'll need to refinish before the varnish lets UV at the epoxy. That's all.
Go on the SystemThree site and read about "refinishing outdoor woods" - they have a brochure. (Get all the literature from SystemThree and WestSystem, and read it all - lots of good info).
Cracks in gelcoat: Those you can repair with gelcoat paste, or fill with filler, then paint the whole surface. In either case, you need to use a sharp tool and widen the crack - turn it into a V shape. Fillers should be marine fillers, the stuff for cars isn't waterproof enough.
Gelcoat can be tinted to match your existing shade of off white. For off white, you need so little tinting color, I wouldn't hesitate to use the universal tinting colors from the paint store. Mix a small sample of uncured stuff with tiny dabs of coloring until it looks right. Then try to scale this to a larger batch. When the color is good, add the catalyst.
I used the Evercoat gelcoat. The white required covering (wax paper will work) as oxygen will prevent the gelcoat from hardening (except if it is specially formulated and then it will say so).
Structural cracks. Near the CB I would grind away an area around the crack then use a layer of glass cloth and laminating epoxy, or two layers of glass cloth (not mat), to cover it. I wouldn't bother trying to make that repair flush with the surface, but it's good to open the crack itself with a grinder to be able to fill it with epoxy. (Same laminating epoxy as for coating the wood).
Mix small batches of epoxy, esp. when its hot, and/or get the "slow" hardener. Dump then out on a plate to further slow the curing reaction.
Use a roller or spatula to press excess epoxy from the repair.
If in doubt, try a sample on a "fake" repair to get the hang of it. Wear gloves. Wear painters "gas" mask when using gel-coat.
More on cracks: For deeper gouges, you can use something like the 3M High Strength Marine Filler, which is quite strong, though harder to sand than regular marine filler. In many cases, where there's enough laminate under the gouge, you avoid the need to use fiberglass. But it's tough to sand, so don't use it in thin layers on large areas - that's the job for regular fillers.
Those are some initial suggestions for hull-related repairs.
Read the forum on "flotation". There may be repairs that you might like to do.
Epoxy. Get Laminating epoxy. If you can, for example, from SystemThree. You initially won't need all that much, but epoxy keeps forever. (Other makers, like WestSystem, sell comparable stuff, check their website).
Mix according to directions (follow very closely). Coat your wood 2-3 times all around (it must be dry, and all holes should be drilled already).
Get a varnish to protect the epoxy from UV. SystemThree linear LPU works, Bristol Finish works. Epifanes should work. Your choice. If you keep it in the sun, you'll need to refinish before the varnish lets UV at the epoxy. That's all.
Go on the SystemThree site and read about "refinishing outdoor woods" - they have a brochure. (Get all the literature from SystemThree and WestSystem, and read it all - lots of good info).
Cracks in gelcoat: Those you can repair with gelcoat paste, or fill with filler, then paint the whole surface. In either case, you need to use a sharp tool and widen the crack - turn it into a V shape. Fillers should be marine fillers, the stuff for cars isn't waterproof enough.
Gelcoat can be tinted to match your existing shade of off white. For off white, you need so little tinting color, I wouldn't hesitate to use the universal tinting colors from the paint store. Mix a small sample of uncured stuff with tiny dabs of coloring until it looks right. Then try to scale this to a larger batch. When the color is good, add the catalyst.
I used the Evercoat gelcoat. The white required covering (wax paper will work) as oxygen will prevent the gelcoat from hardening (except if it is specially formulated and then it will say so).
Structural cracks. Near the CB I would grind away an area around the crack then use a layer of glass cloth and laminating epoxy, or two layers of glass cloth (not mat), to cover it. I wouldn't bother trying to make that repair flush with the surface, but it's good to open the crack itself with a grinder to be able to fill it with epoxy. (Same laminating epoxy as for coating the wood).
Mix small batches of epoxy, esp. when its hot, and/or get the "slow" hardener. Dump then out on a plate to further slow the curing reaction.
Use a roller or spatula to press excess epoxy from the repair.
If in doubt, try a sample on a "fake" repair to get the hang of it. Wear gloves. Wear painters "gas" mask when using gel-coat.
More on cracks: For deeper gouges, you can use something like the 3M High Strength Marine Filler, which is quite strong, though harder to sand than regular marine filler. In many cases, where there's enough laminate under the gouge, you avoid the need to use fiberglass. But it's tough to sand, so don't use it in thin layers on large areas - that's the job for regular fillers.
Those are some initial suggestions for hull-related repairs.
Read the forum on "flotation". There may be repairs that you might like to do.
~ green ~ lake ~ ~
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