On Mon, 29 Oct 2007 07:32:27 -0000, Woland99
wrote:

I have an offer to buy (very cheaply) a 24' keel fiberglass sailboat
that has some
damage to keel and needs repair. It is almost 30yo so I am afraid that
any damage
to fiberglass might have fractured a bit more than "a hairline crack"
as owner describes.

The price on a 30 year old, 24 ft sailboat with keel damage should be
close to *free*. There are lots of undamaged boats of that size and
vintage for very reasonable prices.

The advice to have a surveyor look at it is good. You might also be
able to get a repair estimate from a boat yard which would give you
some idea how extensive the damage is.

All that said, most sailboats, especially older ones, were built to
withstand a hard grounding once in a while. It may be usable the way
it is, or with only minor cosmetic repair. If it is a boat with a
cored hull (as opposed to solid fiberglass) there is a high
probability of major damage. That's a walkaway in my opinion.