checking the hull's integrity...
 

On Mar 24, 2:16*pm, Tim wrote:
On Mar 24, 6:43*am, anon-e-moose wrote:



Tim wrote:
On Mar 22, 9:09 pm, Tim wrote:
OK, in my never ending quest for info, I thought I'd look at my big
boat's hull. *i haven't' found any blisters, but the hull has had
something repaired on it in times past like to cover a gouge, or *hard
nick's Nothing big, but some type of a tanish-colored *'epoxy repair'
which has been applied to a couple spots on the port side, which are
no bigger than anywhere from the size of your thumb print to no larger
than a "Kennedy half".

I've tapped around on the hull from about bow to stern and all sounds
solid with no dead thuds and nothing spongy. So I feel the integrity
of the fiberglass is in good shape.

I looked down the keel of the hull from the bow, and there have been
several nicks that though seem to be on the surface, I feel they need
to have some attention payed to them . I didn't see any sign of
fiberglass core showing through, however there were some nicks that
have gone deep enough to look like they've gone through the gell coat,
to the green underlying fiberglass resin.

I don't think that the boat has been abused, but sometimes hitting a
good stick can cause such nicks, but this looks like it's tapped
against some hard heavy rocks like what you might find lining a dock
runway.

I don't think that water has infiltrated the fiberglass or at least
nothing to cause blistering, but I am concerned a bit about it, that
it needs some repair.

One guy who likes to think with his mouth and not his mind looked at
the nicks and suggested that I dab some fingernail polish on it.

*For pete's sake

I know there's lots of fiberglass repair products out there but seeing
I don't know much about it, I'd like somebody to recommend to me the
choicest products and repair procedures. I don't know much about it,
but am willing to try.

Thanks!

Here was someone working on a 23' Uniflite, and you see the nicks in
the bow. Well, mine aren't as drastic as that big one, but I've got
some of them and this is the type of damage *I'll be working on. when
the weather gets *a bit sunny and warmer outside.

http://www.wcc.net/~jkmccoy/misst/fbrglss.htm

Those chips will be easy to repair with Marine Tex.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

That's on the list.

Thanks!

i found this, too. It does look simple for replacing blemishes. I'll
be looking for something ore in depth if I have to go further, but I
dont' think there will be much of a problem to repair what I need to.

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/casey/17.htm

checking the hull's integrity...
 

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:49:22 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

On Mar 24, 2:16*pm, Tim wrote:
On Mar 24, 6:43*am, anon-e-moose wrote:



Tim wrote:
On Mar 22, 9:09 pm, Tim wrote:
OK, in my never ending quest for info, I thought I'd look at my big
boat's hull. *i haven't' found any blisters, but the hull has had
something repaired on it in times past like to cover a gouge, or *hard
nick's Nothing big, but some type of a tanish-colored *'epoxy repair'
which has been applied to a couple spots on the port side, which are
no bigger than anywhere from the size of your thumb print to no larger
than a "Kennedy half".

I've tapped around on the hull from about bow to stern and all sounds
solid with no dead thuds and nothing spongy. So I feel the integrity
of the fiberglass is in good shape.

I looked down the keel of the hull from the bow, and there have been
several nicks that though seem to be on the surface, I feel they need
to have some attention payed to them . I didn't see any sign of
fiberglass core showing through, however there were some nicks that
have gone deep enough to look like they've gone through the gell coat,
to the green underlying fiberglass resin.

I don't think that the boat has been abused, but sometimes hitting a
good stick can cause such nicks, but this looks like it's tapped
against some hard heavy rocks like what you might find lining a dock
runway.

I don't think that water has infiltrated the fiberglass or at least
nothing to cause blistering, but I am concerned a bit about it, that
it needs some repair.

One guy who likes to think with his mouth and not his mind looked at
the nicks and suggested that I dab some fingernail polish on it.

*For pete's sake

I know there's lots of fiberglass repair products out there but seeing
I don't know much about it, I'd like somebody to recommend to me the
choicest products and repair procedures. I don't know much about it,
but am willing to try.

Thanks!

Here was someone working on a 23' Uniflite, and you see the nicks in
the bow. Well, mine aren't as drastic as that big one, but I've got
some of them and this is the type of damage *I'll be working on. when
the weather gets *a bit sunny and warmer outside.

http://www.wcc.net/~jkmccoy/misst/fbrglss.htm

Those chips will be easy to repair with Marine Tex.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

That's on the list.

Thanks!

i found this, too. It does look simple for replacing blemishes. I'll
be looking for something ore in depth if I have to go further, but I
dont' think there will be much of a problem to repair what I need to.

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/casey/17.htm

The problem with Marine Tex is when you try to match gel coat.

Using Marine-Tex
 

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

BTW, My boat hull is white, and I'm not necessarily looking to make
the hull look like brand new condition, but I'd just as soon not have
it look like it's got a dose of the measles either.



http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...FFJ2329BG2AACM

I've noticed there are more flexable marine-tex products as well.

http://www.google.com/products?clien...ed=0CCcQrQQwAg

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Mar 24, 9:28*pm, W1TEF wrote:
On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:06:50 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

A small package of it goes a long way. *If you only have to patch a
small area, just go with the smaller package - it's not complicated to
use which is its appeal.

Worked very well on the Halman.

Done deal.

Thanks!

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Mar 24, 6:38*pm, Tim wrote:
On Mar 24, 9:28*pm, W1TEF wrote:

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:06:50 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

A small package of it goes a long way. *If you only have to patch a
small area, just go with the smaller package - it's not complicated to
use which is its appeal.

Worked very well on the Halman.

Done deal.

Thanks!

I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Mar 24, 9:54*pm, Frogwatch wrote:
On Mar 24, 6:38*pm, Tim wrote:



On Mar 24, 9:28*pm, W1TEF wrote:

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:06:50 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

A small package of it goes a long way. *If you only have to patch a
small area, just go with the smaller package - it's not complicated to
use which is its appeal.

Worked very well on the Halman.

Done deal.

Thanks!

I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. *Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. *That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

While the thinner stuff is still soft, do you put some fiber mesh over
it and work it in? I'd think it wold be hard to use the Marine-Ted on
top of the thinner material if it's still soft.

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:54:19 -0700 (PDT), Frogwatch
wrote:

I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

It's a good strategy but it is important to let the thin epoxy start
to cure before overcoating with the thickened top layer. Otherwise
the thin epoxy will start to sag from the weight of the top coat and
take everything down with it.

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Mar 24, 10:17*pm, Wayne.B wrote:
On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:54:19 -0700 (PDT), Frogwatch

wrote:
I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. *Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. *That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

It's a good strategy but it is important to let the thin epoxy start
to cure before overcoating with the thickened top layer. *Otherwise
the thin epoxy will start to sag from the weight of the top coat and
take everything down with it.

OK, When Froggy posted what he does. I took 'soft' to be 'wet'.

Obviously not, though.

Excellent thought.

Thanks Wayne.

Using Marine-Tex
 

In article 7f977bdd-9a81-4b4b-9b66-42957145a827
@z11g2000yqz.googlegroups.com, says...

On Mar 24, 6:38*pm, Tim wrote:
On Mar 24, 9:28*pm, W1TEF wrote:

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:06:50 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

A small package of it goes a long way. *If you only have to patch a
small area, just go with the smaller package - it's not complicated to
use which is its appeal.

Worked very well on the Halman.

Done deal.

Thanks!

I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

And a good theory it is. If you use Epoxy or Marine-Tex, over cured
polyester resin, you are going to have to rely on a mechanical bond, not
a chemical bond. The epoxy will not become "part" of the hull, it will
just hang on real tight, if you're lucky and do it right;) I don't know
how big your repairs are but the trick is to rough it up good and create
negative ridges even if possible. When I am roughing wood or cured
laminate for goo, I sometimes use a saw blade curved over and dragged
along the surface. Either way, if you are thickening or using thickened
goo, it's good if you can to start with a thinner coat or two to create
a better mechanical bond with the rough surface, then integrate the
thicker stuff into the repair like Froggy said.

Scotty

--
For a great time, go here first... http://tinyurl.com/ygqxs5v

Using Marine-Tex
 

On Mar 24, 10:40*pm, I am Tosk
wrote:
In article 7f977bdd-9a81-4b4b-9b66-42957145a827
@z11g2000yqz.googlegroups.com, says...





On Mar 24, 6:38*pm, Tim wrote:
On Mar 24, 9:28*pm, W1TEF wrote:

On Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:06:50 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:

I've heard a lot here concerning using Marine-Tex. But there are
several different package for several different applications. i was
wondering if this is the stuff to use.

A small package of it goes a long way. *If you only have to patch a
small area, just go with the smaller package - it's not complicated to
use which is its appeal.

Worked very well on the Halman.

Done deal.

Thanks!

I had forgotten about Marine-Tex, great stuff and they are right, it
does not run. *Basically it is epoxy with a thickener.
However, when making repairs, I like to use thin epoxy first to have
it soak into the surrounding area and then while it is still soft I
fill in with thicker stuff. *That way it is bonded all the way into
the surrounding area instead of relying on a mechanical bond to the
surface. That's my theory at least.

And a good theory it is. If you use Epoxy or Marine-Tex, over cured
polyester resin, you are going to have to rely on a mechanical bond, not
a chemical bond. The epoxy will not become "part" of the hull, it will
just hang on real tight, if you're lucky and do it right;) I don't know
how big your repairs are but the trick is to rough it up good and create
negative ridges even if possible. When I am roughing wood or cured
laminate for goo, I sometimes use a saw blade curved over and dragged
along the surface. Either way, if you are thickening or using thickened
goo, it's good if you can to start with a thinner coat or two to create
a better mechanical bond with the rough surface, then integrate the
thicker stuff into the repair like Froggy said.

Scotty

--
For a great time, go here first...http://tinyurl.com/ygqxs5v

Basically, Scott I'm working on chips in the gell coat that have
gotten down to the green resin but not into it. . I just came back
from sounding the hull again, and all seems solid. i suppose you
might say I'm trying to kill problems before they grow.

I dont' have any major damage where the mesh is ragged and hanging
out, so I'm considering just using some mild coatings of M-T dabbed
and smoothed to surface.