My boat has a couple of spots on the botton of the hull where hte gelcoat
has cracked and a few small chips have come out. I would like to repair
this myself but I have never done gel coat repair. Since it is on the bottom
of the hull, I am not as much concerned about color matching as I would be
if the damage were in another area but I do want to make sure that it will
be structurally sound.

Can anyone give me information on how I can do this myself.

Thanks

Frank

On Tue, 30 Dec 2003 23:46:25 -0500, "Frank Taylor, Jr."
wrote:

My boat has a couple of spots on the botton of the hull where hte gelcoat
has cracked and a few small chips have come out. I would like to repair
this myself but I have never done gel coat repair. Since it is on the bottom
of the hull, I am not as much concerned about color matching as I would be
if the damage were in another area but I do want to make sure that it will
be structurally sound.

Can anyone give me information on how I can do this myself.

Thanks

Frank

I have had great luck with the little repair kits sold at West Marine
or Boat US. They include a tube of the 'stuff' and a little scraper.
Take something with you to match the color. Easy for small jobs.

John H

On the 'Poco Loco' out of Deale, MD
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

I use a small cutting bit in my dremel to clear out the loose gelcoat and
open any radiating cracks. Then mix the gelcoat from one of those kits and
fill the area. Cover with a small piece of wax paper. I use the wax paper
to help me make it flat. It needs to be covered to cure properly. Let it
dry a day or so. Remove the wax paper and sand with progressively finer
grit paper. Finish with an abrasive rubbing compound. It's good that you
have them on the bottom. You can make them almost invisible after you have
some practice and the bottom is a good place to practice. If your boat is
new there is a company called spectra that carries exact matches for colors
of most major boats. As yout boat ages the gelcoat will fade and you must
do a custom match with one of those kits.

"Frank Taylor, Jr." wrote in message
...
My boat has a couple of spots on the botton of the hull where hte gelcoat
has cracked and a few small chips have come out. I would like to repair
this myself but I have never done gel coat repair. Since it is on the
bottom
of the hull, I am not as much concerned about color matching as I would be
if the damage were in another area but I do want to make sure that it will
be structurally sound.

Can anyone give me information on how I can do this myself.

Thanks

Frank