fiberglass repair questions

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ferret30

New member
We bought a boat yesterday, only five years old and it's in great condition despite sitting in the water uncovered for 2 years.

The only notable damage I saw was that the anchor roller was bent to the side a bit, and a chunk of fiberglass about the size of a dime is missing from the tip of the bow just under where the roller cantilevers off the deck. The intact areas are of course white, and the area under the missing chunk is black-ish.

Is this something I should get fixed right away -- would it lead to longer cracks or delamination, etc? Even if not, I'd like to get it fixed when I put a new roller on. What would be a ballpark cost for the repair?

Thanks!
 
I'm guessing it's 1/8" deep or so, but that's from memory. The boat is a couple miles away from here, and I plan on getting a couple good pictures of it (the boat and the wound) when I'm up there next.
 
ferret30":5fg4d3z8 said:
I'm guessing it's 1/8" deep or so, but that's from memory. The boat is a couple miles away from here, and I plan on getting a couple good pictures of it (the boat and the wound) when I'm up there next.
Click to expand...

You can probably do it yourself with a little investigating and learning.

Look up "Gel Coat Repair" with the search engine here. There are numerous threads about it, several with very specific instructions.

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I've read a few of those so far, especially those about sealing hardware penetrations. My only worry with that chip under the roller was that it would be an area that would either lead to more problems if I didn't do anything or did it wrong, or that it would just chip off again since it's such a tight radius there.

But it sounds a lot more attractive than the $500 a fiberglass repair shop quoted over the phone today (I only got through to one so far).
 
There are several Seattle area dealers including the Triton C-Dory plant that regularly participate on the CB site that performs repairs and follows free advice
 
If you do not want to do the fiberglass repair yourself you might try Tern Marine. They are in the old C-Dory building in Kent. They did a little fiberglass repair on my boat. Their quality was very good and I thought the price was reasonable. The majority of the work they do is fiberglass repair for other boat dealers. I spoke with Buck Williams he used to work for C-Dory and know the boats. Tern's phone number is (253) 946-9916
 
Thanks for the recommendations!

Since it's a somewhat complex surface shape where the chip is, I'd rather pay someone to knock it out while I stick to filling holes on flat surfaces. I just need to get a good picture of it and email it to the folks you recommended.

Also, since it's our first boat we have a ton to learn. Also, we've got some pressing issues like buying a tow vehicle, a kicker, a cover, etc. And the boat's been moored to a houseboat for 2 years so the bottom's got some build and it needs a good overall cleaning!

Thanks again for the help.
 
The chip you speak of is probably just gel coat knocked off. Nothing to worry about but ugly to look at. Optional to fix.

Considering that the boat set in the water uncovered for several years, that would make me very nervous about any screw penetrations through the deck or transom. Water getting past those screws and into the balsa or plywood behind the fiberglass could wreak havoc on the boat. Those places should be investigated and repaired very soon.

Good luck with your C-Dory.
 
One of the things I looked for first when we went to see the boat were holes in the deck. I didn't see any aftermarket equipment installed, nothing drilled into the floor, except that I forgot to see how the bilge was attached. I'll definitely look when I get a weekend with the boat.

I also plan on removing any exterior hardware (especially below the waterline) and check to see if the penetrations were sealed. If not, I'm planning to go through them (transducer mount, drain, etc.), wet or not, and fix them.

It's not an old boat but I want to find any problems and get them stabilized!

By the way, would it be easier to check for moisture in the transom/deck core by taking hardware out and probing with a pick, or is it better to check areas around the penetrations with a moisture meter?
 
I would use a meter as you can reach the whole hull and not just where the screw was. water may have gotten in another way other then a screw and water tends to travel.
 
The moisture meter, but remember that if the meter is used next to any metal, it will read high.

Get an album, and take photos of suspicious areas.

Although I don't often recommend MarineTex, this may be one place where it is a good fit. You cannot easily put gel coat over the Marine Tex, so there will be some color miss match (with a bonding agent, gelcoat can be applied over it. MarineTex is cheap, easy to work after it hardens, and easy to put in place. On the other hand, gel coat is easy to work with, and cheap. You can buy gel coat paste at West Marine--get the "White" and add a drop of yellow, and a drop of brown to a tablespoon of the paste. Cover with wax paper to the contour--might have to build in several stages, and sand to contour.

After you get the marine growth off, you will probably want to apply new bottom paint. You want to have the bottom completely smooth and fair before you apply the new paint. I have been having good luck with Petit Vivid--and the colors are bright.
 
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