Hole in Outter Layer

[rdlangston13]

today I was doing some work on the boat and got an itchin to crawl underneath it and take a look at the bottom. well once i go under there i found a small hole in the very bottom of the front. about as big as my finger nail. looks like it is just a hole in the outside gel coat layer, not the actual fiber glass but i was wondering if this is something i should be alarmed about?

i bought some bondo fiberglass repair puddy at the local auto parts store and I plan to fill it in tomorrow to my my hull whole again.

there was also a small crack just before this hole!

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3209

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3210

[Razzman]

Those things happen. Looks like you beach the boat? Anyway don't use Bondo, it'll just come right off after a few outing. You need a fiberglass repair kit to fix that. I wouldn't worry too much about the crack at this point. I would however not beach the boat to prevent this again, just my 2 cents.

[lsvboombox]

today I was doing some work on the boat and got an itchin to crawl underneath it and take a look at the bottom. well once i go under there i found a small hole in the very bottom of the front. about as big as my finger nail. looks like it is just a hole in the outside gel coat layer, not the actual fiber glass but i was wondering if this is something i should be alarmed about?

i bought some bondo fiberglass repair puddy at the local auto parts store and I plan to fill it in tomorrow to my my hull whole again.

there was also a small crack just before this hole!

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3209

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3210

if its just in the gelcoat just get some gelcoat, color match and you can even add in some cabosil to thicken(strengthen) the repair.... if its into the glass pick up some marine tex and repair the glass then finish with gelcoat.. you can tape waxpaper over the wet gelcoat repair. it will make a nice flat repair with minimal sanding....

DONT USE THE BONDO REPAIR UNDER WATER.... Even if it says it can be used under water......

[rdlangston13]

where do you get gel coat repair products at?

[dru1974]

Never understood why people beach their boat ???

[lsvboombox]

Most boat shops would have it... do have any near you?

[rdlangston13]

there is a west marine somewhere around here, id have to look up where it is exactly. and i have never beached the boat, i just bought it in october and from the looks of the very very bottom of it, the previous owner beacher it haha. its a little scratched up but then again that could be from rubbing on the trailer while loading and unloading. i just want her in tip top shape!

[lsvboombox]

West marine would have it.. u can just get a pint and some activator...

[rdlangston13]

well it looks like i have a project to work on tomorrow!

[lsvboombox]

check out youtube for some how to videos. there are plenty good instructional videos on there....

[lsvboombox]

I just saw the pictures, the arent showing up in the thread.. If it was me I would use gelcoat and add cabosil to repair that tiny hole(it looks like there may have been a small void(bubble) under the gelcoat or in the glass that pushed in).. clean out anything thats loose ... its gonna be hard to hide that repair though, based on the pics that hull looks to have a lot of scratches....

Also on that little crack I personally would not leave it alone.... Thats going to allow water intrusion over time especially if you ever leave your boat in the water.... I would get a tiny dremel bit and grind out a very small channel and repair it with gelcoat as well...

Make sure you buy some coloring for the gelcoat so you can match your boat

[rdlangston13]

yeah, thats what ill probably end up doing. im not too concerned about it matching since you have to by lying on the ground directly underneath the boat while on the trailer to see it.

[bzubke1]

Thats definitely from being beached. Looks like the bottom of my boat after I beached somewhere that looked good, but there was tiny pebbles in the clay that skuffed the bottom a little.

[NCSUmoomba]

That is not necessarily from beaching. I have a couple of those in my keel as well. I wasn't sure where they were from (some of it was there when I bought my boat), until I was crawling around checking things one day. It turns out my keel roller was disentigrating. It looked okay from standing beside the boat looking, but it was not okay. The rubber bit at the middle of the roller (where the keel sits) was totally gone and the keel had been hitting the steel center core of the roller. The steel center tube was all dented up from the keel hitting it. I quickly ordered a new roller, one of the nice Stoltz ones, but getting that dang top hat nut thing off was a pain in the butt. Moral of the story, keep sharp eye on those rollers as they age.

[rdlangston13]

well i went to west marine this morning and bought an evercoat gel coat paste repair kit. im waiting on it to dry right now. ill post pictures of the whole process when it is done

[rdlangston13]

here are some photos of the repair

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3214

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3215

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3217

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3218

[rdlangston13]

https://forum.moomba.com/picture.php?albumid=380&pictureid=3220

[lsvboombox]

looks pretty good - probably could feather sand the edges

+1 .......

grab a block and wet sand

[rdlangston13]

+1 .......

grab a block and wet sand

the problem with getting a block to wet sand right there is that the carpeted wood from the trailer is majorly in the way. it looks a little bit better than that picture now cause i spent a little more time on it but it is difficult due to there being no clearance.