Here's 2 pictures showing damage to the daggerboard well and hull.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/qm0dkzzx147y6mq/AADtc2Hq6LcvkSQwECLub7Nba
In the picture DSC5276 we can see that there's some gelcoat missing inside the dagger well. The fiberglass itself seems ok`.
Now the second picture, DSC5277. There was some gelcoat blistering on the bottom of the hull. I ground the problem to reach sound material. Now, on the top part of the area, it look likes the fiberglass skin is really thin and i reached the foam real quick. On the bottom part in the picture, there seem to be no foam at all
What does that tell you and what would you do with those 2 problem.
Thank you for your help.
Edited by coolhead on May 08, 2014 - 07:10 PM.
what type/model cat? Go to technical photos on this site, photos and commentary invaluable-i may have more imput if a nacra since my mates and i repaired wells on 5.2: hit the beach bearing down at full velocity and dagger dropped! nice well reconstruction required. wear a mask for nostrils/mouth when u glass up your cat, also use rubber gloves; we used plastic bags to hold fiberglass in place in the well area and left screw off caps open to facilitate drying if your cat does not have opening nere well u probably have to cut hull open(topside) to create a work area
u may get away without cutting a hole ,damage nere top of weLL, INEXPENSIVE FIBERGLASS REPAIR KITS ON LINE I ORDERED SUCH AKIT SENT IT TO FLA ADDRESS IT WAS THERE IN A FEW DAYS SO WAS ABLE TO FLY DOWN AND REPAIR SAME DAY, HOME DEPOT USUALY HAS GLASS AND CLOTH IN STORES U WILL REQUIRE SEVERAL LAYERS OF CLOTH
It's a nacra Inter 18. The damage in the well is close to bottom. Only gelcoat missing. Seems ok structurally.
On the I20 we would have wear on the back of the trunk similar to what you show. I don't think I would worry about the missing gel coat much. If the back edge of the trunk starts to wear through the glass, you can place a string soaked in epoxy along the crease to build up some material back.
Thank you all but what about the other area. How thick should be the outside fiberglass layer, the one under the gelcoat. As you can see in the picture, it seems to have foam only on one side of the ground area. The other side is solid fiberglass. That's the side closer to the bottom centerline. Is that a normal configuration?
The complete sandwich is like 1/2 inch thick.
gelcoat ~ 1/8
glass 1/8
felt/foam 1/4+
glass 1/8
If you can push it down with your thumb, build up some glass, then gelcoat or paint. you can pigment the glass too. some sacrificial material isn't a bad thing if you beach your boat a lot. Murrays actually sells a kit for keel repair. http://www.murrays.com/40-4105.html
I agree about the daggerboard well, thicken a bit of epoxy, mash it in there. It looks like someone kicked/pushed real hard on the dagger board while it was up. maybe there was a factory void between the gelcoat and glass.
Edited by nhanson on May 09, 2014 - 03:32 AM.
Norm,
I can't push it down with my thumb even if the outside glass layer seem thinner than 1/8.
I also believe there was a void between the gelcoat and glass in the well.
By the way Norm, your video make me dream sailing lake Michigan.
Edited by coolhead on May 09, 2014 - 05:31 AM.
The glass should be pretty thin, about an 1/8 sounds right. Some boats are solid glass at the very bottom, but I can't really recall if the i20 was like that.
bacho wrote: Some boats are solid glass at the very bottom, but I can't really recall if the i20 was like that.
It looks like the I18 is like that, so should be the I20.
nhanson wrote: The complete sandwich is like 1/2 inch thick.
gelcoat ~ 1/8
glass 1/8
felt/foam 1/4+
glass 1/8
I had to repair an area that I puncture myself by accident. It is on the side of the hull.
Now I can tell you that the sandwich is:
Gelcoat: 1/8
Glass: 1 layer of what seems like 6 ounces glass fabric
Foam: 1/4"
Glass: 1 layer of heavier than 6 ounces glass fabric
That is thinner than what I would have expected.
Edited by coolhead on May 12, 2014 - 05:59 AM.
For the dagger well, set the cat on its side so the repair area is level, then mix up some Marine-Tex and spread it on with a tongue depressor or popsickle stick. If the area requires it, lay down a layer of plastic on top of the Marine-Tex, then a small flat piece of thick cardboard or plywood, and then hold it on place with a wedge of styrofoam for 24 hours. You want the repair to be flat and not stick out into the path of the dagger through the well.
I had to do this on my cat, but the damage was six inches up from the bottom. The cause was a rock that became wedged in there and then moving the centerboard out rotated the rock and it burst through the well wall.