Woods Windsong - Hull makes crunching sound when pressed

[resynth]

Hi all,

I'm looking at a woods windsong catamaran, she was built in 2004 with grp flat panel hulls on wbp plywood bulkheads.

While checking all the bulkheads for any rot I noticed the hull around the waterline made a slight crunching noise when I depressed it. The layup looks neat and there is no visible sign of cracking so after a moments consideration Iturned my attention back to the badly rotten beam box. I spent most of my time looking for rot in ply and didn't really consider the grp hull as a potential problem area.

Was gonna make an offer on the boat today but woke up being haunted by the crunching sound, any ideas of what it could be, how serious it is and how easy a repair would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[redreuben]

Sounds like the skin has delaminated from the foam, at least if its crunching its dry !
Sounds like trouble ! Run away, Run away !
RR

[gonzo]

The usual way to check for that kind of damage is to cut coupons with a holesaw.

[rberrey]

It should be a wood hull and not foam. Should be more post as the day go,s on, dont panic yet but dont buy either. Rick

[resynth]

hull is not foam cored or wood, it is a grp hull built on ply bulkheads with foam stringers.

I'm aware of the problems with delamination in foam cored hulls and obviously the possibility of rot in sheathed ply hulls but didn't think there was much, other than osmosis, that could go wrong with solid grp? I always assumed anyone could layup a glass hull and it was a fairly forgiving material to build in and easy to repair, thats why I spent so long crawling over every inch of wood looking for rot but didn't pay too much attention to the grp hull.

[oldsailor7]

I would like to hear Bruces take on this one. He has a great deal of experience with solid glass hulls.

[cavalier mk2]

Glass is better in a curved hull structure because it really isn't stiff in a flat panel layout. If it is flexing significantly it will lose strength fairly rapidly. Richard Woods would be able to tell you what the scantlings should be for that construction or if it is even okay. Many boats built for sheet ply or sheet fiberglass used the same frames/bulkheads with wood stringers to eliminate the flex. Foam stringers need the correct layup for strength/stiffness. Maybe the crunching is in the foam stringer area? Poke the thing all around and really check out the glass while waiting for feedback.

[waynecollett]

was this windsong based in hull and what condition was it in, was it called first and last.

I'm looking at a woods windsong catamaran, she was built in 2004 with grp flat panel hulls on wbp plywood bulkheads.

While checking all the bulkheads for any rot I noticed the hull around the waterline made a slight crunching noise when I depressed it. The layup looks neat and there is no visible sign of cracking so after a moments consideration Iturned my attention back to the badly rotten beam box. I spent most of my time looking for rot in ply and didn't really consider the grp hull as a potential problem area.

Was gonna make an offer on the boat today but woke up being haunted by the crunching sound, any ideas of what it could be, how serious it is and how easy a repair would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks[/quote]

[waynecollett]

was this cat based in hull

[resynth]

cat is called first and last, based in hull.

condition worrying, needs significant structural repairs due to being made of cheap ply, also issue with poorly laminated foam stringers.

[waynecollett]

is it worth 1500, or will this be total waste of time. i can do fibreglassing and carpentry.so thats not a problem.

[oldsailor7]

"I noticed the hull around the waterline made a slight crunching noise when I depressed it."
I would say the very fact that you could depress it is bad news.

[resynth]

waste of time I'm afraid wayne, he's accepted an offer for a lot more than that

[cavalier mk2]

Rejoice.

[redreuben]

Lucky escape ?