Boat Repair

I have an older Fibergalss (my dad's old boat) that I am trying to repair. I have to repair the transom but the major problem is all the finish is gone from the fiberglass. Whenever you sit down or rub up against the inside you get the fibers in your skin. How is the best way to repair this?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

Sand it with 100 grit and coat it with epoxy. Sand it again then apply a coat of marine paint, or at least acrylic house paint.

Wear a dust mask when sanding.

Is there any damage other than sun exposure and transom?

 

Agreed, sand it down and over coat with epoxy, but two coats will be better, three even better. This offers some film thickness for light sanding prior to paint.

Old production boat transoms are often found with rotten cores (the plywood inside them). Have a good look, before investing in paint and epoxy.

 

Interesting,-- why not a couple of coats of wax free polyester gel coat and a final wax added gel coat of the desired colour. Just curious as I have often done this with no negative results ??

 

transom

Yes - the plywood inside the inner and outer fiberglass part of the transom is rotted. I have read about various ways to repair this so I though I would give it a try. Boat does not get used much anymore but I would like to use it instead of taking out pontoon every time I want to go fishing. Overkill for one person going to the lake. No, everything else is great.

Thanks for the information on the epoxy. I will certainly give that a try.

 

Very typical of plywood cored transoms and a pain in the neck job.

 

rapair

The good thing is the boat is small so with the help of my ladyfriend we should be able to dig at the plywood for a while and turn it over to get the slivers out. Might take a while but should be easy (I hope). Now I just have to talk her into helping lol. Right now we are working on renovating a 1978 5th wheel camper, a 1970 Airstream and a 1983 Toyota 4/4 pickup. Too many projects and so little $$$$$$. lol

 

Know exactly how you feel -- we have our 26ft. custom built camper(from the frame up) about 95% completed (but being used,)-- Our 30ft. surfboat to motorsailer conversion about 25% completed,( launch date 2 yrs.)--restoration work on a 1988tj big game hunting Jeep ongoing,(has to be ready for Sept/oct.? trip to Newfoundland)-- My dock and marine haulout about 75% completed,( complete in time for launch date)-- New windows and siding install (free work) on my sons house 75% completed,(has to be ready before i leave for moose hunting trip to NFLD.)-- A complete overhaul of out 25 yr. old B&B just started,( ongoing until I die)-- all while working about 25hrs. a week construction to build up my boat fund. To top it all of i'm almost 70yrs. old and running out of time. So relax take it as it comes -- work will expand to fill the time, I find that good rum (my choice Eldorado 12 yr.) and of course the shop(oh! I f--ked up) chair provide a good place to sit , ponder and drink it gotta go it's a civic holiday here in Halifax and my son is on the phone wondering where i am .---Geo.

A yacht is not defined by the vessel but by the care and love of her owner---

 

I got free ownership of a kayak for just this reason. 2 or 3 coats of solvent thinned epoxy to fix it. Then paint. Use solvent thinned epoxy because it is much easier to apply (compared to 'regular' epoxy which is like painting with honey) and may 'soak in' a bit more. No magic # how now much to thin. -

paul
progressive epoxy polymers

 

Applying epoxy with a brush is a fools game, use a roller, squeegee, plastic applicator, etc., which will apply a uniform thickness the full width of the blade. It will require a few dozen feet of "pulls" to get the hang of it, but once you do, you'll only use a brush to get into tight spots, where only these seem to work.

Transoms are a dirty job, but not especially difficult. Thee are many previous posts on the subject, so try the search tool and see what you find.

I wouldn't see a need for thinned epoxy on a transom job. It's a pretty rare thing to need to thin epoxy and as part of a coating system, not the best route to go, as the out gassing solvents often leave pin holes and passageways to the substrate, which is self defeating in most cases. In the case of the bare fibers, just roll out a couple of coats of straight laminating resin, with the appropriate hardener for conditions. This will seal the damaged laminate, lock down any loose fibers and offer sufficient film thickness to act as a moisture barrier. If you actually want to get better penetration with a lower viscosity resin, then warm both the substrate and resin to say 90 degrees. Let the substrate start to cool (insure it's not still warming up) and apply the warm epoxy. The viscosity will be much like water and it'll get sucked into any voids within the laminate as a result of the contracting gases within. Of course this is only possible with a slow or extra slow hardener.