Gelcoat or fiberglass repair?

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gtoimpulse

gtoimpulse

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I am new to boating and hit a rock or something that caused this gouge in the fin on the hull of my Speedster. :facepalm:

The other damage (in the background) was there already and I think I need to add some fiberglass to it before gelcoating. Do you think that I need to fill in the fiberglass or I can just gelcoat over this long skinny one too?

Any advise is appreciated. I al installing my depth finder this weekend to hopefully prevent this in the future.
 

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Pictures aren't the greatest but from what I see you just went through the gel-coat. Doesn't look like you need to bother with any fiberglass. Make sure your fiberglass is not cracked, though.
 
From the photos looks like you have only took off the gel coat. I had good luck with this kit on a boat.

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...&subdeptNum=50219&classNum=50224#.Uh9-NT9RR8E

Preparation of the repair is key to a good fix. There was some great videos on YouTube that gave me the confidence to try it. My repair was 90% perfect for less than 50 bux. To get it done in the shop I was quoted $400.00.

You can buy the kit at BassPro shop.
 
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Thanks for the input. I will give it a try myself, its on the bottom so I can mess up a few times and redo if need be.
 
Heck... it's on the bottom......


I'd dab on a little white touch-up paint and call it a day.
 
gtoimpulse said:
Thanks for the input. I will give it a try myself, its on the bottom so I can mess up a few times and redo if need be.
Click to expand...

The real secret to gel coat is sand sand sand. I almost tempted to say let it be until you get more scratches. Then put the time into the repair. I maybe doing this process this winter/fall.
 
Get some Marine-Tex and call it a day, its white and no one will notice once u sand it smooth.
 
it's a Geloat job and you should fix it soon as the fiberglass will soak in the water. Make sure you clean it with acetone first (to get the moisture out). You need to mix the gelcoat with MEKP hardener which gives you about 15 minutes working time (depending on your ratio). I would wait 1-3 minutes after you mix it before you apply it so that it's not too liquid....as you will be working with a little bit gravity here. Technically you should use a plastic sheet or polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on top of it to let it cure without air. Than it's down to wet sanding. There is a lot of info on you tube. Here is the original gelcoat manufacturer for your boat: http://www.gelcoat.ca
 
Like I said, grab some marinetex- 2 part white epoxy, it will not come off once its on. Trust me, I used it on a few jet skis in the past.
 
A++++ On the marine-Tex, snad the area slightly then spread out the marinetex with an old credit card as a spatula, to seal from water entering glass matting, cover over during curing with a thickish release film to make baby-bottom smooth if you need it that way, otherwise wet snading will remove any rough edges remaining.

I use Marine-Tex on my white hull, and above deck, I have a new dent I noticed last week from a fishing weight smacked my boat, I think someone was fishing around my dock and tagged my boat!

Two weeks ago, I mixed up some and patched a pencil sized dent in my floor at the corner, just spatulaed it on with a WAL-Mart gift card and it looks great, can't even tell.
 
Very easy fix like the other stated. I would buy a universal gel cote repair kit for like 25 bucks. Stick it on, cover with wax paper, smooth out with a credit card. Wait 2 hours, then sand it smooth and buff. Wont notice it was ever there.
 
holby67 said:
Hello all, what else do I need besides this? http://www.amazon.com/Marine-Tex-Epoxy-Putty-WHITE/dp/B003WOGRA8
Does this kit include everything I need to fill in a small gouge on the hull of my boat?
Click to expand...

Most likely this will provide the results you desire, assuming your hull is white. I would clean the area with acetone solvent to remove any grease and wax, and a bit of sandpaper to scuff the surface for better adhesion. This is an epoxy though, not gel coat, Marine-Tex is easy to work with, has good adhesion and will provide a permanent water-tight bond. Some say it can yellow over time, but I"ve not noticed that in cases where I've used it to fill in gouges. It's paintable as well. Occasionally, I use an epoxy appliance paint.

I use a spatula often, such as an old credit card to apply these epoxies, and usually that leaves an adequately smooth surface for my purposes, a sheet of wax paper squeegeed on top during curing will produce a shiny smooth result that if done carefully, requires a minimum of wet sanding.
 
Exactly what I do. Usually lightly spray with white epoxy paint or colr matched paint when done.
 
I do have a white hull and just purchased the Marine-Tex 2oz epoxy kit. I have 2 small gouges at the stern on the left side. I don't have any pics and know that would help but approximately, how long does it take to apply this stuff including drying time? I don't plan on repainting the area until next year. Also what epoxy appliance paint do you recommend for a white hull?

Thanks!
 
holby67 said:
I do have a white hull and just purchased the Marine-Tex 2oz epoxy kit. I have 2 small gouges at the stern on the left side. I don't have any pics and know that would help but approximately, how long does it take to apply this stuff including drying time? I don't plan on repainting the area until next year. Also what epoxy appliance paint do you recommend for a white hull?

Thanks!
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It all kinda depends on what your expectations are, the size of the job at hand and whether you leave your boat in the water all season or all year.

The Marine -Tex comes with instructions, I think 8hrs curing time is about the way it goes but it depends on temperature, the warmer the faster the cure. Marine-Tex can even be applied and will cure under water. For a permanent paint that's going to be exposed to harsh conditions, and if you're going to repaint the entire vessel as opposed to a small patch, then perhaps a two-part paint such as Awl-Grip would better suit your purposes, it's well known for good performance in the marine industry. If I have an abraded area on my white hull that I want to make look better, I'll just fill the gouges with Marine-Tex and wet snad smooth, perhaps even give it a spray with an el-cheapo air cure epoxy appliance paint from Home Depot or Lowes. I don't leave my boat in the water constantly and it's a small boat, so I don't sweat going for the expensive stuff as I might if I were redoing a 30 foot Yacht or a rare boat worthy of doing with the best materials.

http://www.pbsboatstore.com/awlgrip.htm?gclid=CNvkvZKJ0bkCFVKf4AodizIAxw
 
Gelcoat/Fiberglass

gtoimpulse said:
I am new to boating and hit a rock or something that caused this gouge in the fin on the hull of my Speedster. :facepalm:

The other damage (in the background) was there already and I think I need to add some fiberglass to it before gelcoating. Do you think that I need to fill in the fiberglass or I can just gelcoat over this long skinny one too?

Any advise is appreciated. I al installing my depth finder this weekend to hopefully prevent this in the future.
Click to expand...

What did you end up doing? I have a hole in one of the fins on my boat. It's an actual hole a little smaller than a dime and I'm taking in water. Any suggestions on how to fix it?
 
I only used the gelcoat repair kit that I attached the link for in an earlier post. It worked great for me, but I wasn't taking on water. Sounds like you need to fill with some fiberglass repair kit before gelcoating. I am a rookie though, maybe someone else can give you better advice.
 
gtoimpulse said:
I only used the gelcoat repair kit that I attached the link for in an earlier post. It worked great for me, but I wasn't taking on water. Sounds like you need to fill with some fiberglass repair kit before gelcoating. I am a rookie though, maybe someone else can give you better advice.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I bought a fiberglass kit and will purchase the gelcoat to match my boat. It will be my spring project. Too cold now.
 
casims2000 said:
Thanks. I bought a fiberglass kit and will purchase the gelcoat to match my boat. It will be my spring project. Too cold now.
Click to expand...

Marine-Tex epoxy will work great for filling a hole, I've used it before to fill 3" transducer holes by cutting a puck insert out of old fiberglas and epoxying it in with Marine-Tex. One of my favorite tricks to adjusting viscosity of an epoxy is by adding sawdust as a thickener if it's too thin.

Even JB-Weld would work fine, but it's not white like Marine-Tex is. A gelcoat match involves a little more work involved for anything other than white. Kitty Hair is another product for filling holes which might work for ya'
 
Sportster-2001-951C-Stock said:
Marine-Tex epoxy will work great for filling a hole, I've used it before to fill 3" transducer holes by cutting a puck insert out of old fiberglas and epoxying it in with Marine-Tex. One of my favorite tricks to adjusting viscosity of an epoxy is by adding sawdust as a thickener if it's too thin.

Even JB-Weld would work fine, but it's not white like Marine-Tex is. A gelcoat match involves a little more work involved for anything other than white. Kitty Hair is another product for filling holes which might work for ya'
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info.
 
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