Hull repaint(?) from beaching

[GatorKev]

Greetings, back on here after a 10 year "vacation". Just picked up an 07 RXP in very decent condition but it looks like it was beached quite a bit. Anyone have suggestions on how to fix the hull? Not sure if it is just paint that is worn/chipping off or not. No big gouges that I have found yet. This is looking with the front of the ski to the bottom right of the pic. Thanks for any input!

 

[Greg Moore]

Bottoms aren't painted, they're gel coated. I almost think someone has in fact painted it at some time.. Either from significant damage or way too much grounding. Best way to proceed would be to strip it to raw glass and re-gel it. This is a huge job! Gel coat is like working with lumpy stone covering.. I've fixed a couple of friends hulls that get beached in areas with some rock.. I've used JB Weld, lots of it. Sand the worn areas to be spotless, spread the JB slowly and evenly, try to not work it too much, you'll get air bubbles in it, but try to smooth it as much as possible because it's really hard to shape once set. It's tougher than gel and will take more beaching...

 

[GatorKev]

Thanks for the reply. I took a closer look underneath it and it appears to have been painted before like you said. Everything looks smooth and the wear is pretty consistent along the bottom. I think the original owner just used to beach the heck out of it and repainted at some point. The guy I got it from had 2 he purchased from a different owner (vins were just number or so off). Both skis had wear on the hulls very similar so beaching was most likely the issue. I have read that people have had decent success with just painting the bottom, some with the appliance epoxy so I am going to research more and look at that option and possibly see how that works. At least it may get me through the season if nothing else. Thanks again for the reply!