Hi, I just picked up a used Hobie 16. I just noticed a small crack (probably 1 to 2 inches long) in the hull close to where it joins the trapeze. The crack comes straight out from the pylon.
I read a post, from May I think, with a similar problem and response seemed to be that this isn't a major problem, but there were still no suggestions on how to fix it. I'm assuming leaving it as is will just allow it to spread.
Can anyone tell me if I can just epoxy over it or if I should I be doing something more involved?
Thanks,
Wally
How about a photo?
I'd just keep an eye on it. It's probably just in the gel coat, which is much more brittle than the underlying glass/resin.
if you're lucky enough that it's only in the gelcoat then yeah it should be ok as long as you watch it, and you could repair it just by redoing the gelcoat on that area I guess. If it goes all the way through then I think you're in trouble. That seems like a kinda crappy place to have to do any fiberglass, too bad you cant access the insides of the hulls on the 16s.
A photo would really help here. However, if your pylon seems very secure, it is most likely just a cosmetic problem with the gelocoat. Do not try to simply epoxy over it...it won`t work. If you want to repair it, gouge out the crack with an awl or cut it into a V-shape with a Dremel. Do not go through the whole gelcoat layer when you do this. Then, match up colors and use some gelcoat paste to fill (slightly overfill) the crack and wetsand untill flush. Then you can finish with a compound and polish.
Dave
There are a few spots I need to do gelcoat on too. I was looking at some other boats in the area where I store mine and one guy had redone fiberglass and that looked ok but the stuff he had put over it looked more like just regular paint or something. My new gelcoat wont look like this, will it? I had originally imagined it looking pretty much like the gelcoat that's already on there.