Hey guys.I just spontaneously ordered a new tramp for the H16,then got to thinking-How's last years delam job holding up?
Well,the decks are doing good except for one small spot my round neighbor stepped on.This years problem seems to be the hulls themselves.They felt fine last year so I just did the decks,but I just walked out to check and they both feel delaminated.Not soft really,no crunching sound thankfully,just like the gel has pulled away from the glass.My question is -- can they be injected in place,on the frame? I was thinking maybe drill the gelcoat on the top and bottom edges of the delam,shoot the resin into the top holes until it runs out the bottom holes,tape em off and keep moving until done.
I've been reading up and think for monetary reasons I may just go with Bondo resin instead of west systems this time.Or would git-rot be more advisable for the forward sections of the hulls.I sail mostly sound waters with a yearly trip or two to Ocracoke.Nothing too hardcore.
Also,how do I know how deep to drill the holes?
On the decks,I taped off the bit about 3/16" and went to town.This seemed to work well,but in a couple spots if felt as if the west system were shooting completely through and winding up in the bottom of the inner hull.Thanks for any input and my apologies for any redundant posts,David.

Man, if it went all the way through, you lost a lot of epoxy from the area where the epoxy was squeezed in under pressure and the fiberglass squeezed it further into there until it completely cured. If you go all the way through, plug it up with a dowel ect and finish the job, go back after the fact and fill with fast curing, thickened epoxy to plug the hole fast before it all flows into the hull. Some people will cut a port near there and repair from the inside out with fiberglass tape and polyester epoxy - i guess it depends if you're fixing a $800 boat or a $8000 boat as to how far and how much time and money you're willing to spend making it perfect.
Bottom line, never drill all the way through. Barely penetrate top layer then use same dia drill bit using your fingers to get through foam and stop at bottom glass layer. You want the epoxy to spread out evenly and completely between the layers filling all voids. Git-rot flows well but remains slightly flexible when cured - great from my experience in the bows - but i prefer ROCK SOLID from the front pylons to the very back. My repairs on my H16 are 100% solid now as they we're this time last year when i did repairs and i've sailed it hard and fast with 400# of people on it min. all last year. Gonna blast it hard again at OSYC in a few weeks

One more tip. Don't let people ever stand on or jump from the hulls. My crew and I ease on and off the hulls when launching and landing but otherwise keep the party on the trampoline



Edited by fxloop on Mar 21, 2013 - 09:38 PM.

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Tim Grover
1996 Hobie Miracle 20
Two Hobie 14's
1983 G-Cat Restored
Memphis TN / North Mississippi
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