The wire was first threaded through the plastic disc, then 3 layers of matt added. Wet out the matting, then fold the plastic disc,(with wetted cloth) into a taco shell shape. This allows you to insert it inside the hull. When you let go, the disc & cloth layers will pop back into a nearly flat shape.
Pulling slightly on the wires keeps the patch pressed tight against the contour of the hull, from the inside.
Wipe off the resin that squeezed out,(A plastic spatula works great) so that none remains above the level of the original hull material, & twist the wire around a stick to hold things til cured. Once cured snip the wires flush & grind them down slightly with a dremel.
You now have stiff backing inside the hull. Now add 2-3 more layers of woven matt from the outside. Use minimal resin,squeegee excess off with a plastic spatula, try not to finish up above the level of the gelcoat. This will leave room to add a thin layer of gelcoat if you want to make it look good.
I left the boat in the water for 5 days, sailed 3 of them, one being a big wind bash hell out of the boat day & only drained about a cup of water from the hull, SUCCESS! No more wrestling the boat over the wall onto the lawn to drain it every few days. Plus that area of the hull is way stiffer than when the boat was new.
A quick sand & it's ready to gelcoat, but that's a winter project.
I thought about using fishline or nylon parachute cord instead of the SS wire. You would have to thread the line on a needle to get it through the matting, & it would be more difficult to tie in place. I had thought the wire might work its way through, leaving a pinhole leak, so I ground it down before adding the outer layers. In the end, I don't think it matters.
