By now everyone is aware that the thermoplastic JY15, Hunter 146, 170, & 216 are all prone to cracking. A few weeks ago I purchased a 2004 Hunter 216 that had a small 6” crack at the bottom of the companionway and a large (aprox. 3’ long) crack from the mast step to the port side rail on the cabin top. This crack on the cabin top seems to be a common place for the 216 to crack as every one I looked at had this crack. I bought the boat for next to nothing and was determined to repair the boat. My first stop was this forum and now I’d like to share my experience in how I went about repairing the cracks on my 216.
I have learned from the forum and from seeing repairs in person on 216’s and JY15’s that the regular fiberglass boat repair method of epoxy & fiberglass is NOT the way to go as the thermodynamics of epoxy is different from the thermodynamics of the plastic hull meaning the epoxy and the plastic hull will expand and contract at different rates and at some point, the repair will crack again. After reading many posts, I was ready to choose between the tried-and-true method of Plexus and a newer product called West System G-Flex. Before pulling the trigger, I wanted to make sure I wasn’t overlooking any repair option. I took a step back, left the “boat” part behind and thought “how do I repair plastic” and that’s when I came across what auto shops, ATV, and motorcycle guys have known all along – plastic welding.
These boats are made from BASF Plastics product called Luran S which is a thermoplastic Acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate or ASA. Many people refer to the plastic as ABS which is incorrect. They are both styrene based, but ASA is more resistant to temperature changes than ABS. I found a company that specialized in plastic repair products called www.polyvance.com and reached out to them about my repair. They were very knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly and set me up with a Mini-welder model 7 along with some ASA welding rod. I think I spent $200 for both.
To complete the repair, I dremmeled out the crack, then used the welder to heat up the edges of the crack. The ASA welding rod is then inserted into the welder and comes out like a hot glue gun. I made sure the crack walls were still tacky to ensure a good bond with the ASA rod with the base material. I then used the welder like an iron to smooth out the repair and further ensure the repair was well bonded to the base material. You can sand it as soon as it cools, but I came back the next day and hit it with 100, then 220 grit sand paper. It can use some body filler, a good sanding, and some paint, but right now I am thrilled with how the repair came out! I’ll keep you updated on the repairs hold up long term. I have attached some pictures of the small companionway crack I repaired. The repairs are super strong, I can push on it, bang on it and it feels like any other spot on the boat!
I have learned from the forum and from seeing repairs in person on 216’s and JY15’s that the regular fiberglass boat repair method of epoxy & fiberglass is NOT the way to go as the thermodynamics of epoxy is different from the thermodynamics of the plastic hull meaning the epoxy and the plastic hull will expand and contract at different rates and at some point, the repair will crack again. After reading many posts, I was ready to choose between the tried-and-true method of Plexus and a newer product called West System G-Flex. Before pulling the trigger, I wanted to make sure I wasn’t overlooking any repair option. I took a step back, left the “boat” part behind and thought “how do I repair plastic” and that’s when I came across what auto shops, ATV, and motorcycle guys have known all along – plastic welding.
These boats are made from BASF Plastics product called Luran S which is a thermoplastic Acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate or ASA. Many people refer to the plastic as ABS which is incorrect. They are both styrene based, but ASA is more resistant to temperature changes than ABS. I found a company that specialized in plastic repair products called www.polyvance.com and reached out to them about my repair. They were very knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly and set me up with a Mini-welder model 7 along with some ASA welding rod. I think I spent $200 for both.
To complete the repair, I dremmeled out the crack, then used the welder to heat up the edges of the crack. The ASA welding rod is then inserted into the welder and comes out like a hot glue gun. I made sure the crack walls were still tacky to ensure a good bond with the ASA rod with the base material. I then used the welder like an iron to smooth out the repair and further ensure the repair was well bonded to the base material. You can sand it as soon as it cools, but I came back the next day and hit it with 100, then 220 grit sand paper. It can use some body filler, a good sanding, and some paint, but right now I am thrilled with how the repair came out! I’ll keep you updated on the repairs hold up long term. I have attached some pictures of the small companionway crack I repaired. The repairs are super strong, I can push on it, bang on it and it feels like any other spot on the boat!
Attachments
-
84.5 KB Views: 1,851
-
88 KB Views: 1,739
-
73.4 KB Views: 1,777