I noticed a thread on cracking plastic and wanted to share my experience with my Hunter 146. A few years ago I bought my first sailboat, a new 146. The next spring when I got it out of storage the top of the hull looked like an eggshell with 8 significant cracks. My dealer was excellent and informed me that Hunter's vendor had supplied a bad batch of plastic. Hunter completely replaced my boat but it took the entire summer season to receive the replacement. Three weeks ago I was going to take out my 146 and I discovered a crack by the port stay. The dealer has not called me back yet. I am having serious doubts that sailboats should ever be made out of plastic. It seems so fragile and unreliable. Two questions: 1). Assuming my boat does not crack all over like the previous one, can the crack be repaired so that it does not look like a patch and so it won't re-crack? 2). I am seriously considering whether I should trade this plastic boat for one that I can count on being around in 20 years. Can anybody tell me if a fiberglass sailboat is as fragile? How do figerglass boats "feel" compared to my 146? (Keep in mind that my sailing experience is limited to a 146.) Thanks!
146 Cracks in Plastic
- Thread starter Wayne Arnold
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john
cracks are a pain
Hi Wayne, I am not an expert here, my 170 is my first boat as well. Perhaps someone who has owned both could chime in. Cracks are a pain, but they are easily fixed. I think the fiberglass boat equivalent would be painting the bottom every couple of years. Fiberglass can also blister, crack, delaminate, oil-can, and rot. I have seen many fiberglass boats laid up in boat yards getting a new coat of resin after some kind of repair. And let's say you ram a stationary object at high speed (see "too stupid to sail" for details), I think a fiberglass boat would not be sailing today, probably would have a huge hole in the bow. My 170 has two pretty good scratches and quite a few very very small ones. ABS is not quite as "maintaince free" as they claim, but it's close, and that's not bad. John
Hi Wayne, I am not an expert here, my 170 is my first boat as well. Perhaps someone who has owned both could chime in. Cracks are a pain, but they are easily fixed. I think the fiberglass boat equivalent would be painting the bottom every couple of years. Fiberglass can also blister, crack, delaminate, oil-can, and rot. I have seen many fiberglass boats laid up in boat yards getting a new coat of resin after some kind of repair. And let's say you ram a stationary object at high speed (see "too stupid to sail" for details), I think a fiberglass boat would not be sailing today, probably would have a huge hole in the bow. My 170 has two pretty good scratches and quite a few very very small ones. ABS is not quite as "maintaince free" as they claim, but it's close, and that's not bad. John
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john
wow!
OK, I had cracks - you have something more dramitic. Maybe we should call it "catastrophic failure of outer hull material." I would forward those pics to hunter, maybe they would replace the hull again. I don't think this kind of crack is common. john
OK, I had cracks - you have something more dramitic. Maybe we should call it "catastrophic failure of outer hull material." I would forward those pics to hunter, maybe they would replace the hull again. I don't think this kind of crack is common. john
Cracks
John, the cracks in the picture are from my 2003 146. 2003 was when Hunter said they had a bad batch of plastic from their vendor. Hunter did replace that entire boat in 2006. Can't complain even though I lost a whole sailing season. They stood behind their warranty. My new 2006 hull only has one 6 inch crack so far. What scares me is that my 2003 hull problems started this same way. Got an e-mail from my dealer that they are now seeing newer Hunter boats with cracks. So much for it only being 2003 hulls. Hunter is trying to figure out what is going on and what to do about it. You said you have had cracks in your 170. If you wouldn't mind, could you tell me if they got worse or just stayed the same over time. Thanks, Wayne
John, the cracks in the picture are from my 2003 146. 2003 was when Hunter said they had a bad batch of plastic from their vendor. Hunter did replace that entire boat in 2006. Can't complain even though I lost a whole sailing season. They stood behind their warranty. My new 2006 hull only has one 6 inch crack so far. What scares me is that my 2003 hull problems started this same way. Got an e-mail from my dealer that they are now seeing newer Hunter boats with cracks. So much for it only being 2003 hulls. Hunter is trying to figure out what is going on and what to do about it. You said you have had cracks in your 170. If you wouldn't mind, could you tell me if they got worse or just stayed the same over time. Thanks, Wayne
No cracks on my 04 146
Ouch...I've got a 2004 146 that I bought new. No cracks yet, knock on ABS... Please do post a follow up here, as I am very interested in this topic, as we all are. Also, what kind of cover did you have made? My last boat, a 16' Rebel, had a beautiful custom-built cover by a local craftsman. Kept the boat clean and dry while kept at the dock, and kept curious eyes away from anything I might want to leave on board. With the 146, I was told that with such a high boom, a full cover would be too much area, and would get blown away. I tried one that is like a giant shower cap, that bungees around the perimiter of the boat and hangs below the boom, but that a) means you still nneed a boom cover b) is near impossible to put on c) takes too long, esp. if you also have to put on a boom cover. So I have only the boom cover, which is nice in tha tit lets me leave hte main rigged, BUT, the boat is always so dirty - my dock is very close to shore, so is constantly getting acorns, leaves, bugs... Anyhow, interested to know what solution you have found. Good luck with Hunter - I hope they take care of your issues.
Ouch...I've got a 2004 146 that I bought new. No cracks yet, knock on ABS... Please do post a follow up here, as I am very interested in this topic, as we all are. Also, what kind of cover did you have made? My last boat, a 16' Rebel, had a beautiful custom-built cover by a local craftsman. Kept the boat clean and dry while kept at the dock, and kept curious eyes away from anything I might want to leave on board. With the 146, I was told that with such a high boom, a full cover would be too much area, and would get blown away. I tried one that is like a giant shower cap, that bungees around the perimiter of the boat and hangs below the boom, but that a) means you still nneed a boom cover b) is near impossible to put on c) takes too long, esp. if you also have to put on a boom cover. So I have only the boom cover, which is nice in tha tit lets me leave hte main rigged, BUT, the boat is always so dirty - my dock is very close to shore, so is constantly getting acorns, leaves, bugs... Anyhow, interested to know what solution you have found. Good luck with Hunter - I hope they take care of your issues.
Cover
Thanks for the response, Tereza. I will let you know how things turn out with Hunter. As for the cover, a small company in Rogers Minnesota called Canvas Plus made it for me. They make covers mainly for speedboats, pontoons, and even canvas ice fish houses (very popular around here). I wanted one cover that I could use for mooring fully rigged, and also for trailering and winter storage. I also figured that keeping the sun off the plastic might be wise. I was really pleased how it turned out. It does not go as high up the mast as it sounds like your cover on your Rebel did. I don't have to fight bungees since it snaps under the rub rail. You are right that when mooring I still need to use the sail cover and jib sock, but that was the compromise so I could get a cover usable when I trailer the boat. It really is not too bad to put on, particularly when I sit in my hammock and make my teenage daughter do it! This weekend I will shoot a picture of it so you can see what it looks like.
Thanks for the response, Tereza. I will let you know how things turn out with Hunter. As for the cover, a small company in Rogers Minnesota called Canvas Plus made it for me. They make covers mainly for speedboats, pontoons, and even canvas ice fish houses (very popular around here). I wanted one cover that I could use for mooring fully rigged, and also for trailering and winter storage. I also figured that keeping the sun off the plastic might be wise. I was really pleased how it turned out. It does not go as high up the mast as it sounds like your cover on your Rebel did. I don't have to fight bungees since it snaps under the rub rail. You are right that when mooring I still need to use the sail cover and jib sock, but that was the compromise so I could get a cover usable when I trailer the boat. It really is not too bad to put on, particularly when I sit in my hammock and make my teenage daughter do it! This weekend I will shoot a picture of it so you can see what it looks like.
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john
stress cracks
My original hull was a 1998. I bought it used and it came with some cracks. I called hunter to ask about the proper technique for fixing cracks and they replaced the hull. It seems 1998 was also a bad year for plastic, and they said it was just a matter of time before my hull looked like yours. Since then I have developed some stress cracks, it took a year or two for me to figure out that whenever I raise the centerboard I also ought to uncleat the rudder. Once the rudder digs in it can be a real pain to dislodge it from the lake bottom, some cracks started to apear around the rudder mount. I did remove all the hardware and fix the cracks near the rudder mount, I did this in the fall. My big fear was that water would get in and freeze over the winter and turn little cracks into big cracks. Since I have learned to raise my rudder before I ground it I have not had any other cracks in four years. john
My original hull was a 1998. I bought it used and it came with some cracks. I called hunter to ask about the proper technique for fixing cracks and they replaced the hull. It seems 1998 was also a bad year for plastic, and they said it was just a matter of time before my hull looked like yours. Since then I have developed some stress cracks, it took a year or two for me to figure out that whenever I raise the centerboard I also ought to uncleat the rudder. Once the rudder digs in it can be a real pain to dislodge it from the lake bottom, some cracks started to apear around the rudder mount. I did remove all the hardware and fix the cracks near the rudder mount, I did this in the fall. My big fear was that water would get in and freeze over the winter and turn little cracks into big cracks. Since I have learned to raise my rudder before I ground it I have not had any other cracks in four years. john
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