I need to repair a hole in my hull and I'm wondering whether Hunter used epoxy or polyester resin.
1990 Hunter 27 resin type
- Thread starter dsrawlins
- Start date
I don’t know that specific model, but I’m not aware of any production boats from that era (or any other era really) that used epoxy. They may have also used some vinylester below the waterline to prevent osmotic blistering. Polyester is much less expensive for manufacturers and in some ways easier for them to work with, for example when applying gelcoat.
For a (presumably structural) hull repair I’d use epoxy regardless of the underlying resin. Epoxy sticks perfectly well to polyester, vinylester, and epoxy, as long as the surfaces are prepped properly. Polyester is more temperamental about getting a good bond to the underlying material, the cost difference on the scale of a typical DIY job is not that great, and polyester has a shorter shelf life so it’s less likely any leftover can be saved for future jobs. If the area will be over coated with gelcoat and not paint epoxy is a little trickier, but there are ways to manage that, and I’d rather worry about how to get a good bond for the cosmetic layers than for the structural ones.
For a (presumably structural) hull repair I’d use epoxy regardless of the underlying resin. Epoxy sticks perfectly well to polyester, vinylester, and epoxy, as long as the surfaces are prepped properly. Polyester is more temperamental about getting a good bond to the underlying material, the cost difference on the scale of a typical DIY job is not that great, and polyester has a shorter shelf life so it’s less likely any leftover can be saved for future jobs. If the area will be over coated with gelcoat and not paint epoxy is a little trickier, but there are ways to manage that, and I’d rather worry about how to get a good bond for the cosmetic layers than for the structural ones.
Thanks for the quick response! This is below the waterline so I was thinking of using epoxy with a barrier coat instead of gelcoat, and then bottom paint.
By the way, be sure to bevel the surface for an underwater fix like that to get a good bonding surface. Here’s a pretty good walkthrough of the process -
He’s using polyester in his example rather than epoxy, but the general steps are the same. You just wouldn’t use Chopped Strand Mat as it’s less compatible with epoxy.
And his discussion of resin compatibility is at
The discussion about below the waterline is at 8:40.
Epoxy would be my choice too. Epoxy, polyester, and vinylester, all have good chemical bonding. That is the bonding that occurs before the resin fully cures while the hull or deck is being built. Epoxy far exceeds the esters for mechanical or adhesive bonding which is the bond you are looking for in a repair.