Im looking at buying a 1986 Hunter 25.5. Clean interior except has some soft floor boards forward. What concerns me is a rough patch by the keel and some connected cracks. Any way to tell if it is cosmetic or something more serious? Boat is being offered for a great price....
are these cracks bad news?
- Thread starter HudsonRiverSailor
- Start date
Is that the front or the rear of the keel. If the rear, then the prior owner impacted something under the water and buckled the rear gelcoat/laminate layer. It's not terminal....
The crack is on the front part of the keel, port side. My concern was the interior cabin does have soft floor decking foward, but otherwise cabinband rest of boat very clean and in good shape....
These are the wings in your keel where they have bolts going up to your bilge. I would suspect that upon impact your keel bolts may not have been snugged up and need to be re-torqued. Then I would suggest using some fairing compound and smooth out the surface, then re-paint.:dance:
A survey should be done before you purchase, but at this point if you feel most of the rest of the boat is ok, you may want to just get a yard estimate to fix it. That will tell you both the extent of the damage and the repair cost.
I have learned the hard way that owners who neglected obvious maintance also neglected a whole lot more and the boat may have numerous issues?
I have learned the hard way that owners who neglected obvious maintance also neglected a whole lot more and the boat may have numerous issues?
Clean
I think you need to start removing all the old paint and what ever
was used at the seam of hull to keel and get better look and see
what is going on.
That keel needs to be cleaned like removing the old paint down to
bare metal or what ever the keel is made of and where the seam
meets the hull needs cleaning out and needs 5200 to allow some flex
and if you use some thing hard it will always cause cracking.
I was told by a pro to use 5200 where the hull meets the keel joint.
nick
I think you need to start removing all the old paint and what ever
was used at the seam of hull to keel and get better look and see
what is going on.
That keel needs to be cleaned like removing the old paint down to
bare metal or what ever the keel is made of and where the seam
meets the hull needs cleaning out and needs 5200 to allow some flex
and if you use some thing hard it will always cause cracking.
I was told by a pro to use 5200 where the hull meets the keel joint.
nick
If in the shopping phase, I agree with a yard estimate to fix or have an independent surveyor look at it. Personally, I would most likely pass unless the deal was too good to pass up based on others out there of the same type you are looking for. We passed on several good deals with "easy fixes". Just my two cents
Soft sole and cracks near the keel? I would suggest you pass on it. There are plenty of boats out there for sale in structurally sound condition at fair prices.
If the boat can be bought at a cheap price, before purchase, I would advise a survey which of course you would be responsible to pay. If the yard advises a high cost to repair, then that would be considered too but what is very concerning is a soft sole and that I would suggest passing on sir and this comes from a retired small boat dealer for Hunter. I noted what appears to be rust in that crack and that alone tells me like others to look at other boats.
Thank you and for all the helpful posts....it is a great deal, and I really like the 25.5 model, have looked at several. I assume the concern with a soft sole is that is caused by by a leak in the cabin which may have infiltrated the keel.... thus the "bargain" price??
You have hundreds of years of sailing experience here advising you to be extremely cautious AND get estimates for repair! Surveyors are cheap when they save you thousands! Chief
I believe you are looking at a complete paint remove, re-patch, and re paint. The rust on the keel probably means you have to have it totally cleaned, dried, and re- sealed. I would get a professional surveyor. CAREFUL.