I have a couple days to decide to buy a Hunter 28.5 that has cracks on the fiberglass around the keel bolts. There is no water leakage but the cracks are considerable. Is this normal for this Hunter model?
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Jeff
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Ray Bowles
Pete, You would probably be better off to ...
have a survey done before buying the boat. If the present owner objects then I would walk. A professional survey will tell you everything good and bad about the boat. A small crack can lead to a hole that many wallets can't fix. Ray
have a survey done before buying the boat. If the present owner objects then I would walk. A professional survey will tell you everything good and bad about the boat. A small crack can lead to a hole that many wallets can't fix. Ray
Cracks round hull/keel joint
I wrote this earlier somewhere else and will repeat the gist of it here. Cracks round the keel/hull joint, ESPECIALLY only in front, are very common. They are almost certainly due to shock, which fibreglass does not take well, probably from bumping something about 4 ft down (imagine the available leverage and force. Something HAD to happen). But like most stress cracks in fibreglass it tends to be cosmetic. Seriously, I say to forget about it. Has the boat been floating recently? Was it leaking? Can you see light looking down into the bilge? I mean really. Filling with 5200 or a polyester resin-based filling compound, as you would any other crack for any other reason, is fine. Pay attention for fairing for speed just as much as for filling the void. Sometimes even paint alone makes it go away. [wink] If the bolts are not loose now, tightening them won't improve the crack situation. Stand the boat on the keel and see if the crack gets smaller. (Put a loose wedge in and see if it gets tighter.) If it does, lift it, fill it, set it down, and tighten the bolts. If they move at all I'll be VERY surprised, or it's a VERY old and/or abused boat. Fibreglass is flexible but it does not tend to shrink in thickness or under compression. If they got loose it may indicate another problem-- the keel was off once and not installed right, or the bedding agent was not right for the task, but I would NOT jump to the alarmist's conclusion and say that the keel is slowly falling off. I'd just fix the d*** crack and forget it. Dropping a keel, as for re-bedding, is like pulling a car engine-- sounds like a nightmare but it IS possible and not as bad as you'd think when you know what you're doing. And when you have to do it, it's the only thing you can do. But, a caveat-- investigate appropriate bedding agents through channels of real experience before visiting Home Depot, PLEASE!!!!! JC
I wrote this earlier somewhere else and will repeat the gist of it here. Cracks round the keel/hull joint, ESPECIALLY only in front, are very common. They are almost certainly due to shock, which fibreglass does not take well, probably from bumping something about 4 ft down (imagine the available leverage and force. Something HAD to happen). But like most stress cracks in fibreglass it tends to be cosmetic. Seriously, I say to forget about it. Has the boat been floating recently? Was it leaking? Can you see light looking down into the bilge? I mean really. Filling with 5200 or a polyester resin-based filling compound, as you would any other crack for any other reason, is fine. Pay attention for fairing for speed just as much as for filling the void. Sometimes even paint alone makes it go away. [wink] If the bolts are not loose now, tightening them won't improve the crack situation. Stand the boat on the keel and see if the crack gets smaller. (Put a loose wedge in and see if it gets tighter.) If it does, lift it, fill it, set it down, and tighten the bolts. If they move at all I'll be VERY surprised, or it's a VERY old and/or abused boat. Fibreglass is flexible but it does not tend to shrink in thickness or under compression. If they got loose it may indicate another problem-- the keel was off once and not installed right, or the bedding agent was not right for the task, but I would NOT jump to the alarmist's conclusion and say that the keel is slowly falling off. I'd just fix the d*** crack and forget it. Dropping a keel, as for re-bedding, is like pulling a car engine-- sounds like a nightmare but it IS possible and not as bad as you'd think when you know what you're doing. And when you have to do it, it's the only thing you can do. But, a caveat-- investigate appropriate bedding agents through channels of real experience before visiting Home Depot, PLEASE!!!!! JC
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Peter
Cracks around hull/keel joint
The cracks are internal. But its not just cracks. The area is not flat anymore, each side of the crack is at a diffent level. The surveyor could not tell me if it is a structural problem but said it is caused either by compression of the keel bolts or the boat had ran aground and the keel damaged the hull/keel joint.
The cracks are internal. But its not just cracks. The area is not flat anymore, each side of the crack is at a diffent level. The surveyor could not tell me if it is a structural problem but said it is caused either by compression of the keel bolts or the boat had ran aground and the keel damaged the hull/keel joint.
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Bill O'Donovan
Second opinion
That's some surveyor who can't tell if it's a structural problem. I'd get a second opinion from another surveyor. The other responses to your post are excellent, albeit conflicting. Certainly cracks happen, and they can be filled and faired.
That's some surveyor who can't tell if it's a structural problem. I'd get a second opinion from another surveyor. The other responses to your post are excellent, albeit conflicting. Certainly cracks happen, and they can be filled and faired.
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Peter
cracks on the keel bolts
Thanks to all for your responses. I believe you are talking about cracks on the outside (keel/hull joint) but this cracks are on the bilge. I don't beleive the cracks are at the hull but on a layer above it. Does anybody see cracks on the bilge around the keel bolts?
Thanks to all for your responses. I believe you are talking about cracks on the outside (keel/hull joint) but this cracks are on the bilge. I don't beleive the cracks are at the hull but on a layer above it. Does anybody see cracks on the bilge around the keel bolts?
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Ray Pollard
Cracks
When I bought my boat ('87 28.5) the surveyor said those cracks were probably there from manufacture. I have had the boat three years with no problem though you can see the cracks where the keel bolts were tightened down. Let us know if you learn anything else.
When I bought my boat ('87 28.5) the surveyor said those cracks were probably there from manufacture. I have had the boat three years with no problem though you can see the cracks where the keel bolts were tightened down. Let us know if you learn anything else.
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Rob Thayer
I'm with Ray
I have a '87 28.5 with the same cracked material around the Keel Bolts. My surveyor also said it was from time of manufacture. He said something about shrinkage of the filler material in that area. I have had the boat for 4 years with no problems.
I have a '87 28.5 with the same cracked material around the Keel Bolts. My surveyor also said it was from time of manufacture. He said something about shrinkage of the filler material in that area. I have had the boat for 4 years with no problems.
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