My springs work great as well. I often think that the guy that invented them was pretty sharp.
Ed, I've discovered void spaces between the gelcoat and the FRP also. But haven't been too concerned because I read about it ... Don Casey in his "Inspecting the Aging Sailboat" says:
Because of the numerous corners in a deck mold, gelcoat voids are all too common. It is not unusual to find a boat with a flawless hull and a deck as pockmarked as a rural road sign. Voids in the flat expanse of the deck suggest inferior layup technique; but if they are confined to sharp outside corners of the deck, they show only that the designer was more concerned with the style than the realities of production layup. Deck traffic quickly breaks out sizable voids; so an older boat without open voids means either good design and layup or voids that have been repaired."
And in his book on Sailboat Hull and Deck Repair"
Voids occur when the first layer of cloth is not compressed against the gelcoat ... While crisp angles and corners may look stylish, they are more difficult to mold with glass fabric. The fabric resists being forced into a tight corner and after saturation may take a more natural shape, pulling away from the gelcoated mold. The result is a void -- a pocket of air beneath the thin gelcoat, perhaps "bird caged" with a few strands of glass. The first time pressure is applied, the gelcoat breaks away like and eggshell, revealing the crater beneath.
On my boat, I found lots of small holes and void spaces behind in the area of the sharp ridge indentation for the eyebrow along the side of the cabin top. These became very evidence when I removed the eyebrow prior to painting the cabin top. (And decided that liked the look sans eyebrow better). I spent several hours filling and fairing the holes and breaks. Another bad area on my boat was around the sharp angles for the molded traveler platform. I am sure I've got more voids around. Just haven't been revealed to me yet.
