On my 1984 Spindrift Rascal I want to repair gunwale impact damage from dock. Previous owner did not use fenders ughh. I am not sure what material is found in between inner and outer layers of fiberglass. Any idea! I was looking at a few putty products but not sure what is best structural polyester resin putty or vinyl ester structural putty or something else?
Gunwale repair
- Thread starter PConti2025
- Start date
My personal favorite is a slurry of resin, thickener and 1/4" chop strand. You'll have less things to buy if you get resin and a thickener such as 404 as they are more versatile, as opposed to the same materials plus a dedicated structural filler.
West Systems and TotalBoat are the most common brand names for epoxy resin. I've used both and I can't tell the difference between them. TotalBoat is less expensive. I do use West fillers, mainly because I haven't bothered to look up the generic names for their 404, 406, etc fillers. I got the chop strand from Express Composites in Minnesota. There's multiple ways to approach this repair. As such, you will see multiple opinions.
RE'; am not sure what material is found in between inner and outer layers of fiberglass.
That could be any kind of sealant,. Don't worry too much about it.
RE; I was looking at a few putty products
As Project Mayhem has suggested, An epoxy with a filling agent like chopped fibre glass, silica or micro balloons.
RE: what is best structural polyester resin putty or vinyl ester structural putty or something else?
Epoxy stick really well to any clean well prepared surface. For a marine repair it is the way to go.
RE: Ok. I wonder if you have a brand name for each that I can look for
You will get a bit of a shock at what they are asking for epoxy in small quantities.
I would look on line and see what is available as a repair kit.
Don't worry too much about brand for a job like that.
You really should check out Boatworks Today. very informative.
gary
That could be any kind of sealant,. Don't worry too much about it.
RE; I was looking at a few putty products
As Project Mayhem has suggested, An epoxy with a filling agent like chopped fibre glass, silica or micro balloons.
RE: what is best structural polyester resin putty or vinyl ester structural putty or something else?
Epoxy stick really well to any clean well prepared surface. For a marine repair it is the way to go.
RE: Ok. I wonder if you have a brand name for each that I can look for
You will get a bit of a shock at what they are asking for epoxy in small quantities.
I would look on line and see what is available as a repair kit.
Don't worry too much about brand for a job like that.
You really should check out Boatworks Today. very informative.
gary
Your repairs are soooo small in volume you might be find it more cost efficient and simpler to use emergency repair epoxy putty to fill in the voids, then work of making the surface look nice as a separate project. If you have not worked with this stuff before, the putty comes as two separate "sticks", each represents one of the 2-part epoxy formula already in a thickener... you simply put on some rubber gloves, mash the putty up in the palm of your hand until the two halves are well blended. Work the putty into place, shape it with a putty knife and let it set.
There are several brands to choose from but personally, I can't say anything bad about JB Weld products.
I use JB weld products all the time and I've always been satisfied with how they work.
There are several brands to choose from but personally, I can't say anything bad about JB Weld products.
I use JB weld products all the time and I've always been satisfied with how they work.
Thickened epoxy would require you to flip the boat over or use tape and inject it with a syringe. However, you can vary the thickness of it. I would start out with a thinner mixture to get into the depths of that void (you'd need to do more grinding to gain access if you used plumbers epoxy). Then, thicken it up for the rest of the repair. Flipping the boat over would make this substantially easier. As you can see, there are multiple approaches, each with their positives and negatives
I believe micro balloons are hollow? Would that make the repair a bit weaker? If I remember correctly, this is usually the filler used for fairing as it's easier to sand. I usually use silica/404 as a general purpose thickener
Plumbers epoxy is tough stuff! I found it harder to grind than fiberglass. It was the only stuff that would stick when I had an underwater leak. I keep some on board for emergencies