Hi, I was recently doing an in-depth look-see to my bottom paint (cause I'm eventually gonna repaint it) and I noticed that on the underside , along where the boat rests on the cradle, it seems to be deflected ever-so slightly. I'm concerned about the slight depression into the hull. Wil that eventually return to it's natural shape once I get the boat off the cradle and into the water? I suspect the boat hasn't seen water in several years, ( for sure 16 months). I don't see any stress cracks or obvious marks, shoul dI worry? Need thoughts. Mark
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Chass
Depressions
I noticed mine does too. It seems to go back to normal once I offload it from my trailer though. Not sure if I should be concerned as well. HAve noticed this for a year now and have seen no adverse effects. I am going to attempt to rebolster the supports this fall though and see if that helps.
I noticed mine does too. It seems to go back to normal once I offload it from my trailer though. Not sure if I should be concerned as well. HAve noticed this for a year now and have seen no adverse effects. I am going to attempt to rebolster the supports this fall though and see if that helps.
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Jay Tracy
Hull deflection
We bought a 1978 Columbia 9.6 that had sat in a cradle for 12 years and had hull deflection at the cradle contact points. The yard manager said they would not be a problem. A few months later we had the yard block the boat and we junked the cradle. The yard manager was correct, the deflections disappeared after a short period. Jay
We bought a 1978 Columbia 9.6 that had sat in a cradle for 12 years and had hull deflection at the cradle contact points. The yard manager said they would not be a problem. A few months later we had the yard block the boat and we junked the cradle. The yard manager was correct, the deflections disappeared after a short period. Jay
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james rohr
Hull deflections
If you are getting hull deflections from the boat sitting in cradle or on stands its because the pads are'nt under the bulkheads where they belong. It is of the utmost importance that the pads be under bulkheads. if there are depressions you can crack the jelcoat or barrier coat if that has been done. At the outer edge of depression you are cracking the underlying glass, even though you may not be able to see it. don't let a yard tell you that its not a problem. It is!
If you are getting hull deflections from the boat sitting in cradle or on stands its because the pads are'nt under the bulkheads where they belong. It is of the utmost importance that the pads be under bulkheads. if there are depressions you can crack the jelcoat or barrier coat if that has been done. At the outer edge of depression you are cracking the underlying glass, even though you may not be able to see it. don't let a yard tell you that its not a problem. It is!
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Alan Wiser, '89 240 O'day
I agree with James...
Do not want to worry you but my boat sat for years on the original craddle and had stress cracks. I had them professionally repaired and they told me that when they had finnished sanding to get to good material they could almost read a newsprint on the other side. If you are concerned have a survayor or fiberglass repair person at least take a look at it. I know my hull is good as new now. Alan
Do not want to worry you but my boat sat for years on the original craddle and had stress cracks. I had them professionally repaired and they told me that when they had finnished sanding to get to good material they could almost read a newsprint on the other side. If you are concerned have a survayor or fiberglass repair person at least take a look at it. I know my hull is good as new now. Alan
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Tom Akin
Stress and strain on fiberglass
I will not suggest that I'm an expert. That said, there are a few observations I would like to make. There is an engineering term called "elastic limit". It discribes the maximum amount of stress and strain a material can withstand before it deforms and cannot return to it's original shape. Just saying "Oh, it has a dent, the fiberglass is distroyed", is not accurate. The real question is how deep and over what size area. I too, have the dent issue. I intend to tune my trailer to eliminate the dents. Am I concerned? Of course. I will tap the area carefully to listen for dead spots. After that, if it sounds tight, I will not worry about it. Fiberglass doesn't break like glass. A Corvette has fiberglass suspention. A fiberglass spar is used to hold up the entire rear of the car. If you have a dent less than 3/8 inch, over an area about 2 1/2 feet wide, you probably don't have a problem. That would be the max depth and minimum area. Tap your hull with the butt of a screwdriver in a non-dented area. Get an ear for the sound. Then go to the dented area, after the dent is releived, and tap that area. Same/same? no problem. Softer, dead sound... problem. It's not hard to see for yourself. Now the other side of the queston. Gelcoat. As far as I know, no-one uses gelcoat for automotive suspention! There maybe micro cracks in the gelcoat. Those are the ones I would be concerned about. At the very least I would think about some sort of sealing process being applied to the area, wax at least, perhaps paint. The prospect of blisters is a grim one. Stressed gelcoat below the waterline on a 20+ year old boat that will see many months in the water is an issue. If you put the boat in for two days, then leave it out for a month, perhaps less of an issue. You said you are going to eventually paint the hull? A little gel coat repair during the paint-prep stage is not much work. I say, float it and don't worry. Watch the area, and plan a paint job in a year or three. Just my .02 .
I will not suggest that I'm an expert. That said, there are a few observations I would like to make. There is an engineering term called "elastic limit". It discribes the maximum amount of stress and strain a material can withstand before it deforms and cannot return to it's original shape. Just saying "Oh, it has a dent, the fiberglass is distroyed", is not accurate. The real question is how deep and over what size area. I too, have the dent issue. I intend to tune my trailer to eliminate the dents. Am I concerned? Of course. I will tap the area carefully to listen for dead spots. After that, if it sounds tight, I will not worry about it. Fiberglass doesn't break like glass. A Corvette has fiberglass suspention. A fiberglass spar is used to hold up the entire rear of the car. If you have a dent less than 3/8 inch, over an area about 2 1/2 feet wide, you probably don't have a problem. That would be the max depth and minimum area. Tap your hull with the butt of a screwdriver in a non-dented area. Get an ear for the sound. Then go to the dented area, after the dent is releived, and tap that area. Same/same? no problem. Softer, dead sound... problem. It's not hard to see for yourself. Now the other side of the queston. Gelcoat. As far as I know, no-one uses gelcoat for automotive suspention! There maybe micro cracks in the gelcoat. Those are the ones I would be concerned about. At the very least I would think about some sort of sealing process being applied to the area, wax at least, perhaps paint. The prospect of blisters is a grim one. Stressed gelcoat below the waterline on a 20+ year old boat that will see many months in the water is an issue. If you put the boat in for two days, then leave it out for a month, perhaps less of an issue. You said you are going to eventually paint the hull? A little gel coat repair during the paint-prep stage is not much work. I say, float it and don't worry. Watch the area, and plan a paint job in a year or three. Just my .02 .
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