Refitting the Scuppers for Heavy Weather Confidence

[testingthewaters91]

Yesterday I refit my deck drains—Hunter’s original sizing was all over the place, so I standardized everything. Now the deck scuppers are a full one-inch ID (about double what they were), with the cockpit scuppers getting bumped to 1.5-inch. Hurricane season’s coming, and if I ever take green water, I want it gone yesterday.

Here’s the weird part: drilling through the hull for the new fittings, I hit a layer of… something. Feathery, dry, foam-like—sandwiched in the laminate, above the waterline. The area had a small leak, but the mystery layer wasn’t soaked.

Is this a normal construction method for above-waterline scuppers? Some kind of core? Or am I looking at evidence of past water ingress? Would you grind it back and glass over, or just dry it out and fill with epoxy?

Photos attached—curious what you all think.

 

[FastOlson]

Some kind of core?

I have sen this on other damaged Hunter hulls of that general era. "Some Kind" is a tactful description inddeed. On a hull with local collision damage, it takes some grinding back and building up with glass (roving or bi-ax) to repair. Different for yours, and you might consider doing the usual removal of coring, back an inch or so, then fill with thickened epoxy. Betcha others here have found ways to repair/reinforce, and will be checking in.

 

[testingthewaters91]

I have sen this on other damaged Hunter hulls of that general era. "Some Kind" is a tactful description inddeed. On a hull with local collision damage, it takes some grinding back and building up with glass (roving or bi-ax) to repair. Different for yours, and you might consider doing the usual removal of coring, back an inch or so, then fill with thickened epoxy. Betcha others here have found ways to repair/reinforce, and will be checking in.

Interesting that you’ve seen it before — “some kind” is definitely the tactful way to put it, haha. No collision damage here; the hull is solid and strong. What’s odd is that on either side of the fluff, there’s an even layer of glass — maybe a quarter inch each — almost like Hunter planned a thin filler layer above the waterline. Could be glass, could be something else.

I’ve never seen coring anywhere else on this boat. When I cut the deck scuppers, the deck was straight solid glass — no core at all. Yet here on the side of the hull, there’s this deliberate-looking sandwich. Almost like they wanted a space between laminates that isn’t fully bonded.

Anyone else run into this on a Cherubini-era Hunter? What’s the real story behind it?