Bow repairs

   A Sok.

Can you get a screwdriver into the hole and move the sides of the hull that are bonded?  Have you "split the seam" ot made a puncture in the bow - they need to be treated in different ways.  
1, If you have spilt the seam, you nead to clean it all out with a hack saw back to CLEAN matting and gel, this will look painfull but will give you a STRUCTUARAL bond when complete
2, If just a puncture and the rest of the seam is OK then just filling it should be OK.

Can you take some pictures and attach them here?  I've seen "bodged" bow repairs leak like crazy!

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Scooby_simon Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Visit Member's Homepage Really should get out more Joined: 02 Apr 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 2415	Post Options Post Reply Quote Scooby_simon Report Post Quote Reply Topic: Bow repairs Posted: 27 Apr 09 at 11:26pm
	A Sok. Can you get a screwdriver into the hole and move the sides of the hull that are bonded? Have you "split the seam" ot made a puncture in the bow - they need to be treated in different ways. 1, If you have spilt the seam, you nead to clean it all out with a hack saw back to CLEAN matting and gel, this will look painfull but will give you a STRUCTUARAL bond when complete 2, If just a puncture and the rest of the seam is OK then just filling it should be OK. Can you take some pictures and attach them here? I've seen "bodged" bow repairs leak like crazy!
	Wanna learn to Ski - PM me..

ASok Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 26 Sep 07 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 739	Post Options Post Reply Quote ASok Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 27 Apr 09 at 7:33pm
	Cheers for the info. The hole is pretty deep, but it sounds like the micro balloons will help fill the gap. Then it sounds like sanding fun for the afternoon. Fingers crossed for a nice day soon then.

English Dave Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Visit Member's Homepage Really should get out more Joined: 10 Aug 06 Location: Northern Ireland Online Status: Offline Posts: 682	Post Options Post Reply Quote English Dave Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 27 Apr 09 at 5:19pm
	Jeez, you have been in the wars! Just put a reply on your trolley thread. If you can see the fibre mesh but not through it (ie ding rather than actual penetration) then you may be able to fix it with gelcoat filler (plastic padding makes it and it comes in largish tubes with a small amount of catalyst). The white may not be just the same as the white of your Dart (assuming it's not yellow) but it depends how much perfection you are after. Mix up the GC filler and squeeze it all into the wound. Then sand and polish. The last bit do with "wet" wet and dry (fine as you can get). Probably take you an hour on a warm afternoon. If you can find another D18 it is inevitable that he/she will have done this before. The bows on a Dart are notoriously fragile so the first time you do this will not be your last.
	English Dave Ballyholme Yacht Club (You'd think I'd be better at it by now) Hurricane 5.9 SX RS700

winging it Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 22 Mar 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3958	Post Options Post Reply Quote winging it Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 27 Apr 09 at 4:37pm
	We need to know how deep the hole is. If it is a matter of mm and you have merely scraped off the gel coat then you can replace it with gel coat. If the hole is deeper then I would fill it with epoxy puffed up by micro balloons, sand that off a tad, then skim it over with gel coat.
	the same, but different...

ASok Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 26 Sep 07 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 739	Post Options Post Reply Quote ASok Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 27 Apr 09 at 1:28pm
	Ok firstly please forgive my ignorance on this. My general repairs have been limited to a refurb of an old wooden hornet and some light issues with gel coat. However, bow on dart meets pontoon and causes damage to the leading edge. Bit of a mess and a hole circa 1-2cm. Cleaning thehole to remove fragments, I can now see the inner 'skin' (excuse ignorance of terminology) of the hull. There seems to be a slight gap between the outer gel coat and inner part of the hull. I'm now looking to make some repairs over the weekend and wanted some advice. Can this be filled with your normal 'plastic padding' type stuff? i.e. I mix some up and wedge it in the hole to then sand it off nice and smooth? Or do I need a gap filling type compound to help it bond? Or do I need to do something more significant? Any help gratefully recieved. Thanks