[redfish5]

I recently purchased a 13' river hawk duck boat model (has a false floor and no center box). It has a crack about 4-6 in long along the keel on the underside towards the front of the boat. The crack is pretty deep so I want to cut the fiberglass out and repair. I have done this once before with another boat, so I know how to work with the fiberglass. I know you are suppose to patch the inside and out for the most strength. However, I don't know how to do this without cutting through the false floor and don't really want to do that. If I lay enough layers of cloth on the outside portion of repair will that hold? Also, is epoxy resin better to use than polyester? I plan on applying gator glide to the underside once all the repairs are made. Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Brett]

Large enough prepped contact area with epoxy resin and glass fabric
ought to be as strong as the original polyester resin hull. Won't be pretty though.

 

[jms]

I recently purchased a 13' river hawk duck boat model (has a false floor and no center box).  It has a crack about 4-6 in long along the keel on the underside towards the front of the boat.  The crack is pretty deep so I want to cut the fiberglass out and repair.  I have done this once before with another boat, so I know how to work with the fiberglass.  I know you are suppose to patch the inside and out for the most strength.  However, I don't know how to do this without cutting through the false floor and don't really want to do that.  If I lay enough layers of cloth on the outside portion of repair will that hold?  Also, is epoxy resin better to use than polyester? I plan on applying gator glide to the underside once all the repairs are made.  Thanks in advance for the help. 

the repair done that way,may look ok - but,i would never trust it...

if you're going to take the time to repair it,do it the best way you possibly can.

me,i would cut out what i needed to,and make the repair,the propper "accepted" way - which would be to glass it both inside and outside - that way the repair is structually sound.

epoxy provides a much stronger bond than polyester based resins - epoxy is also waterproof,unlike polyester based resins...

 

[redfish5]

Sounds like epoxy resin is the way to go. Should I use cloth or mat? I may suck it up and cut the false floor for the repair then refiberglass that. Might be an excuse to put hydroturf down on top of that. ;D

 

[Brett]

When using epoxy, mat is not recommended.
The bonding agent that holds the mat together is designed to dissolve in polyester resin.
That means the fiberglass needed for epoxy, is a woven or stitched material.

 

[redfish5]

Thanks for the help, I'm sure you get tired of seeing similar questions, but you have been a big help with my past boat and this one. One last question I have is if I cut a small square in the false floor to reach the crack underneath, when I repair the false floor do I just place the square back in and then lay a couple layers of fiberglass over it? There is a gap between the false floor and the actual hull bottom to allow water to drain back.

 

[redfish5]

Well change of plans. I Just realized the crack is directly under the front seat. I was debating removing the front seat and mounting a cooler/seat there anyway. Now I may have an excuse. After removing the seat, I will inspect the false floor. As previously mentioned I assume after I remove the seat I should cut the square in the false floor, remove, then replace and refiberglass? Also, I know removing seats in these river hawks and gheenoes can compromise hull strength and flotation. Since the boat has a false floor, if I leave a couple inches of the seat on the sides down to the floor and have the false floor down the middle, will that be enough structural stability? Also, if I remove the seat/flotation and replace with a mounted cooler, will that act as enough replacement foam if the boat were to fill up with water? Thanks again for all the help, and sorry for the long thread.

 

[Brett]

Need to see pictures of what y'er dealin' with...

 

[redfish5]

About those pictures.... I have uploaded them before, but now I can't figure out how. I can email them, but can't seem to upload them.