SC-17 Fiberglass Repair

[Steve Knapp]

Greetings,

My newly acquired 1984 SC-17 has a two inch crack in the starboard hull. The previous owners failed to inform me of the hull crack and some other problems with the boat (nice guys). I hope to have the SC-17 in the water soon for the first time. I discovered the crack upon thoroughly cleaning and polishing the hulls. The crack is slightly raised and soft compared to rest of the hull. The crack location is approximately six inches infront of the forward beam and six inches down from the top of the hull on the inside hull surface. The crack is a raised fine jagged line and might not be noticed except for its darker coloration. Another cracked area is just above the trampoline track and midway on the other hull.

How significant is the crack? Can you give me some advise on what I need to do to repair the hull back to its original strength? The SC-17 was painted with white Dupont Imron. After looking at the pictures posted by Dan, I do not want to experience an instant replay of a severed hull. I do not have a digital camera, so attaching an image of the crack is difficult.

Thanks in advance for the advise.

[Tom Haberman]

Steve,

The crack you describe sounds like a classic compression crack. It should be repaired soon.

The damaged area must be removed down to the inner skin ( including core material). Typically the inner skin will still be intact and can be used as a base to build your repair on.

We usually replace the foam core ( vacuum bagged in place , sort of tricky but it can be done with the correct procedure).

If you decide to undertake the repair yourself just give me call directly and we can discuss the details. Really nothing magic about it but the details can mean success or failure.

We always reserve giving wholesale advice in cases like this because sometimes the instructions (advice ) can be misunderstood and other parties may apply the advice to other situations that may require a completely different approach.