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Hi,
I bought my first boat ever, Pro Line 26' Walk. Of course I could not afford new boat and decided to go for damaged/used (2001). I will probably spend a lot of time fixing this boat but honestly I dont mind working hard on something I love.
Since I dont have much experience with fiberglass/gelcoat I have to ask Pro's for a bit of help here.
Here is a picture of big hole in my hull. I wonder what kind of epoxy, gelcoats, paints should I use to fix it.
I build models of boats as a hobby and worked with epoxies and cloth many times, but I dont really think it could apply to the real thing.
Please help!
A book or two on fiberglass repair would seem to be the place to start. There are numerous kinds of cloth, both in material and weight. To name just one source, Defender has at least one book, and loads of different materials, resins and fillers.
You'll also need a tyvek suit, mask and respitator, to say nothing of practice. I know someone who tackled a much bigger sailboat boat (35') that had fire damage, and THAT was HIS first project boat, so yes, It CAN be done.
I disagree that you can't do it yourself - if you want to do it yourself, it can be done, but you will need to exercise patience and care. You do have a head start by having done some previous fg work - your now just on a bigger scale but the concept is the same. I would recommend reading "The fiberglass boat repair manual" by Allan H. Vaitses. Its an easy no-nonsense read of about 150 pages and explains the repair work from the very beginning. It also discusses the potential hazards mentioned above.
I think the bigger challenge you are facing is the cost of redoing the electrical system should the boat have been submerged. But still do-able.
My comment also relates to the finished product (gel coat, etc), after all of the cost and effort, I wouldn't want it to look "shabby", as if I made the repair. I would get a quote from a professional.
__________________ 1998 HS 245 Vector CC
2007 Evinrude 250 etec rigged and rockin!
I agree it is a challenge, but how many people are satisfied vs dissatisfied with a professional at times. The benefit the poster has here is that he enjoys working on this and is not in a catch 22 situation where he must "turn a profit" on the job, including being restricted by a quote, time table and paying himself for labor. My guess is he will take the time to do it right and get good if not great results.
Give the guy some support, not all of us can afford a brand new Fountain 38. In fact, some of us might like the idea of learning new things like fiberglass work and fixing up a damaged boat. This is a good place to start, the damage is bad but it is above the waterline and isn't somewhere that needs to be particularly strong. The most professional approach to making this repair would probably be to make a mold that matches the shape of the damaged section. You would then make a new piece that is slightly larger than the damaged section, cut the boat hull to match, and glass in the new piece. Then, use more glass or high strength fairing compound blend everything together. The best way to finish the repair would be to paint the entire top half of the hull. This may not reasonable in terms of price and work. Since this area is realatively small and has a lot of angles, it shouldn't be hard to get away with painting or gelcoating just the repair and buffing it to match the old gel coat. You can use the angles to disguise the transition between new gel coat and old gel coat. A one time use mold could be made using plaster. It doesn't have to be perfect, any final shaping can be done with a sander or some fairing compound. An alternative to the mold would be to build a sort of a skeleton out of plywood. You would cover it in glass and use it to support the new layers of glass that you're going to add to restore the original shape of the hull. Be sure to feather back the edges your patch panel and the hull of the boat as far as possible ot maximize the surface area for the new glass to bond to.
Thank You for all answers. Now it's too late for thinking. I have to get on it and get it done. I'm thinking of getting the mold from other side which looks the same by covering original gelcoat with some kind of clear plastic and applying glass and cloth on it. It would probably give me very close shape that I can rivett or glass to damaged area. If this works, I should be fine with final shaping and matching of gelcoat. Maybe I'm too optimistic about it, who knows...
sn4il
Don't rivet, use glass only. I would use an epoxy resin if you're working with plastics as well, the polyester resin may dissolve the plastic. If you don't get it right, you can always take it to a pro later. He may laugh at you some, but it's worth a shot.
Make sure to liberally wax the side your using as the mold with mold release wax designed for the type of resin you are using just in case. Best of luck - you won't need luck though, you'll do just fine.
Don't rivet, use glass only. I would use an epoxy resin if you're working with plastics as well, the polyester resin may dissolve the plastic. If you don't get it right, you can always take it to a pro later. He may laugh at you some, but it's worth a shot.
1st-epoxy will bond to fiberglass / fiberglass will not bond to epoxy,including gelcoat.
2nd-you mess it up the first time,price will double to repair your screwup!
__________________ Beware of A1outboards aka Blackbird ind , = Google
That repair does not look too bad for a novice to me. Polyester resin used in most boats ( like your Proline) is pretty forgiving to work with, and generally less toxic than epoxy. If you don't like the results, you can always grind it out and start again.
Going by the picture, I think I would use cardboard to make profile templates from the other side and just use those as a gauge for finishing your repair. That might be less trouble than trying to make a mold and then piecing it in. Unless it's perfectly symmetrical the other side is a reverse image of what you need anyway.
find the west system website. gudgeon brothers i think. great info, great product. don't rivet anything! do some homework, as you'll find out almost anything on a boat hull can be done with epoxy.
For resin - I've used uscomposites.com several times. You'll find resins, galss etc at less than half your local boat store. Their polyester resin in particular is really nice, and has way less fumes than the "Boatyard" product at BW.
defender.com has ood prices on glass as well (at least they did 10 years ago).
Do not bother making a mold off of the port side. The sides are NOT the same or interchangable. One method is to piece all the pieces back into place using crazy glue or polyester resin as best you can. Then a good coat of polyester resin to stiffen things up. Then grind away everything except the last thin coat of fiber, and bevel around the repair area, thus leaving a form that will define the shape of the project. Then build up the glass appropriately. Another method is to push a piece of corrugated cardboard (smooth on one side only) into the hole, then pull back on it so that it lays flush inside the hole. This can be done with strings or wire hooks. Then again, coat cardboard with resin to firm it up and start glassing. Or Lastly, install an inspection port so you can work from the inside, again using cardboard to form the repair.
To determine the glassing schedule (layers and type of material) either try to seperate the layers with a chisel or pocket knife or use a propane torch and burn the resin out of the laminate, then the layers will be obvious.
Safety is the biggest issue. Use respirators, particle mask, tyvek suits, and latex glues and eyewear. I cannot express this enough. Remember that one drop of MEKP, polyester resin hardener, in your eye will BLIND YOU BEFORE YOU CAN GET TO A WATER HOSE! And that is just one of the dangers. Good Luck, read some books and give it a "go".
Ahhh....while doing an early morning feeding on the newborn a few weeks ago, I ran across ship-shape TV where they did the same EXACT repair.
Of course, he was lucky enough to be able to go to the factory and make a mold of the section off a boat on the production line....know anyone with the same hull?? Would make life a heck of alot easier. But that episode is worth checking out.
Just in case you don't think of it. If you go to burn the resin out of a piece of the broken glass structure To determine the laminate schedule . Remove the piece you are going to burn and move it off to an empty area of your yard, away from all other flammables to do the burning. And DON'T breathe the fumes! This may sound obvious, but I have met all kinds.
Mako Rider- I watched the same episode last year. BW I think- really cool show.
Cab't he just use some type of foam block and shave it down to the exact shape using a template made from the other side (using the curves and angles) and then cover with glass?
Fiberglass repair - first boat 
not that simple,MEKP and acetone are very hazardous.
