Serious fiberglass work, 13ft Boston Whaler restoration

[TexomaPowerboater]

OK, would like to hear all suggestion on going about fixing all the gelcoat cracks in this whaler. I've never done any fiberglass work, but I did repaint the bilge of my apache with awlgrip last year.

First I thought I'd sand it down, then apply a resin with filler additive to re-fair the surface, sand the filler, then use awlgrip to paint the entire boat.

BUT a professional suggested I sand down to raw fiberglass, use a wax-gelcoat, smoot that out, then apply a duratec coating.

Any other suggestions? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I don't want to break the bank, but i do want it to look like new as I will likely keep this boat for 30+ years.

Any pros/cons on using a duratec finish instead of awlgrip. I've used awlgrip before so I'm confortable using it. No idea how easy duratec is to use, but I don't want to have to buy spray guns and would like to keep things easy as possible. No idea what the cost difference is either.

Any other suggestion on a filler. Pros/cons on using wax gel coat vs a resin with filler. Cost?

[Ratickle]

Now that looks like a lot of work.....

[catastrophe]

OK, would like to hear all suggestion on going about fixing all the gelcoat cracks in this whaler. I've never done any fiberglass work, but I did repaint the bilge of my apache with awlgrip last year.

First I thought I'd sand it down, then apply a resin with filler additive to re-fair the surface, sand the filler, then use awlgrip to paint the entire boat.

BUT a professional suggested I sand down to raw fiberglass, use a wax-gelcoat, smoot that out, then apply a duratec coating.

Any other suggestions? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I don't want to break the bank, but i do want it to look like new as I will likely keep this boat for 30+ years.

Any pros/cons on using a duratec finish instead of awlgrip. I've used awlgrip before so I'm confortable using it. No idea how easy duratec is to use, but I don't want to have to buy spray guns and would like to keep things easy as possible. No idea what the cost difference is either.

Any other suggestion on a filler. Pros/cons on using wax gel coat vs a resin with filler. Cost?

No one can give you better advice than our resident expert Glassdave.

Reach out to him, he knows whats best.

Good luck with your project.

[Offshore Ginger]

Just curious , what year is the boat ?

[glassdave]

Thanks for the plug Alec

Tex this project is very very ambitious and technically you'll need to use all the tricks in the book if you want it to be lasting and worthwhile. There arent many shortcuts to get around damage at this level. Although i would be interested in others opinions as well

(i will re post to catch everyone up to my thoughts)
There arent to many shortcuts when dealing with this much repair. For the most part your going to have to re fair the entire surface. With the amount of cracks you have there you may need to surface grind the whole thing to get to a point you can re shape the surface. Its extremely labor intensive and will require many many hours. If it was mine i would "buff" the surface with a grinder till i hit raw glass, or very close to it, then dump on a bunch of waxed gel. Fair that out then lay out a few coats gel thinned with Duratec and pull a final gloss out of that.

(Part II)
well with the work ahead of ya there i would just do the thing in gel and be done with it, or at least the running surface then Awlgrip the top side.

theres a bit of an art to removing the gel coat in order to make the fairing process a bit easier. I use a grinder like a buffer and keep it in long smooth motions and stay away from edges, those should be done carefully by hand. The trick is to take the surface down as evenly as possible with a combination of three and seven inch grinders as well as the edge work done by hand. You can use whatever sanding/grinding method feels most comfortable, over the years i have gotten pretty accurate with the ruff stuff lol. I would shoot raw gel with only a waxing agent to get the highest possible build then sand/fair that out to preserve the shape. Do a topcoat of Duratec/gel for a final gloss and you wont need any paint. There are far to many cracks in that surface to do the individually.

You could also use Duratecs vinylester VE fairing primer instead on the waxed gel. It builds well and sands easy but i think in the long run straight gel will outlast it (that is only a guess on my part as i have not used VE to this level yet).


The Duratec is an additive mixed with gel to allow you to spray it through conventional guns and obtain an easier gloss. The method i described lets you affectivly sneak up on a smooth surface, If you try and tackle all these cracks by V'ing and filling individually you will loose interest after several hundred hours of that

I think Artie will say coat the whole thing in CHEESE cloth which in itself is another method that he is more familiar with and is actually another possibility. There are some light weaves that can serve as a surface finish and when used properly. (this might actually be a pretty good alternative but still pretty labor intensive)

The super sweet super techie way would be to bag a new surface on

[Offshore Ginger]

Dave , so now you want to be a smart A$$ . Well heres the bottom line , seeing that you have a $ 500 hundred dollar (old boat) that most likely has foam that they used in the build which has saturated water like a sponge, and with that in mind i would do almost everything that Dave suggested on OSO slightly grinding & filling along with spraying Duratec primmer, sanding , and not caring how straight everything really is for the pure fact that it is a very old boat and where do you draw the line on a project like this and over a period of time it most likely will be a dock basher anyways going from boat to boat on a good weekend and seeing that you have experience spraying Awlgrip why not Imron instead .

[Offshore Ginger]

Dave , i know that you are the master and most likely forgot everything i ever knew about using chesse cloth or a nice layup ...... forgive me great one. I AM HONORED WITH YOU PRESENCE .

[Expensive Date]

I would just fill the cracks with caulk....but I'm not a glass guy

[jeffswav]

Are you two at it again These guys will give you very good advice. I know from the project I am working on that you will have a ton of hours in that one. Does the boat have sentimental value? If not you may want to find a project boat with a hull in a little better shape. For it to hold up you will have to grind out every stress crack or the entire surface and start from scratch.

[glassdave]

Dave , i know that you are the master and most likely forgot everything i ever knew about using chesse cloth or a nice layup ...... forgive me great one. I AM HONORED WITH YOU PRESENCE .

i'd be happy to send ya an autographed picture


lol good talkin to ya today Arrr-tea


Tex i commend you in your reasoniong for taking on this project. Thats a very thoughtfull and caring gesture and i hope it continues to go well. I will try and help with any guidance as i am sure the other pros will as well. Tex will have to fill you guys in on why this is an important project.

[insanity]

Would soda blasting take off the old gel w/o harming the laminate too bad? Seems like I've heard that used for removing bottom paint... Or maybe even a gel-shaver to make quick work of it. The time/mess saved would be worth it.

Personally it looks like a good bangin' around boat as-is. I think I'd just use it as is and keep an eye out for a nicer one along the way.

But I'm also the one that has an epic Baja project going so who am I to judge...

[Donskihp]

This repair does not need to be complicated.I worked at a boat building company in Gloucester VA,for several years, mostly rigging, however, when in between rigggins, I endened up finishing off there small 16' skiffs. I would get the raw boat from lamination, take a grinder with an 8" disc 24 grite, and go to it. I would smoothe up the whole inside. Keep the grinder constantly moving so not to put deep grinding cuts. Don't worry about the small marks. Clean the inside out well, then your ready for gelcoat. Use a good quality gelcoat that has not been thined with styrine. Use wax in your gelcoat. Since your not use to gelcoat, mix up a little for testing.The more catalist the faster it kicks off, the warmer the room the faster it kicks off. Also a big bucket kicks off faster than a small cup. Bigger quanities generate and hold more heat.You'll need about 1/2 hour of working time.Once your comfortable with your mix, start on the inside of your boat,apply it real thick.It won't leave a shiny finish,it will leave a finish alot like the ones yoo see in a lot of small,boat.A lot of companys then will finish if off with a speckel finish,which applied with a spray gun an very little air pressure so it just spits out spots. By the way all the small sanding marks will pretty much vanish under the thick gelcoat, and once the gelcoat starts to kick don't touch it till its hard.

[Donskihp]

Oh I ment to say you need to grind all the old gelcoat off or it will eventually come back through the new gelcoat. Don't worry about the small spots of gel deep in the fibers, but you do need to be down to raw glass.

[TexomaPowerboater]

Just curious , what year is the boat ?

I don't know, circa 1970's. No HIN.

I picked up this project to get a better relationship with my older brother. He is disabled due to a head injury he got playing soccer in college. He is very hard to talk to and get along with or have any sort of a real discussion with. He can't hold a job, can't hold any kind of relationship, and lives with my parents. He is bitter about how his life has turned out for him. The other day we were working on something and amazingly we got along. I thought that if we couldn't get along having conversation then we could get along working on something. I knew he liked boats and fishing and often talked about buying one to fix up so I bought this whaler to fix up and call it "our boat". Now he is happier and we have a better relationship because instead of driving me crazy when he comes over now we are working on a fun project together. I'm hoping when were done he will have something to be proud of; right now he has nothing.

[phragle]

I don't know, circa 1970's. No HIN.

I picked up this project to get a better relationship with my older brother. He is disabled due to a head injury he got playing soccer in college. He is very hard to talk to and get along with or have any sort of a real discussion with. He can't hold a job, can't hold any kind of relationship, and lives with my parents. He is bitter about how his life has turned out for him. The other day we were working on something and amazingly we got along. I thought that if we couldn't get along having conversation then we could get along working on something. I knew he liked boats and fishing and often talked about buying one to fix up so I bought this whaler to fix up and call it "our boat". Now he is happier and we have a better relationship because instead of driving me crazy when he comes over now we are working on a fun project together. I'm hoping when were done he will have something to be proud of; right now he has nothing.

Now it's making sense... I was trying to figure out why you wanted to do a ton of work on a $100 boat.

[TexomaPowerboater]

Their worth $3-4K in good shape.

[OldSchool]

Their worth $3-4K in good shape.

That's correct. We have a 13 Whaler. It's a '79. They are very sought after (at least where I live) to use as tenders for yachts and sailboats. We use ours for just running around in our creek...and Crabbing!!!! I had someone offer me $4K last year for mine. I won't sell it....ever!

[phragle]

Their worth $3-4K in good shape.

But roached out, cracked up and foam waterlogged, they are all over the place...

[mikey]

That's correct. We have a 13 Whaler. It's a '79. They are very sought after (at least where I live) to use as tenders for yachts and sailboats. We use ours for just running around in our creek...and Crabbing!!!! I had someone offer me $4K last year for mine. I won't sell it....ever!

Man those crabs look soooooooo good cannot wait for summer!!!


Oh yeah Craig nice Whaler

[cigdaze]

I don't know, circa 1970's. No HIN.

I picked up this project to get a better relationship with my older brother. He is disabled due to a head injury he got playing soccer in college. He is very hard to talk to and get along with or have any sort of a real discussion with. He can't hold a job, can't hold any kind of relationship, and lives with my parents. He is bitter about how his life has turned out for him. The other day we were working on something and amazingly we got along. I thought that if we couldn't get along having conversation then we could get along working on something. I knew he liked boats and fishing and often talked about buying one to fix up so I bought this whaler to fix up and call it "our boat". Now he is happier and we have a better relationship because instead of driving me crazy when he comes over now we are working on a fun project together. I'm hoping when were done he will have something to be proud of; right now he has nothing.

Very cool of you, Tex.