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  Hull Laminate Repair; Color Matching; Cost of Re-apply Gel Coat

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Author Topic:   Hull Laminate Repair; Color Matching; Cost of Re-apply Gel Coat
CTM posted 01-15-2009 11:04 PM ET (US)   Profile for CTM   Send Email to CTM  
I'm looking at an early 1990's Boston Whaler 13 with some exterior hull damage. I've done work on 1960's Whalers that have had trailer damage under the waterline, so appearance wasn't a huge deal. This one is hurting above where I could cover it with bottom paint

How hard is it to repair the exterior fiberglass and gel coat? How hard is it to match the color and the consistency of the original finish? How much can I expect to pay to re-apply gel coat to the exterior of a Boston Whaler 13-foot hull?

Thanks a lot.

jimh posted 01-16-2009 12:42 AM ET (US)     Profile for jimh  Send Email to jimh     
There are two good articles in the REFERENCE section that describe in detail and have illustrations or photographs of techniques to make repairs to damage in the structural laminate of a Boston Whaler Unibond hull.

Repairing Hull Damage the Whaler Way
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/whalerRepair.html

INSTRUCTIONS -- HULL PATCH KITS
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/repairInstructions.html


jimh posted 01-16-2009 12:50 AM ET (US)     Profile for jimh  Send Email to jimh     
Tinting new resin to match the color of existing resin requires skill and very high visual acuity with regard to hue. I cannot offer any suggestions on how to judge the degree of difficulty, as it depends greatly on the skill of the person performing the tinting. For some people it may be an impossibly difficult task to accomplish.

You can buy resin which is sold as being identical in tint to the original resin used by Boston Whaler, but often this is not a guarantee of having a match to an existing hull. Gel coat resin can change color slightly with age. The lustre on the hull finish is also influential on the perceived color, and you often have to make an allowance for it.

When gel coat resin is applied to an existing hull its cured finish will not be as good as when gel coat resin is applied in a female contact mold. It is often reported that gel coat resin applied over an existing hull requires a lot of sanding and buffing to obtain the smoothness and high gloss seen in the finish of a new Boston Whaler.

damifino posted 01-16-2009 09:40 PM ET (US)     Profile for damifino  Send Email to damifino     
Fill it, sand it, and then take it to you local economy auto paint shop and get them to paint it. Not as good as the original gel coat but it will be better than any amateur gel coat repair.
seasaw posted 01-16-2009 10:12 PM ET (US)     Profile for seasaw  Send Email to seasaw     
My 86 Montauk required some transom work this fall. I took it to Eastern Marine a fiberglass boat builder in NH that is only about 10 miles from me. They matched the color perfectly, their work was beyond me expectations. One would hope that a shop that is very familiar with fiberglass woud be able to satisfy your needs. I would think that cost was dependent upon your location and how busy the shop is.
Jeff

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