1981 SPORT 17 Hull Condition: Assess from Photographs

[Little Mule]

Q1: what condition is the hull as seen in Figures 1, 2, and 3?

Fig. 1. Hull blisters

blister1a.jpeg (13.74 KiB) Viewed 472 times

Fig. 2. Hull wi th chipping and blisters.

blister2a.jpeg (13.37 KiB) Viewed 471 times

Fig. 3. Hull with chipping gel coat.

blister3a.jpeg (27.75 KiB) Viewed 470 times

[The boat seen above] is a freshwater boat that I may purchase. There is some chipping and flaking of the gel coat and tiny bubbles on the bottom of the boat. Other than the chipping and bubbling, this 1981 SPORT 17 looks like a new 45-year-old boat.

[Blackduck]

Photos are not great, but safe to say a fresh water boat with no barrier coat and pimples on tis bottom has osmotic blisters. Water passes thru the gel coat and reacts with chemicals in the fiberglass and cause the bumps to appear. If you pop one, it will most likely contain water.

The only good repair is to resurface the bottom with epoxy, and paint, as the condition will only get worse with water exposure if not treated.

I would look for another boa.

Also, the hull looks to be peeling paint.

Q2: has the hull been painted?

[Little Mule]

From what I can tell boat finish is original.

The reason I am asking the question is because I am not sure on the original paint and gel coat.

[jimh]

On a 1981 SPORT 17 there would not be any "original" paint. No part of the hull was painted when it left the factory.

The Boston Whaler owner's manual give vert clear recommendations about NOT leaving their boats continually in the water, unless a two-part epoxy barrier coat is applied to all parts of the hull that will be at the waterline and below. See the owner's manual. If you do not have the owner's manual, see my copy of the owner's manual in HTML in the REFERENCE section.

https://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/manual9-17/

The section that discusses the need for using a barrier coat if the hull is to be left in the water for more than a few days is located at

https://continuouswave.com/whaler/refer ... tml#bottom

under the sub-heading BOTTOM PAINT.

[jimh]

...I am not sure on the original paint and gel coat.

From the illustrations you have provided, determining if the chipped areas are paint or gelcoat is just speculative. The appearance is more like loose paint.

Q3: where has the boat been used?

Q4: how long was the boat kept in the water between haul-outs?

[Little Mule]

Q5: should this condition of the hull surface be of concern on a boat of this age?

[jimh]

Q5: should this condition of the hull surface be of concern on a boat of this age?

In order to answer your question Q5, it would be helpful if you provided answers to Q3 and Q4.