Winter Repair

After our run in with the big red boat, we had some work to do. I decided to undertake the glass repair since I felt I was partly to blame and even though the other guy offered to pay for it, I figured it would be a fun winter project anyway. We also decided to do some work to the bottom and keel. I started out by making a mold of the exterior of the boat with some peel ply and plywood. I then glassed from the inside against this mold and build the layers back up to the original thickness. After that, some fairing compound and some gelcoat, and we are back in business. I would bet it is now the strongest part of the boat!

I also decided to see if we couldn't address the small but persistant crack that forms on our keel between the fiberglass stump and the lead section. I was convinced this was caused by low torque on the six keel bolts, and turns out I was right! They were barely snug, so I reefed them down and now feel much better about the keel. We even made a template and faired the keel from top to bottom and spent a good amount of time ensuring it was symmetrical.

Joey approves of the glass work and he finished the repairs off with his magic gel coat touch. I think the words "looks factory" came out of his mouth.......