Need advice on How to repair specific sunfish damage (With Photos)

My name is William and I have recently come across a sunfish for free! My neighbor left it on his seawall and a storm came and banged it up a little. He told me that if i can fix it, it is mine. My questions is rather broad....How would I go about fixing this. What type of adhesive Should I use to "glue" the top section back to the hull. For the large crack on the side, how would i repair that fiberglass. It is cracked all the way through. It is located on the port side about a foot and a half from the cockpit (towards the bow). The other two cracks I believe are superficial. If you guys could help me out and give me a step by step with the materials needed for each repair i would be very thankful.

Thank you,
William

wclark said:

I have recently come across a sunfish for free!

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From the lines at the chine, this boat appears to be something other than a Sunfish. Is it a MiniFish? Could we see a picture of the whole hull and deck?

wclark said:

What type of adhesive Should I use to "glue" the top section back to the hull.

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Really good question.

From the looks of that extremely clean separation I will surmise the deck to hull joint was originally bonded using something like ITW Plexus "Fiberglass Fusion" Adhesive. This is a whole different animal than the fiberglass and epoxy used for typical repairs. But, it's on the horizon for Sunfish owners since all the rounded gunwale Sunfish are built using this type of bonding agent.


I am inclined to say epoxy it back together, however, I do not know if the original adhesive will require any special clean up so a new adhesive will stick. Of course you can use Plexus, but geeeeesh that stuff's expensive... The bottle pictured is MA 550 marine adhesive, 380 ml (12oz), $82 (Jamestown Distributors).

This is going to take some in-depth investigation on your part.

I see blue residue in the seam, which is the color of the industrial grade Plexus Vanguard (the former Sunfish Builder) was using. So the first thing to confirm is, am I correct in what I think I'm seeing ... is the remainder of the seam bonded with the same blue goo?


to be continued when you gather more info....

wclark said:

For the large crack on the side, how would i repair that fiberglass. It is cracked all the way through. It is located on the port side about a foot and a half from the cockpit (towards the bow).

The other two cracks I believe are superficial.

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The cracked gelcoat can be re-finished with a new coat of gelcoat. Here's a How To Video...

http://www.vimeo.com/2299590

wclark said:

If you guys could help me out and give me a step by step with the materials needed for each repair i would be very thankful.

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Others better than I have done this already. May I suggest the following...

Fiberglass Repair: Polyester or Epoxy by David Aiken



and / or

Fiberglass Repair and Construction Handbook by Jack Wiley




.