fogel1497 said:I've been sailing lasers (not my own) for about 3 years now. I've recently come across a 1985 laser, that is in absolutly horrendous condition. However after a couple hours of light power washing, i was able to find that underneath a quarter inch thick mud shell was actually a nice looking baot. Of course it requires a lot more work though. I was wondering if their is something I could put on the bottom of the hull to reduce skin firction, as their is a rather large amount of scratches on it, and if it would be worth my time to do it.
snipeguy said:Re-gelcoating a bottom is a huge job that requires an experienced hand and lots of time to do properly. I'm in the boat repair business and I wouldn't reccomend it.
Wet sand the bottom with 400, then 600 and if you're up for it 800. Make sure you wear gloves. Don't worry too much about the scratches. At this point in the game, they are not important, unless they are deep and into the fibreglass bat. Seal the deep ones with resin and if you wish, gelcoat.
Work on your boat handling and tactics. In the long run they are much more important than a smooth bottom. Get a new sail or upgrade the rigging.The fastest Laser in our fleet has quite a few scratches on its bottom and yet it regularily finishes at the front of the fleet because its skipper knows what he is doing.
fogel1497 said:I've been sailing lasers (not my own) for about 3 years now. I've recently come across a 1985 laser, that is in absolutly horrendous condition. However after a couple hours of light power washing, i was able to find that underneath a quarter inch thick mud shell was actually a nice looking baot. Of course it requires a lot more work though. I was wondering if their is something I could put on the bottom of the hull to reduce skin firction, as their is a rather large amount of scratches on it, and if it would be worth my time to do it.