Deck damage

Hello,
Here we have a compound fracture of a 2009 Laser.
Looking for suggestions on sequence of repairs, and specifically ways to deal with the deck hole.
Thanks in advance for your comments!
 

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Nice... that's an impressive ding, but it can be repaired, start by installing an inspection port within reach on deck, then see how much of that torn hull section you can use in the repair. Edit: In fact, you might be able to put that entire hull flap back in place BEFORE you install an inspection port or hatch, it looks to still be connected, so you can flip up the entire flap and "stitch" it back up like Frankenstein. You're still gonna need a port or hatch to finish the work. "Glue" the torn flap back into place with catalyzed epoxy resin, clearing and filing, fairing or sanding trash as necessary, then BACK the inside of hull or deck where glass is missing to create a surface upon which you can build. This can be done easily enough with cardboard or some similar material, wrapped in plastic, freakin' wax paper, anything which will form a temporarily impermeable surface as you get started on the hull & deck areas which are MIA. Tape the temporary "form" up like the plates on a stolen vehicle in Compton, North Philly or the Lower Bronx, get the glasswork started, then build layer after layer to beef it up. You can bend the cardboard into shape first before you wrap it and tape it, and you wanna tilt the hull if necessary so that gravity aids you in your repairs. :rolleyes:

Leave the MIA or KIA rollover joint work till last, you can get started on it once you get the torn hull flap back into place and recreate the MIA deck section, building up layer after layer atop the taped-up backing. Remember, use sufficient resin to saturate the fiberglass matt & cloth, I would use alternate layers starting with matt, but that's just what worked best for me over the years. You can always go back and add glass to the reverse side once you've created a new hull or deck section thick enough and solid enough to serve as a base. Start from one side, work your way up, then go to the other side if necessary. In most repairs like these, the cardboard "form" will be taped up inside the hull, and you'll build up layers outward, sanding or filing as necessary and making sure no air bubbles are allowed to remain in the glass. Air bubbles are your enemy here, various files and grades or grits of sandpaper are your friends, aye? If tape alone doesn't work to hold your "form" (or African boat mold) in place, use whatever means necessary to fasten it till the work is done... you can always fill staple, tack or screw holes later. Your mission is to rebuild the missing hull or deck areas. :confused:

Once you get the hull section in place, faired out with a sander & glassed as necessary, and once you finish recreating the MIA deck section, THEN you will focus on rebuilding the MIA rollover joint. Same drill, use bent cardboard forms wrapped in plastic or whatever and taped or otherwise fastened to what you've already recreated, might have to go with thinner cardboard like the backing on notepads and such. Doesn't really matter, I'm sure some paint-haters will suggest a more expensive option from West Marine, pffffft. This doesn't mean you're painting, LOL, God forbid ya get started on THAT before the glass repairs are completed. Whole idea here is this: whenever you have to rebuild hull or deck sections which are MIA or KIA, you will first have to put in place a temporary "form" to back your work, and that form can't leak either, otherwise all your expensive catalyzed resin will surely run away, leaving the sorry-looking glass in place (maybe) and making you look like a complete fool. Ya don't want that, it doesn't impress the heavy hitters, nor does it impress the pretty girls... ;)

Now, don't be too anal about the rollover joint, all you need is a good solid repair, preferably a bit on the thick side with no air bubbles, and to hell with the idiot "measurer" with the rollover joint micrometer, pffffffffffft. You want the water to sluice through or under that joint as you sail, just like it does anywhere else on the hull, so you want the repair filed and/or sanded smooth, but don't sweat the extra millimeter or two of glass buildup as you complete your mission, particularly underneath the rollover joint. Done right, that repair will be identical to the original dimensions, but in my book it's okay to err on the side of caution and add a slight bit of reinforcement, as long as it does NOT interfere with the passage of the hull through the water, AYE??? Ya with me so far, or do I need to grab another cold one and start over with my explanation? LOL. Meh, you're sufficiently intelligent to post on the Internet, you should be able to handle this repair work, it ain't rocket science... though there are compound curves involved and you'll have to do your work with those in mind. AIN'T NO THANG, YOU CAN HANDLE IT, I HAVE CONFIDENCE IN YA, LOL. :cool:

REMEMBER: HULL SECTION PUT BACK IN PLACE FIRST, DECK SECTION RECREATED NEXT, FURTHER HULL & DECK WORK AS NECESSARY, THEN THE ROLLOVER JOINT. EASY ENOUGH WHEN YA TAKE ONE STEP AT A TIME, AND ONLY MIX AS MUCH RESIN AS YA NEED FOR EACH LAYER OF REPAIR. :D

I'M SURE SOME GLASSWORKING HEE-ROES WILL CHIME IN HERE, MOI, I'M OFF TO GRAB ANOTHER COLD BEER... :)
 
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Okay, I got "timed out" before I finished editing that post, so let me add one little tip: once you've got that hull flap roughly back in place and you've begun working on the MIA deck section, there will come a time when you will want to begin your rollover joint work, using glass layers from hull & deck to start recreating that MIA joint, AYE??? Same way the original builders worked the two together, gradually forming the distinctive rollover curve which will replace what you've lost. You want glass deck layers to wrap over and reinforce that joint, and you might have to flip the hull, do a bit of filing & sanding, and re-glass one or two layers from the hull side, just so the twain shall meet and form nice sandwiched layers during the rebuilding process. That will provide additional strength in the long run... alternating layers of matt & cloth also help build a nice solid repair, the matt tends to fill small voids between layers of cloth, like sauce & cheese between pasta layers in lasagna, I suppose. Wetting everything up with sufficient catalyzed resin also helps, no need to overdo it, just use as much as you need to ensure that both matt & cloth are fully impregnated, no dry spots or air bubbles in the mix, they are VERBOTEN, LOL. :confused:

P.S. Once you've restored the rollover joint to its former glory, I would suggest that you flip the boat topside-down on sawhorses, use whatever means necessary to angle it correctly, then work through the inspection port or hatch to reinforce the inside of the hull where you made the repair. I'm not talking about going overboard here, just some extra layers of matt & cloth to beef up that side of the repair, AFTER you have removed the cardboard "form" and whatever backing material might still be sticking to the whole shebang. You'll be doing the work in the blind, so just prep enough material to handle the task and throw a little extra glass on the inside of the hull where you dealt with the damage. A little extra coverage never hurt, even if ya just brush resin on that side, though I recommend at least one layer of matt and/or cloth. Lighter weight matt & cloth are good for getting into curves and corners, use gloves to do this blind work and push the glass into those areas as far as it will go, that will help reinforce the strong bond you've hopefully already created, LOL. The right kind of "glass rope" can also serve to bolster the new joint inside the hull, laid along the wetted repair area with further resin added to saturate the fibers. CHEERS!!! :rolleyes:
 
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Meh, again I got timed out... too busy drinking beer and dealing with the cats, aye? Might be better to put the boat up on her rail to do that last little bit of reinforcement, gravity always helps when glassing tight internal hull void corners & whatnot. :cool:
 
Hello,
Here we have a compound fracture of a 2009 Laser.
Looking for suggestions on sequence of repairs, and specifically ways to deal with the deck hole.
Thanks in advance for your comments!
Hey Ghost Rider-thanks for all of the good thoughts, ideas and instruction.
In my mind, I was looking for a way to replace the core, but just glassing the whole thing makes sense. Lots of info to absorb, so will think about it for awhile and may have a question or two for you!
Thanks again.
G
 
The damage is impressive, but the overall area of the damage is not that great, so you won't be adding that much weight to the hull as you fix it. I'd be more concerned with bonding everything back together for maximum strength. Is the deck section that's MIA inside the hull, or is it gone forever? If the deck section is in there, you can probably use it, same way you can use the hull flap that simply needs to be glassed back into place. Worst-case scenario, you can use aluminum strips to shore things up, but that's only as a last resort... as long as you get a good bond between the original hull/deck and the damaged areas, that's what counts. Again, you might have to file or sand away trash and fair out both original hull/deck and damaged areas to obtain a good bond, at least on the outside where you can easily do this with the right tools. The interior work will be more difficult, as it always is. Think of yourself as a nautical Dr. Frankenstein, then go to work patching together all the parts, LOL. :eek:
 
Meant to add that when the time comes to start rebuilding that rollover joint, a cardboard toilet paper tube or paper towel tube makes a decent form over which to wrap the initial glass deck layers. Flatten the tube a bit till you get the approximate curve you want, wrap it in wax paper and tape it up... once you have a few layers built up, you can carefully remove the tube and toss it, gently scrape whatever wax paper might be sticking to the glass, and go from there. I've used this technique to repair damaged rails before, and it works just fine. Don't sweat the exact curve down to millimeters, all you're doing is forming a few solid layers on which to build up glass later... as long as you're in the ballpark with the curve of the rollover joint, future glassing, filing & sanding will gradually restore the joint to its original dimensions. If the damaged section of the rollover joint is inside the hull (hard to tell from the photos), it can probably be used in the repair, but if it's too thrashed you're probably better off just rebuilding the rollover joint on your own, it'll be stronger, aye? You should see what is inside the hull before you do anything: the MIA deck section and the damaged rollover joint might still be rattling around in there, LOL. :confused:
 

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