First time out

S

SteveON

New Member
I'm planning on cleaning the new to me Laser up tomorrow, plugging any holes/cracks/leaks and replacing all the running rigging. I'm hoping to take the boat out for the first time this Wed. Winds are predicted to be 10-12 mph with a high of 83. Does this sound like good starting conditions or should I wait for less wind? Any advice for my first time out?
Thanks,
Steve
 
That's 8 to 10 Knots. Very pleasant sailing. Should get you hiking out but not too hard. Should even be able to manage a little plane on a reach. Enjoy...
 
Ops. I forgot that I don't have a hiking strap. It and a few other things are on order so I guess I need to wait on that before I can take her out. Today I'll give her a good cleaning, pressure check the hull and start making some repairs. Hopefully I won't find any other bad surprises. Has anyone found a paint color to match the deck color so I can touch up areas vs repainting the whole top? Or is there a way to tint West Epoxy white to match the boat? If the previous repairs were made with polyester resin I could cover it with gelcoat but I've read gelcoat won't stick to epoxy? Anyone know for sure ?
Thanks,
Steve
 
SteveON said:
Ops. I forgot that I don't have a hiking strap. It and a few other things are on order so I guess I need to wait on that before I can take her out. Today I'll give her a good cleaning, pressure check the hull and start making some repairs. Hopefully I won't find any other bad surprises. Has anyone found a paint color to match the deck color so I can touch up areas vs repainting the whole top? Or is there a way to tint West Epoxy white to match the boat? If the previous repairs were made with polyester resin I could cover it with gelcoat but I've read gelcoat won't stick to epoxy? Anyone know for sure ?
Thanks,
Steve
Click to expand...

You can tint the epoxy, but what you need is UV protection. Epoxy paints will adhere well and can be tinted - I've used Steelcote Master Mariner with some success. I have been told before that putting gelcoat over epoxy is a no-no, but Gouegon Brothers indicate that it will adhere to their West System. See section 2.2.1 in http://209.20.76.247/ss/assets/HowTo-Publications/Fiberglass-Boat-Repair-and-Maintenance.pdf
 
dredies- thanks for the reply and link. Great information I'll use on the repairs I have ahead. I'll plan on just painting over the epoxy repairs to protect them from UV damage, just seems easier.

Yesterday I totally scrubbed/cleaned the the entire boat. I found several areas that will require repair work.

#1 The mast step leaks...allot. I filled it up and in 20 minutes all the water leaked out. This morning I ordered a 6" hatch and some 2" wide fiberglass tape and epoxy to repair the area. I'm still doing the research to make sure I get it right the first time.

#2 The daggerboard slot is damaged/broken away from the bottom hull. Inside the slot looks fine. The hull around the slot is all cracked and the slot is actually barely touching in a couple of areas. The previous owner had mentioned he took on 1-2 gallons after sailing for a couple of hours. I have no doubt this is where the water was entering the hull. The boat already has an access hatch installed near the daggerboard so getting to the inside bottom area shouldn't be too hard. I figure I'll reinforce the area with epoxy/glass and then use epoxy to fair the repair on the outside of the boat.

#3 The deck on the bow and the starboard stern have been damaged and have globs of epoxy roughly shaped for a repair. All this mess will be removed and repaired properly.

Good news is the cockpit and the side decks are in good shape. I took pictures of the damaged areas yesterday and saved them in my documents in my pc. Not sure how to post them in here yet.

Hopefully later today I can prep for the repairs- cut the hole for the access plate on forward deck, clean and sand down daggerboard and mast step areas so once the supplies arrive the boat will be ready.

Thanks again for all the replies and advice!
Steve
 
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