Hull to Deck adhesive?

[Ticktack]

Hello All,
I just bought a 2000 Sunfish that needs a little love. When viewing the underside of the gunwale close to the bow, I noticed a 4” gap where adhesive once was at the hull to deck joint.
what was the original adhesive used on assembly from factory & what material would be best to fill the gap as to maintain structural integrity?
Thanks So much!

 

[L&VW]

Questions:

Has the missing material affected the joint? Can you detect flexing? Is water leaking out/in? Is this defect from the factory or misadventure?

In answer to your second question.

Thixo.

 

[Ticktack]

Questions:

Has the missing material affected the joint? Can you detect flexing? Is water leaking out/in?

I don’t know for sure about leakage, I haven’t had it in the water yet but best as I can tell hull seems pretty light & dry.
also, no noticeable flex or weakness at gunwale.

 

[beldar boathead]

Don’t know the original glue, but West Epoxy is a good choice. If there is a big gap you should use either pre-thickened West , or if Thixo is thickened, use it.

This problem occasionally happens andas long as water hasn’t gotten into the foam there is no long term issue. If water is in the foam it’s not hard to dry it out. Fortunately your boat seems light.

 

[Ticktack]

I don’t know for sure about leakage, I haven’t had it in the water yet but best as I can tell hull seems pretty light & dry.
also, no noticeable flex or weakness at gunwale.

Here’s a couple of pics, available lighting probably doesn’t show void from missing adhesive too well.
I also want to repair the abraded areas at the shear. I’ve had good luck using white Marine-Tex for the original white gel coat on hull. What’s the best material to repair yellow areas , maybe a neutral gel coat & add yellow polyester pigment?

 

[Ticktack]

Here’s a couple of pics, available lighting probably doesn’t show void from missing adhesive too well.
I also want to repair the abraded areas at the shear. I’ve had good luck using white Marine-Tex for the original white gel coat on hull. What’s the best material to repair yellow areas , maybe a neutral gel coat & add yellow polyester pigment?

The blue stripe on this boat is tape, Could it have come from factory Like that? Seems like any original stripes on hulls are usually molded in gelcoat before layup. I’ve been searching for original pics of the 2000 Vanguard sunfish but haven’t located any yet.
Thanks again for everyone’s input!!

 

[beldar boathead]

Back in that era they used tape for some of the stripes, and that is factory. I don’t see any abraded yellow, just abraded tape.

 

[Ticktack]

Back in that era they used tape for some of the stripes, and that is factory. I don’t see any abraded yellow, just abraded tape.

Sorry, here’s a better pic of abrasion on yellow gunwale.

 

[bclark3862]

I would use G-Flex epoxy from West. It bonds really well and does a solid job on gunwale repairs like this. I would even put some (finely) chopped up fiberglass in with it to give the glue a bit more strength.