New Old Sunfish

[giannig]

After moving to a lovely lake in New Hampshire full time last year we inherited an older Sunfish from our neighbor who acquired it with the purchase of her property, but never took it out of storage. This is our first sailboat, but I've sailed various boats from 18 to 90 feet over the past 50 years, so we look forward to fun on our rather small lake. The boat appears to be in generally good shape, but needed some gouges past the gel coat to be repairs and could very much use a new coat of paint above the waterline. Best I can tell, based on its weight, its dry inside, but has no inspection ports. From what I have read on the forum, installing them as after market add-ons seems pretty common. While it won't keep us from sailing, I would be interested in adding at least one to be able to have a look in the hull and having the storage capacity would be a plus. I am looking for recommendations on what to install, where the best location would be and any valuable tips for doing it. As back ground, I'm a retired aerospace engineer whose career was the development of advanced structural composites (manufacturing and repair), so I not intimidated by working on a glass boat. I also have just about ever tool you could want that fits in a basement. No NC mill or 3D printer yet, but I have access.

Other questions that I would value feedback on are:

Are spiderweb cracks in the gel coat often indicative of structural damage in the underlying glass? My assumption is that they would mostly not be, given the durability and compliance of a glass hull. If they sound OK with tap testing I would be inclined to just paint over them.

Any suggestions on the best approach to installing a hiking strap would be most appreciated.

Finally, my biggest concern is removing hardware and the splash fairing to facilitate painting and losing nut plates in the hull. I would hope they would be captured, but have read warnings about removing both of the screws holding the bridal eyes at the same time. Any insights here would be great on how to ensure there is still a nut when its time to reassemble.

Thanks in advance for any feedback. I was excited to find this forum and look forward to participating. It took most of a lifetime, but now its time to sail my own boat.

 

[L&VW]

Spray paint won't hide spider cracks, which indicate a stressed/weakened area. Ignore until you can't.

If the splashguard itself doesn't need work, I'd mask around it.

Hiking strap suggestions can be accessed by a search. (Magnifier icon, upper right corner of page).

Leave one screw in, and you can still remove the hardware. With your boat's dry history, you're probably OK.

A paddle is the hardest item to store, but it can be rested between the taut halyard and mast.

What I'd like, is a drawer that fits the cubby. (Does your Sunfish have a cubby, and is it a Sunfish--fer sure?)

Can't tell so far, but NH folks tend to keep their cottages for at least one generation. I'm sailing on "The Big Lake"--with the biggest risk factor being "ocean-racers".

My view is a Sunfish with a port has had some difficulty. One of my Sunfish carries that distinction (no port), and I'm leaving it alone.

I'd finish out the season (ends Labor Day for us) before addressing paint and gouges. Everything labor-intensive can wait until the off-season. IMHO.

 

[Breeze Bender]

Don’t cut ports if your boat is dry!

Spider cracks are common and cosmetic. You can add fiberglass tape underside of cockpit lip if they’re around where you’d sit. You can fill and fair before painting, which helps but they will probably return over time.

Agree with L&VW, I wouldn’t remove splashguard. I’ve painted many Sunfish and usually leave it on. It can be a real hassle to reattach.