1990 vip ski 18/ fiberglass brands?

[Jrockman]

Hello all , I was looking for information on a new boat I found on craigslist a few weeks ago . I liked the boat enough to buy it at a very good price . The boat has a Yamaha 150 on it and is in really good shape. When I was pulling carpet out of the front storage compartments I found that the floor board had 3 foot cracks along the side where at attaches to hull. I'm sure that I can fix with fiberglass. Has any one seen this before ?

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

We can't SEE what you are SEEING. Post some pics and we can help.

 

[Jrockman]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Here's a few pics of the problem . The cracks are in the front . My guess is rough water over the years did this . I plan to fiberglass it all by together. I've checked for rot and found one spot in the back of boat by the gas tank.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Are the cracks all the way through and does the deck flex a lot at those points?

 

[Jrockman]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Yes the cracks are thru. the floor part of it is maybe a 1/2 " higher than where it was attach. I can stand on that part of the floor and it will line up . I was thinking of using a board and a jack on the outside of the hull to hopefully push up on the hull to align the seam to bond back together. I 've read up on fiberglassing and have done some but after reading some of the forums not real sure what to bond it with?

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

jrock,

You need to do some more investigation. I would cut a 6 inch hole in the deck up front and see what I could see underneath. It does not add up that the deck would be flexing upward like that unless something underneath was causing it. Is there floatation foam under there? If so is it wet? I think you may have other issues that need to be discovered under the deck. A quick patch is NOT going to resolve your issues with this boat. You may need to remove the entire top cap of the boat and replace the entire deck. I really do not like the looks of those cracks and the description of how it is raised up and flexing. Just pusing it down and trying to fiberglass over it will not fix the problem in my opinion.
:redface:

 

[Jrockman]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Re: 1990 vip ski 18

Thanks for advice. I will not be able to work on it for a week or so. If you were to going to bond back together which fiberglass resin should I use ?

 

[Jrockman]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18/ FIBERGLASS BRANDS?

Re: 1990 vip ski 18/ FIBERGLASS BRANDS?

Well, I have read many forums since I first posted this and before I found this site I had aready bought 3m bondo home solutions All- fiberglass resin from homedepot where I work and fiberglass mat made from the same company. The mat does not have a wieght on it . I have not opened so I could take back . I bought this boat to maybe have a couple of years and then turn and get another. With that said I will like to use the boat this year so I will be bonding the cracks. I did measure the high difference between the boards and one side is 1/4 " and the other 3/8 ". I know expoy would be the strongest but is the one I have any good , the brand that is . If your reading this please like me know what you think. THANKS

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18/ fiberglass brands?

It is not very good stuff but if you are just doing a quick fix patch to go fishin then it should work. Make sure to sand and clean the old glass as good as you can so you will get a good bond. Coat the old glas with resin and then lay the mat, then coat it good with resin. Make sure your hardener resin mix ratio is correct so it will Flash and harden correctly.

Good Luck

 

[Jrockman]

Re: 1990 vip ski 18/ fiberglass brands?

Thanks