1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

[Augoose]

All,
the starboard side steel hinge for the fiberglass engine cover has broken away from the surrounding fiberglass. This cover weighs a ton and is supported by twin 120 lb gas shocks on either side. When I got the boat the port side hinge was completely missing but I already made a new one. My plan now is to remove the deck pad and take the cover itself to someone who can re-glass both corners. Once its back from the glass shop I'll then fabricate two 1/8th" steel pans to sit inside the newly fiberglasses corners. That way the load on the hinges is distributed across the new fiberglass corners and into the new steel pan instead of just on the fiberglass like it used to be- the fiberglass will be sandwiched between the existing hinge and the new pan.

Does anyone have any other suggestions?

Any idea on an approximate cost for the fiberglass repair?

 

[oops!]

Re: 1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

it is difficult to see the damage........it may have to de re glassed, but it could also be a minor gellcoat repair..

between 150 and 250.

as far as the hinge.....those puny little hinges wont hold for long....

re think the whole application and go for something beefy.

 

[Augoose]

Re: 1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

it is difficult to see the damage........it may have to de re glassed, but it could also be a minor gellcoat repair..

between 150 and 250.

as far as the hinge.....those puny little hinges wont hold for long....

re think the whole application and go for something beefy.

Sorry for the poor quality pics- the fiberglass where the hinge mounts is actually gone, so its well beyond gelcoat issues. Unfortunately when something is completely missing in a picture (as in the fiberglass which was holding the hinge) its hard to know what you're looking at. One of the original hinges is about 1/8" stainless (I rewelded that one) and the hinge I made is 1/4", so it's pretty strong and is not going anywhere. I'm very confident that the steel hinges will hold up as long as I can find a solution to fix the fiberglass. Between $150 and $250 is certainly do-able.

 

[Augoose]

Re: 1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

Just realized I never followed up with this thread. I ended up removing the deck pad and then pulling the fiberglass lid completely off. Once that was off I saw where the plywood frame inside the fiberglass had completely rotted. It appears that when the fiberglass lid sits in place, it creates a "pan" which collects water which then equals rot. I took the lid to a fiberglass repair place where they rebuilt the fiberglass at the hinge areas and reinforced the remaining deck. I then fabricated two new hinges with twice the surface area so as to more evenly distribute the load the hinges place on the fiberglass itself. Lastly, when I re-installed the deck lid, I placed a heavy rubber trailer bow stop beneath the deck and on top of an existing fiberglass cross member that runs horizontally over the engine. That way when the deck closes, it comes to rest right on top of the rubber bow stop and doesn't droop in the middle when people walk across it! I'm sure that was the initial problem with the lid- poor design.
Next time I'm at the boat I'll take some pictures.

 

[mikeneal]

Re: 1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

I just had the exact same thing happen to my Chris Craft 200 last night. I made a patch to spread the load from G10 sheet and exposed it in. I am no glass guy so hope it holds. I might add your rubber bumper idea. What height is the stop? What did the glass guy end up charging you in case my repair fails?

 

[Augoose]

Re: 1999 Chris Craft 200 br, fiberglass engine cover repair

I just had the exact same thing happen to my Chris Craft 200 last night. I made a patch to spread the load from G10 sheet and exposed it in. I am no glass guy so hope it holds. I might add your rubber bumper idea. What height is the stop? What did the glass guy end up charging you in case my repair fails?

Just sent you a PM- I think I paid about $500, which included re-glassing not only the hinges but all the way across the underside of the deck. They removed the plywood support which is embedded in the deck and replaced it with a synthetic material which I'm sure accounts for a significant amount of the price. They found that when the deck is closed it makes a tray which holds water. That water is supposed to drain through the vents you see in the underside of the deck however mine were clogged with who-knows-what so the water just sat and rotted through the glass.