Boat repair.

[McCRIZZLEY]

So I bought my first boat. Its a cheap little Styrofoam filled 2 person, with a plastic shell. I think It will be a rockin bass/duck boat. I took it out to kapowsin for the first time yesterday, and it is so old and brittle, it has a ton of cracks. the cracks let in water into the styrofoam middle. Floated just fine, but got too heavy to drag, let alone lift onto my jeep when I was done.

So needless to say, I am looking to patch all the cracks, quite the undertaking. This thing is old.

Any advice on how to go about it? Plastic welder? epoxy/glue/resin of some sort? Give up and buy a newer boat?

[Bullkllr]

I will try to fix almost anything before buying new. Boats included.

"It has a ton of cracks"- So are you thinking you need to recover/refinish the entire surface?
If it soaked up that much water- it doesn't sound good. Really, the only thing I could imagine would be glassing over everything, probably with fabric and resin. That would be a great amount of work, and would likely add a ton of weight. Your time has value too- and what would the boat be worth in the long-run when you finish?

Realistically- you may need to start with a different boat. In my experience, structural parts like  seats, ribs, floors, stringers,even transoms are usually replaceable- but when you get into trying to fix widespread hull damage- things can get pretty dicey. Obvious "holes" would probably be easier to fix than the all-over cracking you described.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[McCRIZZLEY]

It is small and filled with foam, apparently even if it filled to the brim with water, it would still float, so safety is not a huge concern. I had not thought about glassing the whole bottom, as much work as that sounds like, I think that it may be easier than trying to spot every little crack and hole. good suggestion.

I did get the boat for cheap, but I am the same way, I would rather fix it then dispose of it.

[Romulus1297]

Find a cheap livingston and fix it might be cheaper, easier.

[biggfish]

I fixed a fiberglass shower shell with a tube of boat patching compound I bought at home depot. Its a white cream that dries hard maybe cover the hull with that after the core dries out.

[gasman]

I would probably, dry it out, fill the cracks with a thin layer of boat repair puddy or bondo, the put a layer of FG resign, a layer of FG cloth, then another layer of resign over it 

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[McCRIZZLEY]

Thanks for the input guys! I am leaning towards this full shell sealing idea. I will be sure to check out the boat patch stuff at hardware stores. I recently became unemployed, so it will have to wait a bit, but I will be sure to post updates.