spider cracks in gel coat

hadd · 22 November 2010, 21:37

Hi all, just noticed some little cracks in the hull where the rear wheel,s on the trailer run on both side,s of the hull, i,v taken the boat back to the dealer to see what they had to say about it, he told me not to worry about it as they are only spider crack,s , the boat as only been out about 7 time,s from new , any advice please.

martini · 22 November 2010, 22:40

Spider cracks are usually caused by stress or flex in the fibreglass but can also be caused by impact damage, exposure to hot sun (allegedly), gelcoat being applied too thickly or not mixed correctly.

It's usually just superficial but could be a warning of something more serious underneath.

There's no easy proper fix I'm afraid, it's a case of grinding out and reapplying flocoat then sand, flat and polish.

If it's a new boat I'd be a bit pee'd off. If you are concerned about it, one course of action would be to have it all or part repaired by a specialist. When they dig it all out they might have a better idea of the damage and the cause. If they reckon it's a fault in the original laying up of the hull then that's a bit of ammo to go back to the dealer with.

Poly · 22 November 2010, 22:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadd

Hi all, just noticed some little cracks in the hull where the rear wheel,s on the trailer run on both side,s of the hull, i,v taken the boat back to the dealer to see what they had to say about it, he told me not to worry about it as they are only spider crack,s , the boat as only been out about 7 time,s from new , any advice please.

Seapro? so you are dealing with the budget end of the market.... ...still not really an acceptable answer from the dealer and hardly going to help the good marketing / press coverage he's been getting in the mags recently.

you probably need the opinion of a real builder or surveyor (like Biffer or Searider on here respectively) as to whether (a) this needs fixed for long term structural reasons (b) how it should be fixed (I suspect with that attitude if your stealer fixes it he's just going to put some filler over it - which won't stop it recurring.

whisper · 22 November 2010, 22:54

Hi, If it’s cracked around where the rollers meet the hull it could be caused by your trailer setup, have you got any pics?

kerny · 22 November 2010, 23:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polwart

Seapro? so you are dealing with the budget end of the market.... ...still not really an acceptable answer from the dealer and hardly going to help the good marketing / press coverage he's been getting in the mags recently.

you probably need the opinion of a real builder or surveyor (like Biffer or Searider on here respectively) as to whether (a) this needs fixed for long term structural reasons (b) how it should be fixed (I suspect with that attitude if your stealer fixes it he's just going to put some filler over it - which won't stop it recurring.

Not just the budget end of the market .

http://rib.net/forum/showthread.php?...on+hull+damage

Stoo · 23 November 2010, 03:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by whisper

Hi, If it’s cracked around where the rollers meet the hull it could be caused by your trailer setup, have you got any pics?

A fellow I know had a similar problem on his hard boat. The repair guy chalked it up to too much weight on the trailer rollers. They replaced all of the rollers with carpeted bunks and he has had no problems since...

biffer · 23 November 2010, 07:43

all the posts have valid points, if you grind out and gell again the cracks will come back, better to grind a little deeper and put a layer or two of matt then gell and finish, put a straight edge across the crack and see if there's a dent there, this could mean that the layup is very light and you're roller is on it's way through the bottom of you're boat.
these boat are made to a price not a standard and a bunk trailer would make sense as it spreads the load over a larger area, should be easy enough to convert the trailer you have

Searider · 26 November 2010, 16:44

^^^^^^^

What Biffer said.

BUT, if you're having no joy with the dealer at the moment have a Surveyor look at the bottom and document the cracks.

You can use this in discussions over repairs with the dealer. If the dealer supplied the trailer then he should sort the cracks.

If you supplied the trailer and it's fitted incorrectly you might be in a slightly less strong position.

Don't whatever you do get it repaired and present the bill to the dealer.

He'll be none too happy and will probably tell you that you have no warranty - as you've carried out an unauthorised repair to the hull.

Hope this helps.

hadd · 26 November 2010, 18:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Searider

^^^^^^^

What Biffer said.

BUT, if you're having no joy with the dealer at the moment have a Surveyor look at the bottom and document the cracks.

You can use this in discussions over repairs with the dealer. If the dealer supplied the trailer then he should sort the cracks.

If you supplied the trailer and it's fitted incorrectly you might be in a slightly less strong position.

Don't whatever you do get it repaired and present the bill to the dealer.

He'll be none too happy and will probably tell you that you have no warranty - as you've carried out an unauthorised repair to the hull.

Hope this helps.

Thank for all the info,i will take some pic,s of the trailer setup over weekend & put them on here, some of you on here might know better than me whether the trailers setup right or wrong.

hadd · 28 November 2010, 11:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadd

Thank for all the info,i will take some pic,s of the trailer setup over weekend & put them on here, some of you on here might know better than me whether the trailers setup right or wrong.

A few pic,s of trailer setup .

biffer · 28 November 2010, 11:49

that look's like a seriously light layup, the way the rollers are warping the hull, you'll need to put that one on a bunk trailer, this is classic case of why some boats are dearer than others, a few of the ribeye boats i've had in are doing the same, last month i went to look at a ribeye 650 for a bloke, it was advertised low hours and very clean, and it was, but 3 years of siting on it's trailer had took it's toll on the hull

martini · 28 November 2010, 11:53

Wow pic 3 the roller looks like it's about to go through and come out the other side

DM · 28 November 2010, 13:56

Is it still under warranty?

If so, I'd be taking that back to the dealer as not fit for purpose.

bosun · 28 November 2010, 15:09

Bloody hell,that's a seriously thin hull....................no more slagging humbers off when there's things built like that around.
I'd be inclined to use the phrase ''not of merchantable quality or fit for the purpose intended'' Personally I'd get it surveyed and then threaten legal action unless I had a fit for purpose replacement or refund.

bosun · 28 November 2010, 15:17

In our sailing club we run two SR4's,a 4.8 Avon and a 5m humber,occassionally well-meaning helpers load the boats onto the wrong trailers so the rollers are all wrong,ie all the weight on only two sets of rollers,keel rollers nowhere near the keel etc. But none of our boats have ever done anything like whats pictured.

spartacus · 28 November 2010, 16:24

Can't see any keel rollers. Does the trailer have a hinged swing beam for the boat to ride on before it's hauled onto the rollers?

hadd · 28 November 2010, 20:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by DM

Is it still under warranty?

If so, I'd be taking that back to the dealer as not fit for purpose.

Thanks for all the advice lads, the boat as 2 yrs warranty still left on it ,the dealer did say do another season then bring it back, i think by the end of next season the hull will be a lot worse than it is now, so maybe i can push him for new boat then or a refund , thank again

piranha580 · 28 November 2010, 20:28

Certainly looks like a poor trailer setup.. Roller setup looks too far down the hull towards the keel.. Not enough rollers.. And no keel rollers by the looks of it?! I'd be going back to the dealers looking for extra rollers.. Worst case scenario spare rollers are cheap enough!

Poly · 28 November 2010, 20:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadd

Thanks for all the advice lads, the boat as 2 yrs warranty still left on it ,the dealer did say do another season then bring it back, i think by the end of next season the hull will be a lot worse than it is now, so maybe i can push him for new boat then or a refund , thank again

mmm... sounds more like the dealer is angling for the "well its 2 yrs old, its just wear and tear, you've enjoyed it for 2 years so you certainly can't get a full refund, how about a discount on a new boat" line. Its crap now - tell him to fix it now. You don't want it develop into serious problem that leaves you boatless at the start of the season - this is the ideal time to get it sorted.

hadd · 28 November 2010, 20:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polwart

mmm... sounds more like the dealer is angling for the "well its 2 yrs old, its just wear and tear, you've enjoyed it for 2 years so you certainly can't get a full refund, how about a discount on a new boat" line. Its crap now - tell him to fix it now. You don't want it develop into serious problem that leaves you boatless at the start of the season - this is the ideal time to get it sorted.

The boats only 12 months old ,its still 2yrs warranty left on it .