On the Mark: Bottom Repair
Continued...
Final prep
The next morning I got up early to get the patch prepped prior to going to work. Again I wanted to take advantage of the ease of working the partially cured epoxy. I used a cabinet scraper to smooth the putty. This is the same scraping technique as I have written about previously (WebLetter 36). This photo shows the nice shavings you get with the scraper on the epoxy/micro-balloon mix.
The scratches in the photo are from the prior rasping step (I was a bit heavy handed). I did a very small amount of touch up sanding (~ 1-2 minutes). The scrapers sometimes leave fine ridges that are quickly cleaned up with a light sanding. The scratches in the old paint from the rasp were also sanded out (at least to 90% level).
The next photo shows the repair after it is wiped down with mineral spirits to clean off the dust. The areas where the putty filled the scratches from the rasp and the air bubbles is plainly visible due to the color difference, but the overall surface was quite smooth.
Painting
I was now ready to paint and a bit ahead of schedule. I would be able to get it coated before work!
Here is a shot with the paint partially applied. Looking at the reflections at an oblique angle like this makes any imperfections in the surface visible. There are some minor ripples, but I will sand those out when I repaint the bottom next spring (or the year after).
This is the final shot with the entire area painted
and you can see the reflection of my hand and other objects in the glossy
finish. Scraping, sanding and painting took about 45 minutes.
Finished
With this technique of high temperature application and wrapping, high quality repairs can be completed in less than 36 hours elapsed time and less than 2 hours of actual work time.
We got the boat back in the water on Tuesday night. The 4th of July weekend was wonderful. We spent many hours on the water and had a great time. We are learning to wakeboard and really enjoying it. Even I can get up and catch some air now. With 2 adults in the rear cockpit, the wake is very nice for jumping.
I have gone under the boat and inspected the repair since then and it is holding up just fine.
While I was under the boat, I got a shot of the bottom showing the three skid fins that I had mentioned in the June WebLetter. We have gotten several comments on the better handling of the boat this year with the fins on.
We are very pleased to have Mark sharing his expertise with his fellow boat builders. If you would like to comment on this article to Mark, he can be reached at "builders at bronkalla.com". Replace the at with @. (Just trying to dodge a few spammers). See Mark's great web site for information on his Riviera project.