Puck marks in hull

[Gunnar]

I’m looking at a 1987, 19’ Tournament to possibly buy. It seems to be in pretty good shape other than the hull below the waterline has numerous marks or Divet’s in the gelcoat smaller than the size of a dime . Although there are no holes that penetrate through the hull.
I am not familiar with this, what’s causing it and what do I do to fix it?

 

[Joez]

Sounds like it had blistered and wasn't repaired all that well. Most likely was a wet slipped boat.

 

[seasick]

Is the hull painted? I agree that they are probably blisters but if painted, you can't tell if they were really repaired correctly. If they were simply ground out a bit ( probably not wide enough) and them filled with something, the something shrank or was sucked in as the blister dried.

 

[Sparkdog118]

Boat Blister Repair Tips & Advice, Fiberglass Boat Repair

Boat blister repair and boat fiberglass repair by boat yard pros serving Wilmington NC boaters. Fiberglass delamination repair.

anchorsawayboatyard.com

 

[seasick]

Skunkdog,
The interesting part of the original post is that the marks are dimples and not bumps. That's the part that makes me wonder if they are blisters that dried out and shrank or perhaps blisters that were ground out, poorly patched with who knows what and the patch shrank or they are not blisters at all but some sort of impact damage ( what kind, I have no idea).
If they are bottom painted, I might 1: Ignore them, 2: get a moisture test and if dry, ignore them, 3 sand one down to gel coat layer and see if he can figure out if they are patches or impact damage.

One thing I have learned is that the more I read up on fiberglass repairs, the less I end up knowing!

 

[Sparkdog118]

Lol. That is interesting. There are a lot of backyard patches out there.

 

[Gunnar]

Is the hull painted? I agree that they are probably blisters but if painted, you can't tell if they were really repaired correctly. If they were simply ground out a bit ( probably not wide enough) and them filled with something, the something shrank or was sucked in as the blister dried.

Never been bottom painted nor repaired. I’m just wondering if I should buy it and repair it myself and if these puck marks will keep appearing. Just how bad is this problem?

 

[DennisG01]

Can you post some pics? Otherwise we're just guessing. It could be nothing to worry about... could be a lot. Need pics, though.

 

[Gunnar]

Skunkdog,
The interesting part of the original post is that the marks are dimples and not bumps. That's the part that makes me wonder if they are blisters that dried out and shrank or perhaps blisters that were ground out, poorly patched with who knows what and the patch shrank or they are not blisters at all but some sort of impact damage ( what kind, I have no idea).
If they are bottom painted, I might 1: Ignore them, 2: get a moisture test and if dry, ignore them, 3 sand one down to gel coat layer and see if he can figure out if they are patches or impact damage.

One thing I have learned is that the more I read up on fiberglass repairs, the less I end up knowing!

Yes, they are dimples not bubbles. It almost does look like impact, but not sure. Could be bubbles that formed and cracked jell coat then chipped off. What I’m asking is if anyone has seen anything like this or has had any experience with this situation. Not looking to buy a problem boat, but it has some good features as well. Tough decision.

 

[Gunnar]

Sounds like it had blistered and wasn't repaired all that well. Most likely was a wet slipped boat.

“Wet slipped boat”??? What does that mean?

 

[Gunnar]

Can you post some pics? Otherwise we're just guessing. It could be nothing to worry about... could be a lot. Need pics, though.

Yes will get pics in a day or so. Thanks

 

[Sparkdog118]

“Wet slipped boat”??? What does that mean?

Means the boat is docked in the water for a long period of time.

 

[DennisG01]

What I’m asking is if anyone has seen anything like this

Hard to say if we've seen anything like that if we can't see it... Sorry, couldn't resist!

 

[Gunnar]

I’m looking at a 1987, 19’ Tournament to possibly buy. It seems to be in pretty good shape other than the hull below the waterline has numerous marks or Divet’s in the gelcoat smaller than the size of a dime . Although there are no holes that penetrate through the hull.
I am not familiar with this, what’s causing it and what do I do to fix it?

Here are some pics of the hull below waterline, what caused this and is it worth fixing

 

[Doc Stressor]

You can see that the hull was wet slipped and you do have blisters. A lot of them. A few blisters are not too big a job to repair, but that hull looks like it would require a lot of work. I would not buy that boat.

If you decide to repair blisters, here is a way to do it:

Gelcoat blister repair

 

[Ky Grady]

There are some major issues with that boat. All those lines are cracks that haven't flaked off yet. I'd pass on that boat.

 

[seasick]

I agree, that hull has serious issues.

 

[wrxhoon]

I'll pass on that, looks like wet slipped for 33 years !

 

[Sparkdog118]

Pass.

 

[Hutchy]

Pass.

Ya, like...unless free or close to it, hard pass!