Ouch, damaged gelcoat backing into slip. Gelcoat match?

luvinlife

I have not had a very good early season backing into my slip this year. The wind has been tough and I’ve been struggling a lot more than past years. Now I think I have the yips and it’s in my head! Well, yesterday I did it, damaged the gelcoat with a big deep scratch. Thank god it’s above the waterline, but it’s pretty bad. I requested the marina take a look and recommend action. Not sure what you guys think about me trying to repair or at least get it sealed from moisture until it comes out in the fall, any thoughts?  Similar experiences? 

aero3113

Sorry this happened. You can easily do it yourself, or have a professional do it once the boat is out of the water. I would find what is sticking out in your marina that did the damage and have that fixed ASAP.

luvinlife

Aero thanks. It was a sharp stainless prop on another boat I hit. No damage to his boat thank god. I wonder if anybody has the correct Rinker color for 2006 270.  

Liberty44140

Agree it’s an easy diy. You need to call Rinker ASAP with your HIN to get the right spectrum color code. One spectrum patch kit will be enough to fix that, $40 kit on iboats 

mattie

Easily fixable. Def need the boat out of the water.

Do as Liberty says above.....

luvinlife

Thank you guys. I can reach the damaged area from the dock but it’s probably best to pull it and do it right.  Hate losing the water time and paying to haul it. 

mattie

luvinlife said:

Thank you guys. I can reach the damaged area from the dock but it’s probably best to pull it and do it right.  Hate losing the water time and paying to haul it. 

If you're not familiar with gel coat repairs - there are tons of youtube vids available.

Really straight forward. Take some before/after pics. That way we can judge your abilities......lol

Dream_Inn

You could also do it in the water using a float of some sort.  I have a nice fiberglass one that you can stand on (not saying to buy one).  As others said, can be done easily and you could do it from dinghy or something like that especially when tied up in the marina.  Sorry it happened, but you won't even know when it's done (at least no one else will).

luvinlife

Thanks. I emailed Rinker for the gelcoat match.  I’m afraid to use the boat until this thing gets fixed. I can probably reach it if I’m sitting on the dock. Waiting to hear back from the marina on their opinion.  Don’t want to get water intrusion.  But I hate to lose boating day as the season is so short here in the Northeast. 

Dream_Inn

If it takes a week or two to get what you need to fix it, you could easily put a piece of duct tape over it to seal it.  Then just clean any adhesive left from it before fixing.  I've seen much much worse and the boat is still used until fixed.  Not saying to put it off, but I'm saying you should still enjoy the boat.

212rowboat

Ouch.. sorry that happened. 

Don't know of its been said, but keep in mind gelcoat shrinks significantly as it dries... make sure and get the overlap recommended by the maker.  

SeaHare

yeah, get the spectrum match from iboats... mine was called Sand White for an 01 FV. They charge like $15 for shipping though since they called it a hazardous material.

It matched pretty good, not perfect tho. be generous when applying. I had to do 2 coats and will probably do another this fall when its out of the water... My scratch is 95% better than what it was. Its just a little hard to do at the dock.

Buy a wet sand variety pack from Advance Auto for like $5 and a sanding block..

luvinlife

Got a guesstimate quote from my Marina for professional repair, $700, ouch. The fiberglass guy is supposed to be amazing. Won't be able to tell it was damaged when it's done. Problem is he's hard to tie down he's so busy, but they will try to get him. They said  he can fix it from the dock so I don't need to pay to haul it out.

TonyG13

If he's as good as they say he is, and you can afford it, I'd go with the pro. I think you'd be happier in the long run.

I've done a minor patch myself using the iBoats gelcoat repair kit and also had our yard glass guy do more major work on a previous scratch similar to yours.

He matched it perfectly and even up close you could never tell.

Mine attempt passes the "10 foot rule" - but if you get closer, you can tell something was amiss.

Just my .02

TonyG13

Here was my repair attempt...

https://rinkerboats.vanillacommunities.com/discussion/comment/114230#Comment_114230

Spyderweb

If money’s no issue have the pro do it and be done.  But, boy, that’s a lot of $ for one of those boat things that is very diy.  If it was me, and too awkward to do in the water, I would at least do the 1st coat of gel coat now, that would seal it, and make it not so noticeable, then finish it up in the off season when you can do a better blending and sanding job.

luvinlife

So I put some white gorilla tape over it for now. It actually doesn’t look bad. Have not heard back from the fiberglass guy yet, but the marina GM said $700.  Now I’m on the fence. I may just leave it and fix it in the fall when it’s dry docked and I can really take my time. 

rkinross

You can also call Spectrum to get some patch paste to fix the scratch.  I believe they supply Rinker with their gelcoat and they keep the color codes on their system.  Iboats also sells it online.  It is very easy to use.  Almost like using filler on a wall before painting.  When I did mine I used masking tape to outline the scratch and it makes sanding only the patch paste easier.  No need to sand the good gelcoat. 
This may be the product you need: https://spectrumcolor-com.3dcartstores.com/RINKER-WHITE-WHITE-06-09_p_660.html 

luvinlife

Thanks rkinross, I’m leaning that way.  Already contacted Spectrum 

boatman37

I used the Spectrum for our 2006 Crownline this spring and it matched perfectly