Gel coat patch in my future

Spyderweb

Found these deep scratches in my black hull after a winter storage (the boat you see is a reflection of a boat beside me).  Definitely were not there when I dropped the boat off last Fall.  I've worked with Spectrum Patch Paste in the past.  iBoats seems to be the retail place to get this but they don't carry black for a 2001-2008 hull.  But they do have it for a 2013-2019.

https://www.iboats.com/shop/spectrum-color-rinker-2013-black-color-boat-gel-coat-patch-paste-repair-kit.html

I've got a 13 year old black hull that I work hard to keep looking decent, but no way does it look original.  It's best seen from 10' and back.  So if I get the exact black, it's going to be off some.  With that in mind, how much different is black from black.  Can I expect to be just as good (or just as ok) with any black?

MarkB

Well, first you're going to have to open those up so you can get enough gel in there to stick. The issue will be color matching ... it isn't going to be easy, especially given how old the gel is now, and that it is likely faded.

Another option you should explore (think about, don't do it until you think about it enough) ... is to simply paint the scratches.  The idea is you get a color matched paint, then fill in the cracks ... and wipe off the excess. If you're careful enough you will not paint outside of the scratches, which limits the repair to the what seems to be superficial cracks (as in, you don't have to widen those scratches like you would with gel coat). I think it is a matter of finding a suitable paint ... not sure if you have a local marine shot you can speak to.

Final option is to get a cool graphic vinyl and apply over ... you'll obviously have to think about the design so it doesn't look like a patch job.

Spyderweb

@MarkB my thought about gel coat or painting was I will never get it to match perfect like I have with fixing some white areas (with the correct matched gel coat paste).  That's why I wonder if it's critical if I get the wrong year black, because I figure the correct year black won't look like my black anyways. 

I did consider painting.  Wouldn't have to open up the crack and if it looks terrible, I could always go back to trying gel coat, where I could still enlarge the crack as if it were never painted.  I have no idea what kind of paint to use over fiberglass.

YYZRC

For the $50ish for a jar of patch paste, I would roll the dice and try that first. 

Liberty44140

I had some narrow scratches like that on my 342 and I was able to just put the patch over the scratches without making them bigger and then sanded with 220, 400, 600, and 800
and then a major polish. Wasn’t 100% perfect but definitely 95% which is pretty darn good on a hull.