Mate for a first time and not knowing how to do it i would take this as a win. All you know all people out there get a life. No one is perfect and he clearly said through out the video it is his first time.
Looks like a pretty good job to me! I have a couple of small nicks like this just above the water line from dock dings and I am going to try this type of repair over the weekend.
Good job. We all start somewhere, and thanks to you I get to start a notch higher than I would have before your video. Ignore all the negative, we all learn and experience at different rates. Looks good, and if it breaks out again, I bet it is even better next time. Exactly why some of us enjoy doing things ourselves, we learn and improve. Thanks for sharing.
A lot of haters commenting, I think you did a decent job for first time. Better than my first time. Some commenters don't realize a fiberglass shop may not want to take on your $40 dollar jobs. Plus can you get your boat to a shop that will do it (size issues)? And then, how long will it take to get your boat back while you lose time on the water.
I bumped a rock and damaged a strake. About the same size as your repair except under the boat. Thanks for boosting my confidence. My boat is in rack storage, so it is dry. Will need to buy red gel coat to match the hull.
Get yourself over to boat works today channel and learn how to do it properly. You should have ground out the area slightly first then filled with something such as watertight below the water line filling compound, allowed to hard sanded back. Then put gel/top coat over the top with a brush reasonably thick. Once it had hardened you then sand it back flat cut and polish job done no dark bleed through spots.
For real damage yes but this was just a little cosmetic ding to the gel-coat. Should have sanded first or drevil'd it a bit. But it's only cosmetic, so it will be okay.
I would sand the repair spot with 80 grit sandpaper first and put some epoxy resin over the fiberglass before applying the gelcoat. I used the same West Marine kit with the mylar film on my Sunfish and it only lasted a year before cracking and chipping out. I hope it lasted longer for you than it did for me. I''m going to re-do the repairs right by sanding out the previous repair spots and using several built up and sanded coats of Evercoat white one step gelcoat over epoxy resin.
I know this is an old thread but I just came across it. Bottom line is if you like it that is all that matters. Your boat, your repair so if you can live with it then good for you. Everyone is an expert and everyone has an opinion on how to do things. Lets take a look at their boats. Nice repair.
A lot mentioned sanding before applying to chip. It’s best to use a razor blade to take the edge off the chip. It saves a lot of sanding. Just make sure you apply enough gel coat. Then you can sand to 600 grit.
Good job. I can't see people coming up to your boat and criticizing your work, if they ever noticed it. Which they won't unless you point it out to them. Don't. It looks great.
Looks REALLY good man! Far better than it was. Only you will notice it. Don't worry about small scratches on your boat man, consider them "battle scars". BADGES ON HONOR!
Hey, thanks very much. I happened to pick up the same repair kit from best latrine today before seeing your video, so your video was really helpful. I will attack my brother’s boat problem tomorrow with a lot more confidence!
If I'm not mistaken the piece of plastic in the kit isn't to smooth the gelcoat, but to lock the air off the Gelcoat so it will completely set and not be tacky on the surface when it's set. The exact same thing the wax works. This is why the manufacturers spray the Gelcoat into the mold first then apply the resin and glass. The Gelcoat then cooks completely and no tacky on the outside. That's my understanding anyway.
I just saw this, thanks! good info. I have a crack just like after hitting a metal dock ladder with my swim platform a few years ago, but it's probably 3x in size. I will try to fix it using this same method come spring when the shrink wrap comes off. By the way the Dealer quoted me $700 to repair it. I said no way!
3x that size is pretty big. For me, if my attempt to fix it failed, there's really no significant consequence. You'll need to decide if you are ok with the consequences of a failure from a DIY job. Mine was purely cosmetic and I wanted to try. Good luck.
Few tips .don’t use anything lower than 800grit when sanding .I know ,sounds like a punish but you’ll get quite a nice result.start at 800 - 1200 - 2000 And always keep your water clean when sanding . Your polish/Cut will hide all the scratches.
Seems like a good job to me. Whatever way it turned out, it's better than what it was. I just bought a 2001 Stingray 180 LX with a few gouges in it, so I'll be trying this soon. Thanks for posting
Good luck and read through the comments- there are a few really constructive comments here that will help you out. My "bandaid" is still holding up, but I'll post another video if that changes.
I see you have an Element too. Thanks for the advice. Your video, plus the comments, as rude as some may be, together were incredibly helpful. Looks good enough. Inevitably, you will have more damage in the future. One day you can have a repair shop fix all of them. They can make those spots disappear completely. Boat ownership is expensive. But so worth it. How is the quality of your Element?
At first, when you started picking at it, I thought it was going to turn into a shit show.. It actually turned out pretty nice! Nice job. I'll give ya a thumbs up on this one.
Yeah I was worried he was going to peal it out right away. I’m like stop stop just start sanding lol but I think it turned out not to bad at all for a first timer.
Good call. I tape surgically close to the outside of my patch area, then leave my tape on, when doing my initial sanding... It serves a a depth guide for small to medium patches.
Great video, let me ask u this, is it bad if u didnt gelcoat it? My keel fiberglass exposed from beaching the boat, if i left it exposed 2 more trips to the lake till i work on it off season, will i be ok?
Do you think the damaged area showed thru because there wasn't enough of the white colored material and a large amount of the clear? Leaving it translucent? I have an almost identical chip on my deck where the anchor was dropped going into the locker. This looks like the perfect fix
Yes. Someone mentioned applying a small amount of white paint over the fiberglass before repairing and I think that might help. For a non-structural chip above the waterline, this is simple, effective and turned out really well. I'd recommend giving it a try. Matching the color is a total crap shoot though for us noobs. Good luck!
Thanks for the advice. Right now it's hardly noticeable so I'm going to leave it alone, but if I have any problems with it I will certainly do it. Thanks for watching.
That damage shows internal breakage of the fabric, then polyester putty must be applied, because the gelcoat by itself has no resistance for that damage; For this reason, it is a short-term, brittle repair.
First question, a polyester putty like marine filler? Second, what do you mean by resistance to damage and why do you need that? Is that incase he bangs the boat in that spot again?
@@NUrukhai Think he means, gel coat has very little strength, the grp is a composite, strength comes from the combined glass and plastic. So in this case you need a strength focused filler then the cosmetic gel coat. Thats my take on what he means.
Unless that’s a new boat I would leave it alone. It looks good. I getting ready to do same on my nitro,if mine turns out as good as yours did then I’m happy
Great video, i think its looks great, hardly notice it. I have a fiberglass swim platform as well with a few chunks busted out, but noticed you used a gel coat repair kit, not a fiberglass repair kit. Is the gel coat the best way since its white ?
The white part that I'm fixing is the gel coat. You can see the fiberglass exposed in the bottom of the divot. The fiberglass was fine and needed no repair. So far it's holding up fine and I don't really even think about it anymore.
the film is to keep the air from it and make it dry hard. without the film it will be tacky for a long time. you should rough up the repair first before gelcoating it. i have done this for 45 yrs.
Considering these fillers dry lighter the colour match is pretty good. You can always improve the finish with fine wet and dry paper if you have sanding scratches that bug you but a good job.
Hello, I am thinking to have a small sauna in the after cabin of my glass fiber sailboat? May this project go well if I investering in a proper isolation? Or is that just an insane idea?
Very good job! Not perfect but oh well its sealed and will be protected from the weather. Way better than paying a bill for someone else to do it. And if it happens again you'll be better prepared.
Good job. Not an expert job but much like 90% of us would do. Thank you for sharing. I was wondering how that would look. I’ve got a few of those on my boat too. 👍
He did not rough up around the area before you started I wonder if that's something he needed to do on the other hand I also noticed that the material he was picking at still had a bit of flexibility to it I could be wrong but I think if it was completely cured it would have snapped like porcelain not acted like plastic all in all though it seems to have come together for the better
Going to be trying this for my first time soon. Thanks for the video. Only things I might do different is not tape off the area of repair just tape the plastic down after mix is applied and add more white.
For the air bubbles use a dremel and grind them out. Then rough it all out and add another layer to the entire patch job. Should be less transparent after
Probably not going to stick to the existing smooth waxed gel coat unless you rough it up. Just sand it all down til the repair is only in the chipped area.
I would have tried using a little white touchup paint on the fibreglass before applying the gelcoat. It may have helped mask the repair shade difference.
Mate for a first time and not knowing how to do it i would take this as a win. All you know all people out there get a life. No one is perfect and he clearly said through out the video it is his first time.
Looks like a pretty good job to me! I have a couple of small nicks like this just above the water line from dock dings and I am going to try this type of repair over the weekend.
Practice makes perfect. Let me know how it goes. Thanks for watching!
Good job. We all start somewhere, and thanks to you I get to start a notch higher than I would have before your video. Ignore all the negative, we all learn and experience at different rates. Looks good, and if it breaks out again, I bet it is even better next time. Exactly why some of us enjoy doing things ourselves, we learn and improve. Thanks for sharing.
A lot of haters commenting, I think you did a decent job for first time. Better than my first time. Some commenters don't realize a fiberglass shop may not want to take on your $40 dollar jobs. Plus can you get your boat to a shop that will do it (size issues)? And then, how long will it take to get your boat back while you lose time on the water.
I would fix it in one day with a minimum charge of $100
Awesome vid man! Thanks for helping all of us who don't know a thing about Gel Coat repair.
Keyboard warriors abound on this video. We boat people are an eccentric bunch for sure. Nice job. Ive got a few spots I need to hit on my rig myself.
Thanks for sharing. Ignore the negative people; you did a great job, especially for a first attempt.
I bumped a rock and damaged a strake. About the same size as your repair except under the boat. Thanks for boosting my confidence. My boat is in rack storage, so it is dry. Will need to buy red gel coat to match the hull.
Legit nice to see someone actually apply a fix to a problem, instead of shelling out hundreds to thousands of dollars then call it DIY. Looks good!
Good job for doing it the first time. I have a few dings on my boat that I have to repair. Thanks for posting!
Man that looks sweet. Good job for first time try.
Don't listen to the haters brother. Why pay 1,000 bucks when you can pay 50!
Get yourself over to boat works today channel and learn how to do it properly.
You should have ground out the area slightly first then filled with something such as watertight below the water line filling compound, allowed to hard sanded back. Then put gel/top coat over the top with a brush reasonably thick. Once it had hardened you then sand it back flat cut and polish job done no dark bleed through spots.
For real damage yes but this was just a little cosmetic ding to the gel-coat. Should have sanded first or drevil'd it a bit. But it's only cosmetic, so it will be okay.
I think you achieved an excellent cosmetic and structural outcome, not to mention the money you saved. Thanks.
Nice job for your first time. I like using 'JB Weld for Marine Repair' for the small jobs that don't go to deep, cheaper than the West Marine kit.
I would sand the repair spot with 80 grit sandpaper first and put some epoxy resin over the fiberglass before applying the gelcoat. I used the same West Marine kit with the mylar film on my Sunfish and it only lasted a year before cracking and chipping out. I hope it lasted longer for you than it did for me. I''m going to re-do the repairs right by sanding out the previous repair spots and using several built up and sanded coats of Evercoat white one step gelcoat over epoxy resin.
I suspect the reason for cracking may be to much hardener. It can be a real pain the neck to do sometimes
Looks really good, no one else is going to see it unless you actually point it out.
That is exactly what I was going for. Thanks!
I know this is an old thread but I just came across it. Bottom line is if you like it that is all that matters. Your boat, your repair so if you can live with it then good for you. Everyone is an expert and everyone has an opinion on how to do things. Lets take a look at their boats. Nice repair.
Good job buddy. As my old neighbour used to say, “A blind man would be glad to see it.”
Needed to sand it first to get the new jelcoat to adhere
@Joel Campen lol that’s funny 😄.
i think you did a pretty good job there. Looks really good on our end.
A lot mentioned sanding before applying to chip. It’s best to use a razor blade to take the edge off the chip. It saves a lot of sanding. Just make sure you apply enough gel coat. Then you can sand to 600 grit.
Good job. I can't see people coming up to your boat and criticizing your work, if they ever noticed it. Which they won't unless you point it out to them. Don't. It looks great.
Looks REALLY good man! Far better than it was. Only you will notice it. Don't worry about small scratches on your boat man, consider them "battle scars". BADGES ON HONOR!
"It's not awful" lol That's code for turned out better than expected
Hey, thanks very much. I happened to pick up the same repair kit from best latrine today before seeing your video, so your video was really helpful. I will attack my brother’s boat problem tomorrow with a lot more confidence!
If I'm not mistaken the piece of plastic in the kit isn't to smooth the gelcoat, but to lock the air off the Gelcoat so it will completely set and not be tacky on the surface when it's set. The exact same thing the wax works. This is why the manufacturers spray the Gelcoat into the mold first then apply the resin and glass. The Gelcoat then cooks completely and no tacky on the outside. That's my understanding anyway.
You could be right. But, I've also heard of using wax paper.
you are correct there are 2 types of Gelcoat the waxed and the non waxed this is the non waxed and needs to be covered to cure.
Good job. I think it turned out great. Especially since you’d never done it before. Thanks for sharing👍👍👍
I just saw this, thanks! good info. I have a crack just like after hitting a metal dock ladder with my swim platform a few years ago, but it's probably 3x in size. I will try to fix it using this same method come spring when the shrink wrap comes off. By the way the Dealer quoted me $700 to repair it. I said no way!
Don't, it's wrong.
3x that size is pretty big. For me, if my attempt to fix it failed, there's really no significant consequence. You'll need to decide if you are ok with the consequences of a failure from a DIY job. Mine was purely cosmetic and I wanted to try. Good luck.
Thank you for this. Now I feel more confident to tackle my repair!
good job..very helpful. Turned out better than I thought it would.
Good video / job. What is the the name of the kit that you purchased?
Few tips .don’t use anything lower than 800grit when sanding .I know ,sounds like a punish but you’ll get quite a nice result.start at 800 - 1200 - 2000
And always keep your water clean when sanding .
Your polish/Cut will hide all the scratches.
Seems like a good job to me. Whatever way it turned out, it's better than what it was. I just bought a 2001 Stingray 180 LX with a few gouges in it, so I'll be trying this soon. Thanks for posting
I have an almost identical chip on the starboard side from the boat kissing the dock an will be using the same method - job well done.
I promise this is not how to fix it. That's just a bandaid
Good luck and read through the comments- there are a few really constructive comments here that will help you out. My "bandaid" is still holding up, but I'll post another video if that changes.
I see you have an Element too.
Thanks for the advice. Your video, plus the comments, as rude as some may be, together were incredibly helpful. Looks good enough. Inevitably, you will have more damage in the future. One day you can have a repair shop fix all of them. They can make those spots disappear completely. Boat ownership is expensive. But so worth it.
How is the quality of your Element?
I like this method for spot repairs. Usually use gelcoat with west systems filler but this is great. Nice job
Thanks!
At first, when you started picking at it, I thought it was going to turn into a shit show.. It actually turned out pretty nice! Nice job. I'll give ya a thumbs up on this one.
Yeah I was worried he was going to peal it out right away. I’m like stop stop just start sanding lol but I think it turned out not to bad at all for a first timer.
Great job. Very neat and I learnt a lot from watching you tape off, mix and sand etc. Very nice job. Thank You,.
I consider buying a jet ski that has a smaller gel coat damage. This video helps a lot. Thanks.
Two years ago? How's it now?
I actually put a few drops of honey wax in my gell coat repair it stops it being sticky when cured
Actually a very helpful video. Thank you for letting us tag along
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.
Hello, can you please send me all the names of the products you used.
Thx
Thanks for sharing the video. How is it holding up?
No issues at all. I'm the only one that knows it has been repaired.
It sunk
Not bad for a total amateur, but you should have rough sanded and feathered the area before applying the repair. J/s
Good call. I tape surgically close to the outside of my patch area, then leave my tape on, when doing my initial sanding... It serves a a depth guide for small to medium patches.
I’ve never done this and thought the same thing. I was a dentist before I became an oral surgeon, so I have done stuff similar to this at work
I just did the same thing to my boat almost same spot. What kit was that again you used?
What grit sandpaper would you use to rough up the damaged areas before applying repair?
Great video, let me ask u this, is it bad if u didnt gelcoat it? My keel fiberglass exposed from beaching the boat, if i left it exposed 2 more trips to the lake till i work on it off season, will i be ok?
just the fiberglass? not the core? If water gets between the layers of glass and under the paint it can delaminate it or cause blisters.
fabulous idea putting the clear plastic sheet over the Gel Coat Repair.. gotta repair my board this year
You will be the only one to ever notice that repair job!
Do you think the damaged area showed thru because there wasn't enough of the white colored material and a large amount of the clear? Leaving it translucent? I have an almost identical chip on my deck where the anchor was dropped going into the locker. This looks like the perfect fix
that's exactly what I was thinking
Yes. Someone mentioned applying a small amount of white paint over the fiberglass before repairing and I think that might help. For a non-structural chip above the waterline, this is simple, effective and turned out really well. I'd recommend giving it a try. Matching the color is a total crap shoot though for us noobs. Good luck!
Certainly looks good from here... Great for a first timer ! My takeaway... “Best Latrine” Still laughing at that one ! 😂🤣
Looks good. No one will ever see it as long as you don't point to where it is.
Must sand the Area first before gelcoat application.
Looks good, sand it again and apply more material then you can shape it to match the curve.
Thanks for the advice. Right now it's hardly noticeable so I'm going to leave it alone, but if I have any problems with it I will certainly do it. Thanks for watching.
Looks good to me, and you learned a new thing. Way to go!
Exactly, thanks for the good words!
Great Job, thanks for sharing the video
Wondering why you. Didn’t sand the surrounding area to blend in and make it adhere to the old stuff
I did scuff it up some prior to cleaning it out, but I wasn't very aggressive with it.
Very good video for the first time DIY person. Would like .to find out where you found the kit?
West Marine. It's not rocket science and there are plenty of good tips in the comment section. Thanks for watching!
That damage shows internal breakage of the fabric, then polyester putty must be applied, because the gelcoat by itself has no resistance for that damage; For this reason, it is a short-term, brittle repair.
First question, a polyester putty like marine filler? Second, what do you mean by resistance to damage and why do you need that? Is that incase he bangs the boat in that spot again?
@@NUrukhai Think he means, gel coat has very little strength, the grp is a composite, strength comes from the combined glass and plastic. So in this case you need a strength focused filler then the cosmetic gel coat. Thats my take on what he means.
Unless that’s a new boat I would leave it alone. It looks good. I getting ready to do same on my nitro,if mine turns out as good as yours did then I’m happy
Great video, i think its looks great, hardly notice it. I have a fiberglass swim platform as well with a few chunks busted out, but noticed you used a gel coat repair kit, not a fiberglass repair kit. Is the gel coat the best way since its white ?
The white part that I'm fixing is the gel coat. You can see the fiberglass exposed in the bottom of the divot. The fiberglass was fine and needed no repair. So far it's holding up fine and I don't really even think about it anymore.
OK, thanks. IM sure mine is the same material as yours, its a Chaparral stock extended swim platform.
Excellent travail pour un débutant, bravo Guys
Thx for sharing . Looks good for first
time mate but made some pros angry 😂😂😂👍
That looks awesome! Compared to what it looked like before
Look a good man. What the name of the kit you used
looks good, how many knots were you doing when you hit
None really. A wake pushed it into the dock and that was it.
What was the name of the product you used? do you have a link you could share?
the film is to keep the air from it and make it dry hard. without the film it will be tacky for a long time. you should rough up the repair first before gelcoating it. i have done this for 45 yrs.
Great info. Thanks for the input.
Considering these fillers dry lighter the colour match is pretty good. You can always improve the finish with fine wet and dry paper if you have sanding scratches that bug you but a good job.
Thanks!! Will try.
Have to do a few nics on mine got kit but no instructions with it glad to see not to bad would’ve left a little longer but thanks for posting it
Good job. Great first attempt. Your approach was was just like I see the pros.
I’m about to do this today. Thanks for sharing. Looks great from my house!
Hello, I am thinking to have a small sauna in the after cabin of my glass fiber sailboat? May this project go well if I investering in a proper isolation? Or is that just an insane idea?
Very good job! Not perfect but oh well its sealed and will be protected from the weather. Way better than paying a bill for someone else to do it. And if it happens again you'll be better prepared.
Good job mate, can only see it it if you new it was there. 🇦🇺
I would call it a win! Not bad, muck better than what you had
Good job. Not an expert job but much like 90% of us would do. Thank you for sharing. I was wondering how that would look. I’ve got a few of those on my boat too. 👍
Thanks, the hardest part is the color matching.
He did not rough up around the area before you started I wonder if that's something he needed to do on the other hand I also noticed that the material he was picking at still had a bit of flexibility to it I could be wrong but I think if it was completely cured it would have snapped like porcelain not acted like plastic all in all though it seems to have come together for the better
Yep, always must rough it up!
Going to be trying this for my first time soon. Thanks for the video. Only things I might do different is not tape off the area of repair just tape the plastic down after mix is applied and add more white.
Mike Tice
Do you have a link for the kit used?
@@aztxtransport2776 www.amazon.com/WEST-MARINE-Gelcoat-Repair-Kit/dp/B07W9FLX2G/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=west+marine+gel+coat+repair+kit&qid=1606063608&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExTzFXSTlXVTlKQVdDJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjQ4MDY5MVFLOE83WkNQTkhJVCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwOTQ3NDExM1NKODVIQVhMQzhSTiZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX3Bob25lX3NlYXJjaF9hdGYmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl
Mike Tice
Thank you so much. 👍
Mike Tice
Was one kit enough? I need to patch 1”x6” on my keel. Is this kit easier to work with than other kits?
I think if it were color matched better it would have looked great. It still looks pretty good, not going to be noticable unless you point it out
Excellent job, the pros here DONT understand that taking care of your stuff is most important. I would buy a used boat from you
For the air bubbles use a dremel and grind them out. Then rough it all out and add another layer to the entire patch job. Should be less transparent after
I agree, it looks great. Most of the after video portion we cant even see where the hole was.
really good video very helpful. thanks!
Thank you.
Good job !!
Do you know how it´s call the transparent film/plastic that the gel coat it doesn´t stick ?
You can use baking paper. Epoxy does not stic to it.
Mylar
If you pick it, It will never heal...
Good job. Thanks I have a similar dock boo boo to fix. Now I know how.
As I like to say, Can't see it at 100mph. Good field repair!
I'm definitely going to steal that saying. Thanks.
Probably not going to stick to the existing smooth waxed gel coat unless you rough it up. Just sand it all down til the repair is only in the chipped area.
We will certainly see. I think I'll wait until my fix fails before any further surgery. Thanks for the comment.
How did you get the chip in the first place? Did you bang your watch on it?
Hit the doc said at start of vid
@@wizzbear8082
Was the Doctor OK?
LOL!!🤣
I would have tried using a little white touchup paint on the fibreglass before applying the gelcoat. It may have helped mask the repair shade difference.
That is a fantastic idea. The repair area has a translucent quality about it and some paint under the repair would work well.
I have a ding in the same spot from 2 years ago, if I do half as good a job before it gets put back in the water this year I will be happy. Thanks.
Great job!! What brand is your watch?
watch is a Garmin Fenix : explore.garmin.com/en-GB/fenix/
Paul has it right- a Garmin Fenix. I love it.
For a first timer great job.
Thanks, it's hardly noticeable.
Thank you. Nice job. Good video. "Looks better than it did.", was a good quote. I like, "ever what works", as well. boat on man. boat on.
Nice work. Looks good.
Looks like it needed a little more white pigment. Thanks for the video. I'm going to try an fix my seedoo.
All in all you did a very good job
Great job for your first time, tough spot to work on!
Thanks, I learned a little for next time.
Looks good thanks for sharing