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Recently purchased a 1968, 16fter. I am in the process of removing barnacles, sanding, and painting. The boat has been re-foamed and for the most part, well maintained. fiberglass is solid and no bubbles found. I have one question and can guess what everyone with a classic whaler is going to say.
On the exterior above the waterline are tiny, vertical spider cracks in the gelcoat. They do not appear to be penetrating to the fiberglass. Checked the depth with a needle. Thought this may have been the result of re-foaming and causing pressure on the hull, or the fact that its an old whaler.
Some people say some cracks are better left alone. Unless they become a larger problem.
Have a good amount of work to do, but is achievable by my man power. I am not looking to restore this boat to original (Sorry I know), but love whalers for the TANK they are. Is there a way around grinding them out, it would take me years to do so?
Im a chef, not an English major. Sorry for grammer.
On the exterior above the waterline are tiny, vertical spider cracks in the gelcoat. They do not appear to be penetrating to the fiberglass. Checked the depth with a needle. Thought this may have been the result of re-foaming and causing pressure on the hull, or the fact that its an old whaler.
Im a chef, not an English major. Sorry for grammer.
Congratulations on your purchase of a 1968 Boston Whaler 16 footer boat. Do you know what model you have? What is your stencil number? Many first time Boston Whaler owners that buy a Fisher-Pierce boat ask how to repair gelcoat cracking and crazing. The condition is caused by age, weather exposure, and ultraviolet exposure that breaks down the elasticity of the material. A condition like what you describe on your boat, vertical spider cracks in the gelcoat above the waterline, is a cosmetic condition. The cracks in the gelcoat do not go through the fiberglass core. You can wet sand the hull and then compound/wax, to seal the surface for use. You do not need to take a grinder to the boat and remove the gelcoat. Use the boat, enjoy it, and if you want one without gel-age-patena, find another one for sale in better condition.
Thanks for the help. I have been in search for the serial number but where it should be has been awlgriped over. Any idea how to retreive it?
I will end up wet sanding and buffing the exterior.
For refoaming an old boat, it took me a while to figure out how they did it. It either took lots of time or a lot of money. The floor was lifted, cleaned, replaced, expansion holes drilled, filled with foam and sealed. The floor was rivited down along the beams in the hull. The rivets were treated so they dont leak. It took a long viset at whaler town in MD to figure this one out.
Im going to make a new thread about the OEM side rails. Curiouse if anyone has installed these on a classic 1968 16ft 7".
To uncover the stencil number on your 16 hull, take a 120 grit piece of sandpaper and sand the centerline interior transom area @ 3 inches above the through hull drain tube. You should find a 5 digit stencil. Don't worry about sanding off the stencil.
Did WhalerTowne do the work? They do very good repair work.
Side rails were standard OE equipment on many of the 16 models, specifically the Nauset, Sakonnet and Eastport.
Yes whaler town did the work. Reason i bought it. Beautiful job, original skid resistant floor in good shape.
Ive seen a stencle of the 1968 16ft 7" hull. I assume the stencle for the hull is the same, but the eastport, sakonnet, and nauset had different interiors. Would this change the stencle.
My reason for asking is if anyone knows of the OE siderails line up with the wood in the bulkhead. I tries to ask the sales person this and i assume it was either a stupid question or she didnt want to deal with me.
Every 16 hull that left the factory at Rockland, MA had a stencil number. The stencil number was sequential - every boat had its own number - so the factory could keep track of the number of hulls made. Once you uncover your stencil number, you can ask Boston Whaler for a record of your boat: when it was shipped, and what model it was when it left the factory. Yes, the interior bulkhead has wood backing plates to attach side rails. Take a look at the wood locating diagram for the 16 hull in the downloads section. Post some pictures of your boat when you get a chance so we can see how it is configured.
