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I am in the process of repairing the rigging tunnel with Marine-Tex and while I believe that I have repaired all the areas of thin gelcoat, I was considering lining the tunnel with say a plastic drain pipe to keep from dinging up the gelcoat more? It would have to be something smooth otherwise water would stand in the pipe, probably not good for the wires? Anyone done something like this?
What led you to check the rigging tunnel? Was the thin gelcoat the result of wear?
I am just in the process of repairing numerous spider cracks in the starboard side of the hull. I suspect they are the result of water freezing in there. I will be removing the deck soon and will hopefully find the point of intrusion. I hope it's not a big crack in the tunnel wall.
Mike,
Actually a couple of things, first was water in the hull. On my boat there was a gouge in the gelcoat near the chine on the starboard side that weeps water. The entry point was one or more of the screws that hold down the tank cover so I knew I had some issues there. That I found a two years ago but with the t-top I couldn't really take a good look. Then, when Dave pulled up his floor and found the thin gelcoat, I figured I might have issues as well, so planned to pull up the floor once I took off the t-top. http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/...09990.html
I considered using tubing (well, I really considered using "half tubing" to protect the tunnel, but really, I think it is overkill. Plus, I was worried about it causing snags when pulling new rigging through. I think the best option is for winter storage to raise the bow so water drains to the sump. Leave the boat like that for a few weeks late fall with the deckplates open, and then return the boat to normal trim on the trailer.
Leave your deckplates open all winter folks - even humidity/temperature variations cause that area to sweat and the condensed water will collect. Opening the deckplates encourages air circulation. Twice this winter I've BLOWN air via a shopvac through the deckplate at the fuel gauge because I noticed condensate in there after a severe temperature swing (thaw with humidity back to hard freeze).
I don't know what caused the gelcoat on my hull to be so thin in that one area. My speculation is that when they sprayed the male mold, they were in a hurry, or the guy (or woman) was short and didn't get over the lip to that area...who knows? But if someone was waiting with the lumber to go in that area, I can see how a worker might have been rushed to spray the gelcoat then the fiberglass and then install the lumber and move on to mating the molds to pour foam and get another hull out the door. Maybe mine was just made on a Monday?!
Anyway, glad you identified a potential problem spot and fixed it before it became a headache...as am I glad that I got mine fixed. No one knows except you, me and the thousands of people who read these boards...perhaps I really will never sell my 18! All of her secrets are bared to the Whaler community!
Mike - my problem area was on the inside of the tunnel wall - the side facing the tank, not the hullside. Just fyi..
Mine was in the same place as Dave's, although I have a couple of other spots of thin gelcoat along the tunnel as well. I guess this was the Christmas hires so the regulars could go on vacation. Both my hull and Dave's were December boats.
Kamie - Very informative thread on ContinuousWave - I missed it somehow when it originally was posted.
Dave - what a beautiful job on your Outrage. Nice job documenting the whole process.
Thanks for the info you guys. I am just going through the process of sanding the paint off the sides of the hull and fixing many hairline cracks.
Luckily the gelcoat is much thicker than I expected it would be, so I hope with a lot of crack repair, a decent eye for color matching and a lot of sanding and buffing I can get away with not re-gelcoating. Once the outside is done I'll remove the deck and conquer the problems there. Hopefully it won't be as much work as the outside is proving to be.
to protect the tunnel, but really, I think it is overkill. Plus, I was worried about it causing snags when pulling new rigging through. I think the best option is for winter storage to raise the bow so water drains to the sump. Leave the boat like that for a few weeks late fall with the deckplates open, and then return the boat to normal trim on the trailer. 
