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Hi all,

I know many post have been written on this topic of gel coat cracking, so sorry if its redundant. Yesterday noticed some small cracking in the gel coat on the floor toward to bow of my 17 ft. This part of the boat is exposed to all the elements during the summer, no cover. The boat is bone dry. Hull is very sound. It was kept on a lift before I got it, so no moisture in the hull. I think it is the sun. Behind the console where it covered not one crack on the floor...

Question... is there any product I can use to protect that floor? I sprayed a product on the floor called 303 UV protector, have my doubts and it made floor a bit slippery. I was going to use this as a wax substitute but it does not seem to do much as a wax either....

Any thoughts?

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Jon,

Gelcoat cracks (also called crazing) can be created by stress. It's difficult to tell about yours without seeing a picture. If the crazing is in one area it could have been caused by someone jumping down into the cockpit or dropping a cooler. If the crazing is near something that has been screwed into the cockpit it could be a result of the screws only going into fiberglas and not solid wood.

It's not a good idea to wax the cockpit because it can make it very slippery. There is an article on repairing gelcoat on the Boston Whaler website at [url] http://www.bostonwhaler.com/Rec/default2.asp?content=maintenancefaqs#6 [/url] (Sorry you'll have to paste the url.)

I'm sure there are some other articles about crazing on Whaler Central.

Capn Js

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Thanks,

There is nothing screwed to to floor, and nothing heavy would ever be dropped. It is a high traffic spot though and subjected to the sun. I will try to get a picture. What I am thinking is next season to clean it up the best I can (dremel with a wire brush on the tiny cracks) then paint with an aggressive clear Imron type of coating with UV protection.

Thoughts anyone?

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Yes, sunlight can and will damage gel coat. This is very common, especially in sunny climates where boats are used year round.

Stress cracks are different and are usually in predictable spots where one might expect stress. They will be parallel to one another and arrayed around the stressed area.

Sun damage cracks are randomly aligned and evenly spread through an area.

Nothing is as damaging to a boat as sunlight which is why I highly recommend all boats be completely covered when not in use, be it with a mooring cover, tarp, boat shed or garage.

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Even with my mooring cover I have some areas starting. Mine are like the UV cracks however they are from heat. They are very small by all standards but still drives me crazy. The mooring cover is light grey which you would think would not get that hot but temps under the cover in the cockpit often run 25-35+ degress hotter in there.

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Jon,
I wake up in the morning thinkin' I still have one of the oldest Whalers still being used on a daily basis, at least, on this website. A fact of which I am very proud...
If anybody has a pre '63, 17 footer, stand up and be counted NOW!
Yes...there are cracks....crazies....around the Norman Pin area....a couple around the console, right around the spot where the hull meets (see SLAPS) the water...a coupla little ones around the forward well....the older hulls are not noted for their "soft" ride....
They've been there now, for well over 40 years...
When I was granted permission by my siblings to care for "Grin and Bear It", after Dad passed on... I had many months of unsolicited opinions from everyone (present company included)...on what to do with a 44 year old boat......
My opinionated decision, (and I'm stickin' to it ) is thus....
I like the original blue color....
Dad was renowned for not cleaning the thing, but after 3 years, Lucy and I have got her pretty well swabbed out...each spring we take a new bottle of 3M Fiberglass Cleaner&Wax and heave ho with the elbow grease and she stays pretty spiffy for the season...but eventually fades around October.....
The Old Man dropped some Varnish on the floor at some point...haven't figgered out how to get that off yet...but I think about him when I see it...GEEZER!
There is some black, unidentified stuff wedged into some spots behind the console on that textured surface...could be petrified Bluefish blood....maybe "tinker" mackerel....if that's the case...then I'm probably responsible.....or any of my siblings.....
My buddy Chris (see '63 Eastport), used AwlGrip to refurbish his interior. Looks nice...not quite the "old" blue...but went on nice...came up smooth....but gee...after a coupla years...the same stress cracks are back in their original locations...just about in the same spots as mine....
Hmmmmmmmm.........
These boats take a lickin' and keep on tickin'!.........
Doesn't mean they don't flex,twist,warp,bend,twist,move,
swell,contract,etc.,etc,.etc....after 45 years of beating through a 2 foot chop with 5 kids and several dogs aboard......
I believe that (2) 1/8" layers of fiberglass, filled with 1-1/2" of solid foam, will inevitably show a little stress after a hard lifetime of use...just like the rest of us!
And I have no problem with that.....
My Cousin Sam from Ohio, (one of the original suspects), went for a ride on the Hudson with us yesterday...in Uncle Bob's Whaler.
He's one of the few I allow to take the helm....and I found myself holding on to the Norman Pin...seated on the front well cover...wind in my hair...zipping down the river...gazing at those little crazies in the interior gelcoat...remembering what it was like when I was 9....doing the same thing....
And it was reinforced to me...that I'm not gonna do a Damn thing to the interior of that old Whaler...( I will revarnish the console this winter dammit....!)
I consider the crazies to be "Badges Of Honor"...of an exceptionally well life lived....
And since I have no intentions of hangin' her over the Mantlepice...that's the way she's gonna stay...until one of my great nephews' demonstrates a love of fishing and boating...and then they can make their own decisions....about "Grin and Bear It"...
This is my newest G-nephew...Hugo...we call 'im...Huge-O...he seems to have the right attitude....

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Dan,

LOL....:D Thanks for the great message. In the scheme of things this really not a big deal as I know it's cosmetic. In the case of your whaler "Grin and Bear It" What you really have is a family air loom. Hopefully Hugo will get to use and care for it as much as you have.

I may try that 3M cleaner wax I am not familiar with it. I assume it provides UV protection. I must be pretty good stuff if you get the entire season out of it. Last resort will be paint, will see how it holds up the rest of this season. The 303 stuff seems to be the same type of product one would use on tires to make them shine... Worked great on my Jeep.

I also noticed you are from Poughkeepsie and do you boating on the Hudson. I go out on the Hudson occasionally. Perhaps we could meet up midpoint.

Last Season took my bride out (launched at Nyack on a warm Sunday in early October) I think every boater within 25 miles of each side of the Hudson was out that day. Hit a few 5 ft wakes from the battle cruisers going by at 15 knots.... At one point I thought I was going get beaten with a gafting hook...:o For that trip I may need to spike her bottled water...B)

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I hear you about the Hudson...
Monday through Friday it's a 200 mile long playground with nary a boat around...
Saturday/Sunday? Fuhgetaboutit!!
Those 30>40 footers come out in force and go flying by, followed by a nasty swarm of 75 MPH jetski's jumping the giant wakes. It takes hundreds of gallons of gas to move that much water....
I was trying to reenter the Rondout Creek last Sunday, after battling the mob all morning ...
2 PWC's are blocking the very busy entrance. Dad was letting little Suzy figure out how to drive her new Seadoo 4000. He had the baby on his lap, on his...
Suzy was so small she couldn't lift the handle deal to keep the nose of the thing from plowing under.
Naturally Suzy was terrified and not really paying attention...as I eased into the mouth of the Creek, Suzy guns the damn thing to catch up with Daddy and Lil Joey...
It was the only time I've had to throw the motor into full reverse to avoid killing someone...ever....:o
I had a few choice words for Dad...but he wasn't paying attention either...they were having too much fun.

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As someone who bought and owns a Whaler that has been painted (Inside and Out) take my word for it, think long and hard before taking the plunge and painting your boat. Even though there are great products out there like Awl Grip and Imron;(I have used Interlux Topside enamel in my cockpit with good results) putting a coat of paint on your Whaler starts you down a road from which you can never turn back. If your hull is a neglected, abused, beatup hulk requiring major repairs to make it shipshape, then paint (or even re-gelcoating!) is a great option. But painting your boat over a few lines on the deck...Nah. In fact odds are even painted, those lines will come back in another season or two... If it's the original finish, enjoy your boat the way it is, don't a let a few lines make you nuts. Chances are you are the one and only person who even notices them! But I know how you feel. My 17' boat has a wealth of little cracks, lines, scars, etc and since it's already painted, during brief lapses in insanity I contemplate derigging and redoing the whole thing to a perfect finish. My question is assuming the boat's worth maybe $4500 or $5000 as is, what kind of return on investment could I expect to see for the effort? Any thoughts anybody?

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My point exactly!!
My boat is never gonna win no beauty contests...but niether am I ......so we're even....
I think what folks are diggin' for is....
Do those cracks penetrate to the foam and cause a bigger problem....
or are they cosmetic...
They do come back after painting...count on it!