Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos

Posted by Dan55316 on 02/26/08 - 9:14 AM

I stumbled across this web discussion.

http://www.diy-boat.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=951&Itemid=138

Is it possible for the foam inside the hull to get battered from wave pounding as he states?

It seems to me that the fiberglass would have to be greatly flexed to even begin to compress the foam?

My Dauntless bow gets a pretty good pounding now and then depending on the chop. Am I damaging anything?

Any thoughts would be helpful.

Posted by Derwd24 on 02/26/08 - 9:34 AM

I don't think there's any way that you could compress the foam, even in the heaviest of chop. It's really tough stuff. I even remember seeing a picture of a hull flipped over in a parking lot with heavy equipment parked on top, which has got to generate a lot more pressure than even heavy sea pounding. Now if the hull is compromised and the foam is exposed to water, then things can change.

Posted by sraab928 on 02/26/08 - 10:54 AM

I agree with Derwd24... That foam is really tough. I don't think wave impact has any measurable effect on the foam. Now if the foam is water logged all bets are off.

Posted by oliver1234 on 02/26/08 - 12:41 PM

my nauset has been pounding around long island sound for over 40 years without the slightest hint of structural problems.

Posted by Phil T on 02/26/08 - 6:23 PM

The author is make broad generalizations about foam and boats. I have never read anything about foam being "battered".

One unique attribute of a Boston Whaler's construction is the foam is bonded to the fiberglas inner and outer layers and is a structural component.

I would not pay any attention to the author's statement and would look at that site as a measurement of its information. The internet is a great opportunity for people to publish whatever they want, right or wrong.

This site is "all things Boston Whaler".

Edited by Phil T on 02/26/08 - 6:32 PM

Posted by MW on 02/27/08 - 1:41 AM

I don't think that any wave pounding could possibly damage a "Whaler" hull, somebody with a large "Grady White" made fun of my little "Whaler" once, I took great pleasure in watching another person say to him "You see that little "Whaler", that boat could blast through one side of your "Grady White", and blow through the other side of it without a scratch on it"... I could NOT have said anything "BETTER" myself ! There are "Boat's" and then there are "Boston Whaler's" We know where to put our stock ! There will alway's be "Whaler Bashing", most of it is derived from jealousy. Most people think that they get more boat for their $ by buying another brand that is less expensive, I say "You get what you pay for" !
mw

Posted by sraab928 on 02/27/08 - 3:21 AM

The one ad I always remember is when they have a big construction hauler parked on top of an upside down Whaler hull. No deformation at all. These hulls are really strong.

Posted by danedg on 02/29/08 - 6:10 PM

What is the difference between "Great Suff" in the can, and the foam BW uses to fill their unsinkable hulls?
Expandable closed cell adhesive foam...
Why not use it for hull restoration?:o

Posted by DelawareDan on 03/01/08 - 8:13 AM

#11

danedg wrote:
What is the difference between "Great Suff" in the can, and the foam BW uses to fill their unsinkable hulls?
Expandable closed cell adhesive foam...
Why not use it for hull restoration?:o

Well, one thing is that the Whaler foam is a two-part foam. I think the Great Stuff cures with air or the moisture in air. The foam in Whalers is designed to be structural, whereas Great Stuff is designed to be a gap filler. That said, I think Great Stuff lives up to its name. It can have a tenacious bond (try getting it off your fingers without a belt sander!) and great gap-filling properties. Note that there are various types of "Great Stuff" like minimal expanding, etc. They probably would have different properties structurally.

Posted by Grady95 on 03/01/08 - 7:53 PM

#12

Does the foam cycle through some very rapid flexural stresses during rough water operation? Of course it does. Do these stresses load the material beyond the modulus of elasticity and rebound for the foam? Probably not. Under these flex motions, the foam is probably going to act more like a liquid than a crystaline solid. It is unlikely that the hull flex will create cleavage planes or tears in the material due to the foams inherent ability to distort and rebound. It will act almost as a flow.
Anyway, that's how my mind's eye see this phenomenon. A lack of a rigid stringer in these hulls allows quite a bit of flex. The foam is perfect for this, IMHO.
Grady