mirror hull

Just discovered a split in the hull of my new second-hand dinghy as I was stripping off the floor paint. Any advice as to how I deal with this please.

Hi Annie

Depends on how serious a sailor you are. Correct answer would be to fit new bottom or get new hull.

A solution that worked for me on a wooden hull and which you might want to consider -tho' not without consulting other more experienced mariners- was this :
Strip off the paint for an inch or more both sides of and beyond the crack.
Drill a SMALL hole through the hull at the ends of the crack - this should ease any stress and help stop it spreading.
Armed with some webbing and some marine epoxy - West System for example - lay the webbing over the crack and paint/roll on the epoxy. When cured/dry, varnish it, stand with hands on hips and say "that looks pretty good for a temporary solution", launch boat, jump in, and,if foot doesn't go through bottom, go sailing.

Good luck
Bryan

Bryan

how is this a website issue
ED

Its not but it doesnt mater that much

Annie
Bryan's advice is spot on. Just one small refinement. After drilling the very very small hole use a craft knife to chamfer edges of the split to make a very shallow "V" effect and then fill as suggested. Once rubbed down, faired and re-painted it shouldn't even show. Work in dry conditions.
Good luck - John

PS - if you post this again on the "Mirror Matters" forum you might get further help. I expect many won't have seen your message on the "Website issues" forum.