winefood Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 Hello All, I bought a beautiflly made Spindrift to be a tender on a crusing sailboat. The boat is supurbally crafted and well maintained. I just got a new reefing ,mainsail and have re-rigged the boat. I am going to repaint, but I have noticed some stress cracks along the gunnels where they meet the hull. Any advice on how to repair them? I am not sure that filling them with thickened epoxy is going to last. Maybe a more elastic product? Also, any advice on what is the most durable material to add to the keel as a sacrificial rubbing strake? Dynel and West? I don't want to nail copper onto the keel. Any adice on a lifting bridal or technique to launch and get the boat back on deck? I don't have davits and don't plan on getting them. I am not sure what kind of paint is on the boat. Maybe Easypoxy? I there any kind of paint that BB Designs recommnends? I could use Awlgrip,but I just painted my deck and am not anxous to mess with that stuff again. Any recommendations for a bottom thats not anti fouling bu can be left in the water for weeks? Has anyone had any success below the waterline with Easypoxy or Bilgecoat? Thanks for your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirilonde Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 Is the gunwale pulling away from the hull? Any pictures you can provide? I suggest a stainless or bronze half round or half oval to protect the keel. I used my Spindrift 9 nesting dinghy as a tender. Even so I never really pulled it up on deck. I couldn't find a reason to do so. I towed it. People have used their booms or spinnaker poles as a temporary davit. What size boat do you have? My Spindrift was painted with Awlgrip all over. Then I painted the bottom with Petit Vivid. I kept it in the water for 2 entire 6 month seasons. Other than some cleaning I did nothing else and it still looks great. The interior paint faded a little, it was Easypoxy. Read the instructions for the paints you are considering. They will tell you if it will stand up under water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Lathrop Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Canoe and kayak shops carry a paste containing Kevlar they use for this purpose. I think there is also a Kevlar tape available. Probably easier toe apply that a sheath. I don't use Dynel for anything anymore since Xynole is superior material. I would not use anything that needs screws to mount a keel band on a dinghy that is to be towed and in the water all the time. Makes water entry points at the screws which are hard to permanently seal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winefood Posted March 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Thank you both for your input. If I used stainless it could be thick enough to use inset beveled screws that would not catch on rocks and wiggle loose, causing water ingress. It could be bedded and glued with a combination of thickened epoxy everywhere except at the screw holes, which could be bedded with butyl. A stainless keel gard would be expensive to fabricate. Does anyone make standard ones that could be cit to length? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LennieG Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Google and go to Hamilton ( marine supply company) and then find half oval in their catalog. They sell 6' lengths and maybe more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirilonde Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 I wouldn't bed it in epoxy. Epoxy does not stick to metals all that well and it is brittle and subject to fracture from a focused impact like hitting a rock. Butyl is a good choice for the whole thing as are polysulfides or polyurethanes. Just keep in mind that depending on which polyurethane you might use it may be hard to remove later if needed. And like Lennie suggests there are products specifically for this and similar applications. Nothing for a boat is cheap, but chaffe strips are worth paying for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winefood Posted March 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2015 Thanks for your responses. I have noticed that the paint scuffs easily when the boat is moved around which indicates that a really hard paint is necessary. I have Awlgrip left over so aim going toAwlgrip inside and out and use Vivid on the bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirilonde Posted March 15, 2015 Report Share Posted March 15, 2015 Keep in mind that Vivid is an ablative anti-fouling paint. If you are going to haul the dinghy up on deck at all regularly this may not be a great choice. If anti-fouling is not a serious concern, and it appears this is so, then any top side or other paint that can be used under water will work too. I chose Vivid because they offered a real white and I didn't care that it wore off a little when handled, my Spindrift was always in the water when I cruised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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