I Sail Away

After crawling around below the cockpit sole, there was absolutely no evidence of a collision.  Furthermore, there is another Ericson 29 on the hard nearby with the same full-length cracking along the top of the transom.

The material that has actually split is a dark gray with some un-catalyzed fiberglass flakes in it.  Underneath, there is plenty of glass holding things together on the inside edge, but my guess is that the outer edge was stuffed with filler.  This seam across the transom is the only place where the hull-to-deck joint is not bolted together.

I am going to clamp the area together and fill the whole thing with epoxy–allow it to cure and basically glue the whole thing together (there is no worry about the structural integrity here–the transom is sound).

Another guy from the marina (who has an Ericson 27) came over today and we looked at the transom together.  I needed another set of eyes to verify what I was seeing.

The crack across the transom goes nearly all the way across–right along the top.  But, the crack is not in the fiberglass: it appears to be some other material that was used along the top of the transom.  And, whatever that material was, it appears to have sheared from the stress.

The backstay is attached, of course, and definitely holding the transom in-place.  I am not worried about it coming apart.  The next step is to determine where, when, and why this other material was added.  I will be looking for evidence of a collision . . . and this to be part of the repair process.

Tomorrow, it looks like I will be crawling around below decks.

One of the absolutely best instructional videos about Fiberglass Repair is made by Will Borden–titled simply, “Fiberglass Repair.” I bought the two DVD set directly from his website (www.fiberglass-repair.com), and it is worth every single penny.

In the with the first volume, will walks you through an overview of the process, shows you the tools that you will need (with opinons about brands, types, and acceptable substitutes), safety precautions, and leads you through several small projects. He highlights color-matching, best practices, and ways to achieve the maximum efficiency in your progress.

The second volume builds upon the first, and is the documentation of the removal and repair of a transom on a medium-sized fishing boat. It is superb!

The video is clear, and narration is logical, and in a no-frills style, he shows you exactly how to work with, repair, and create new things with fiberglass. This is a great resource!