When our 38ft hull bounced during a turnover and cracked along one side, it was the plywood that gave way — not the epoxy. Here's how we put it back together.
What happened
As some of you will be aware, we had a bit of a disaster turning over our 38-foot hull — it bounced and ended up in the field beside the workshop. We took some crush damage to the hull side as a result. I'm pleased to say the MAS FLAG and MAS Low Vis epoxy already in the hull didn't fail — it was the plywood that pulled apart under the battering.
The damage ran along the port side for about 3 feet.
The hull damage from our turnover
Repairing the damage
To repair it, we forced the wood fibres further apart using screwdrivers and wedges, then mixed up some MAS Low Vis epoxy with slow hardener. We pre-warmed the resin in the microwave before adding the hardener — we used slow hardener because of the extra heat, and wanted the mix to fully infuse into the damage before it began to set.
Drilling out and forcing apart the damaged area
Note the hardwood strips — these were clamped to the hull well past the damaged area, to bring the shape of the hull back into line.
Epoxy poured into the splits and deep-drilled holes
Once the area was well soaked through, we clamped it up — and that was that, all done and dusted.
