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Old 10-28-2012, 06:57 AM   #55
timjet
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Join Date: Apr 2009
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Skidgear,
I think you're right, the soda blasting just took off the paint not the underlying gelcoat. Those areas in the pix that were soda blasted were just a demo of what could be done. There were some blisters in those demo areas that were ground out and filled. I then used a 2 part epoxy and using a trawl (sp?) spread a thin layer over the blasted areas.

A light sanding of the bottom uncovered most of the blisters. Since a blister forms a small dimple in the bottom paint, sanding with 60 grit paper quickly removes the bottom paint covering the dimple exposing the gel coat underneath. What you see is a bunch of white dots all over the hull where the blisters are.

Going to the extent of peeling and for the most part installing a new layer of gel coat is beyond the means of most owners, I would think. Perhaps the cost and labor to do this would bring into question whether the boat is really worth the cost.

None of the blisters on my boat were structural, the largest being the size of a half dollar, and not many that size. I dealt with the blisters because the boat was hauled to fix a rudder issue. Next time I haul, I'm not sure I'll deal with the blisters, if I have any.
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