gelcoat repairs

[brwn234]

I've got a few screw holes and nicks that I want to fix myself. I need some advice with materials and matching gelcoat. The screw holes are in the bilge where the old battery tie downs were. I know that I want to clean them out and fill them with dowels and epoxy. I've got a few small nicks on the bottom of the hull, about 1.5"x.5" is the biggest. I'm gonna try these inconspicous areas before I attemp some nicks near my transom.

What materials as far as epoxies do I need. My closest and probably only supplier will be WestMarine. My bigger concern is making the repair unnoticable. Can I get gelcoat premixed for my boat or do I have to color match it myself? It's a white '00 Donzi 22zx. What do I need to spray gel?

[Griff]

You can't use gel coat over most epoxys. You need to fill the holes with resin and dowels.

For small repairs, you could just try one of the gel coat repair kits and spread it with a bondo spreader or putty knife.

[brwn234]

I figured they were all epoxies. What do I need to look for when buying resin?

As far as matching gelcoat has anybody ever had any experience with Mini-Craft. They sell premixed gel to match your original color. Is this a nightmare waiting to happen or do they do a good job?

[Griff]

Just get some fiberglass resin with hardener. It will usually be near the bondo at automotive stores.

I've used the $30 gel coat repair kits and gel paste before with decent results. Its not that hard to get the color pretty close.

[waconda]

Originally Posted by brwn234

I figured they were all epoxies. What do I need to look for when buying resin?

As far as matching gelcoat has anybody ever had any experience with Mini-Craft. They sell premixed gel to match your original color. Is this a nightmare waiting to happen or do they do a good job?

Mini craft can make a spray aerosol or just the gel in a pint and they are very close to oe colors. I buy some of my gel products from them, good luck on the repair.

[megapower]

hello new boat owner here after purchasing the 25 ft bayliner i found a scrape at the bottom of the hull on the center beam. that goes from bow to stern .where the gel coat is gone and the fiberglass is showing. now the scrape is about 1/2 " to 3/4" wide and about 6" long . After reading all the gel coat repairs most talk about scratches and or major repairs where fiber is required. so in my situation oh the fiber not damaged just the gel is gone
what do i do ?
do i fill with bondo as was described on u tube or is there another way
looking for help
thanks