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Crazing/cracks around cockpit

D

dgreen

David Green
We're looking at buying a 1979 382, and have noticed some
crazing or cracks running several inches out from the corners of
the cockpit. Anybody encounter this before? The boat has spent
most of it's life in northern waters.
 
Dave,
I own a 1979 382 hull #168 and have the same cracks, crazing. They are also present at the front radius of the deck house to deck. It is my opinion and my surveyor agrees it is caused by the gelcoat being to thick and presents no problem. It is in my plans to grind them out, fill, and have the boat awlgripped in the future.
The boat was completely gone over with a moisture meter during the survey and all was fine. I have temporarily filled the larger ones with a gel coat repair to keep any water out.
 
<div>David,
I have a 1979 hull #165 and have the same problem, I have ground some of the larger ones and filled with West System then an application of gel coat. When grinding down I noticed they did not go any further than the gel coat layer. We've had various discussions here on the page about this, seems to be the opinion of most that there are no faults in the structure, just old gel coat crazing which apparently occurs as it ages and dries out. Common on many boats 20 years +. I wouldn't be overly concerned. A good moisture test by the surveyor will tell the taleFred

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David,
Ditto, same story as Fred and Robert gave you. I have 1979 # 155. When I bought her 13 years ago, my surveyor said not to worry, and don't even think about it. I have not touched it and it looks exactly the same as it did then. Don't let that stop you from buying one of the greatest boats ever designed and built.
Good Luck,
Larry
 
I have a 1979 M382, hull #179, and it has the same cracks in the gel coat. Just like others have related, my surveyor also said the cracks are not structural and are most likely due to either over-catylyzing the gelcoat or applying the gelcoat too heavily.
 
With all the talk about cracks, wondered if the same applies to cracks along the area where the deck rises to meet the caprail.
 
<div>Had them, got them fixed. I had extensive work done in September to dress up most of the cracks on my deck. The most visually distracting were at the joint of the bulwark and the deck. All were gelcoat and not structural as seems to be the case with everyone's experience. The deck is now clean and no longer an eyesore(to me). If the cracks are large enough to let moisture in you probably need to address those first.Good luck.
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I have them, too. Hull #173. Guess we just have to fix them. I had a yard tell me that they had to grind under the fiberglass and add structural reinforcement. I looked under there and they did not. No way. Grind the gelcoat and forget the structural stuff -- the glass is already almost an inch thick. Fix it again in 20 years, if needed.

 
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