Pop Top Resto

We’ve managed to put some holes in our top. Some were for fun. Some were more practical. Some were accidental.

In any event, it is time for repairs. Note: fiberglass repair is far easier than sheet metal repair. Faster too.

The plan was simple. Tape over the holes from the inside. Fill with epoxy from the outside. Sand smooth. ‘Gel-coat’. Paint  – I’m actually not a fan of painting it, but I decided to give it a try.

And, I forgot that my spar that had been broken during the trip was replaced with an inferior jury rigged version. So, I made a new one and glassed it in with resin and cloth like the original.

All the holes patched up nicely. I decided against a ‘real’ gel coat and went with a fiberglass primer. The primer went on with a roller and seemed to do the trick of filling in all the voids, maintain the texture and sanded easily.  I sprayed on the ‘marine grade’ paint and it went on fine. It’s WHITE. Too white. And, the adhesion doesn’t seem too impressive –  scratches off fairly easily. But, its the roof – it will do.

I’m not sure if that frilly dust ruffle thingy actually works, but I’m not going to take any chances. It’s getting cleaned up and back on too.