You wanna see my crack?

S

Steve Steffy

Well-known member
No not that crack...the one in my boat from this past weekend. Here is the boat and how it sets on the trailer.
IMG_3814.jpg


IMG_3815.jpg


and here is the crack that is found right in between the bunks up around midship, right in front of the keelson...

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I haven't had any luck contacting Mark Rongers yet. He must be out hunting or something. I will try to get an e-mail sent off to him today and seek his advice.

Steve
 
Steve
It sure looks like a stress fracture to use a medical term. I wonder if Pete McMiller isn't right about the trailer? Good luck in solving that. It looks like a great rig.
wis boz
 
Steve,

Now that is a crack. Good thing you caught it when you did. Only comment I'd like to say about the cause of said crack is "no comment". Pictures are good, but no picture will tell the entire story in a situation like this. A picture cannot convey the amount of weight bearing down on the support structure, at individual and various points along said structure.

The only way anyone can give an accurate assement of this, is thru first hand inspection. Boat the boat and trailer will need to evaluated so as to prevent any future occurance.
 
WOW and wow. That is an easy fix, but you need to know why it cracked before you proceed. Is there a keel roller near the crack on the outside? Is that balsa core we can see?

I'm sure that Mark can shed some light on why it cracked and I'm sure he will make it right if it wasn't due to some sort of neglect or damage.

T
 
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Steve,

I have the same boat, just got it this spring. Haven't used it much yet but it rides well and is really stable. Mark Rongers is a nice guy and I'm sure he will make it right if it's a defect. Just curious-the light green bilge, is that original or added by the previous owner? My boat is unfinished mat/chopped strand with color in the resin. I sure hope it's not the trailer setup, mine is almost exactly the same configuration. Glad you made port safe, good luck with the repair.
 
Hey Steve,

Boy, that is one hell of a crack you have there. Dumb question, cause you likely have them removed for the picture, but you do use tie down straps at the stern, correct? If that boat is bouncing around on that trailer, well, then you have your answer.

Do you feel confident that the crack was not there when you bought it from the previous owner? Did you give the hull a real good look over?

This would be a tough one for any manufacturer to determine if it's a fault in the quality of the boat or neglect from an owner. And Steve, I'm not insinuating that you neglected the boat.

Good luck. And if you decide to take on the fix, I've some epoxy/hardner/and cloth you're welcome to. Wouldn't take much to patch that and you would probably have to buy way more that you need. Just yell if you want some. I also have filler which can be used to thicken up the epoxy to push into that crack.
 
Hey Steve,
It should be easy to fix. Was that picture taken from inside? Is that the ground we see through the crack?
I think you need to find the cause but the weather is not on your side if you wait too long. West System is easy to get in town so you be able to get stuff quickly. If you have any questions give me a call 825-6977.
John
 
Steve,

Good pics but as Dave indicated the pics alone likely don't tell the whole story. I am curious about the surface distortion radiating from both ends of the crack. It looks from here that there is more crack that was covered up under that paint. Is that possible? How well do you know the guy you bought it from?
 
Steve,I too have the same rig have not experienced any problems. It is a light boat ,other than the motor and a few decoys i trailer light and put the heavy stuff in once the boat is in the water.Running a strip of glass where it sits on on the trailer may be just the ticket.Should be an easy fix,good luck,Bill.
 
I just wanted to let everybody know that I sent an e-mail to Mark this morning and had a response from him in little more than an hour. Now that is great customer service! I will be sending him more info at lunchtime and after work and hopefully we can figure out a remedy quickly. I'll also try and get some answers for all of the questions and comments you guys have already made in this thread after work tonight.

Thanks,
Steve
 
Steve, I would put a lot of thought into what Pete said. The pictures don't tell the whole story. We will be waiting.

 
I think Pete is right on the distortion - I didn't see it. Interesing that the inside of the hull is painted.

Either way the fix should be super easy if the boat isn't cored in the area of the crack. Grind that paint off, get some heavy biax or 1708, put down several layers at least equal to the thickness of the hull. If the hull is cored, you will need to think about drying the core out.

Let us know what Mark says.
 
Steve,

It's good that you are contacting Mark about suggestions on how best to repair your boat. Knowing Mark, he certainly will bend over backwards to see that you are back on the water ASAP. He's just that kind of guy.

But please let us know if you called the guy you actually bought the boat from, mention his name, and tell us what his reaction / information /response is to your questions and concerns as well.

Not trying to stir anything, but he was Mark's "customer" and you were his. MLB boats don't come with the inside of the hull painted, and the guy bought the boat in 2008. Mebbe his ACL wasn't the only thing he tore.
 
I have the same boat also, I agree with the rest. I am sure Mark R. will have some answers for you, I hope the mend goes well and you can get back at it.
 
Okay, here is the deal. I have exchanged a few e-mails along with other pictures and info with Mark. It just so happens that Mark has another customer purchasing a layout boat in the same place I live. His driver will be meeting this guy on Sunday and has suggested that I meet him with my boat so he can take it back to Indiana and have MLB inspect it and repair it at no charge. Now that is really bending over backwards as some of you guys have said. He can't promise the length of time the repair will take, but I have no doubt it will be as fast as possible. I will just need to drive a bit to pick it up when it is finished. I feel a heck of a lot more comfortable letting Mark and his crew fix the boat than if I did it myself. Although, I was ready to attempt just that and I really appreciate the offers and suggestions you guys have provided. I would be foolish not to take Mark up on his generosity. If it means I miss a few days of duck hunting so be it.

By the way, the pictures of the boat as you guys have seen it are actually the outside of the boat underneath it, not the inside. The only painting the previous owner did was on the camouflage job. The underside of the boat has either not been painted or has a light factory paint on it.

Hopefully Mark will be able to chime in and provide us with more insight as to what may have caused this once he gets the boat back in his hands.

Thanks again for all of the input,
Steve
 
Steve,

Sounds like you are already headed down the right road. At this point in time, the biggest reason for determining the root cause of the crack, is to prevent it from recurring in the future. I hope you guys get it figured out. You can rest assured that it will be fixed up properly by Mark and his crew.
 
Let me try to answer some of the questions you guys asked here now...

Dave...[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
The only way anyone can give an accurate assement of this, is thru first hand inspection. Boat the boat and trailer will need to evaluated so as to prevent any future occurance.
Click to expand...
I couldn't agree with you more. I think this will be taken care of the best that it possible can by Mark and his crew.

Tod...
[/font][font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica][/font]
[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Is there a keel roller near the crack on the outside? Is that balsa core we can see? [/font]
Click to expand...
There is no keel roller anywhere near the crack, not a bad thought though. If you look at the picture it is well out in front of the actual crack and not even touching the boat at this point. The crack actually begins to the left of where that bunk ends and extends 9 3/4" towards the stern.
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[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]SJFairbank...[/font] You're going to love your boat! The only paint that the previous owner did was the camo job. It doesn't really look like any paint at all on the underside of the boat with the exception of where the camo was taken down to. This looks more like the actual boat material to me. How about some pictures of your rig? The only thing better than playing with boats is checking out how others have theirs rigged up for hunting.

Ryan... Yes, I most definitley use a stern tie down. The boat woould bounce all over the place if I didn't. Heck you've been to PA and seen first hand the potholes we get. I just take the strap off and let it hang or rest on the starboard transom as you can see in the first picture. I am in and out of the boat all of the time and it just seems silly to keep ratcheting the strap back down. I do appreciate the offer of your epoxy, cloth and hardner. I don't think I will need it for now, but thank you very much for offering.

John... all of the above pictures were taken from underneath the boat. That is the core material that you see in the picture. And your definitley right about the weather not being on my side. I think its supposed to snow tomorrow isn't it? We still need to get out and hunt at least once this season.

Pete M... I honestly don't think that green is paint that you see. There is much more crack than you can see in the pictures a total of about 9 3/4", but it is one continuous crack. No I did not contact the previous onwer. I inspected the boat thoroughly before I brought it home and other than minor cosmetic scratches it was in perfect shape. Even if I did contact him, I don't think it would do any good other than if I wanted to argue with him about it. We both made a deal, if he got over on me then it is my own fault, but I honestly don't think that is the case here.

Bill...How about some picture of how you have your boat rigged up for hunting? Have fun with it!

Bob...Nope, I didn't contact the previous owner as I mentioned in Petes response.

JR...Pictures man...pictures. Lets see how you have yours rigged up.

I hope that covers everything...thanks again for all of the help,
Steve
 
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Get rid of the front keel roller & extend your bunks up father.

I would say it's a combo between the roller (maybe came on the trailer crooked) or the bunks stopping before the center point of the boat, or nose heavy.

Could have also been cranked up to far on the winch & it raised the bow just enough off the bunk to crack it as you traveled down the road (which I have seen several times happen on boats down this way).

In any case, I would still lengthen the bunks & screw the roller.
 
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Were you ever able to find how how this happened? The edges of the crack look like they have been painted. Could this be old damage?
 
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