3 years of crashing into stuff, and I'm only out of the water for one week and...

[eilerts]

Here are some thoughts:
Sometimes it is easy to overlook something you don't expect to be there, and once you have seen it, it becomes impossible not to see. I have been there many times.
If the scratches are so deep as they look on the photos, it takes a lot of force to make them, and there is a lot of them. If this was caused by carrying ladder or a platform past the boat, it must have been a real stampede. The repeated waviness look just like you would get, if the boat was moored alongside a bad pier with a protruding nail and it was hit by the wake of a passing boat. And, yes, they look fresh. Did you for instance leave the boat unattended at the marina dock, while waiting for lift out?
If you just washes or polished the side, then have to believe you are right.

 

[veshengro]

Random thoughts...The major scars, I count three plus some smaller ones, all appear to be very approximately in the form of a V or U shape. So the scratching object would start high then dip and raise again to transcribe the scar.
If and it's a big If, there was something lodged in the lifting strop which is positioned under the boat, then lowered to re adjust before taking the weight, the result would be a scratch starting high, perhaps lowering then moving fore or aft as the strop was repositioned then running up again as the weight came on the strop. It might be worth checking the lifting strop to see if perhaps there is not a stainless screw, off cut of metal or something similar lodged in the woven fabric of the strop.

 

[peter gibbs]

...someone has given me my first scratches in Mirages gelcoat. Clearly someone with a ladder has walked past my boat and left me some rather deep scratches. . The marina is looking through their CCTV, so I await their response to see if I can find the culprit.

This leaves me with a few options.

• Wet and dry it down as far as I dare to try and remove as much of the scratches as possible and live with them (I wonder how deep the gel coat is!).
• Dremel the gelcoat out to a V and then fill with GelCoat after carefully colour matching... after 20 years of life, that gelcoat is not really white anymore. If I screw it up, I'll always notice it forever and never flipping forgive myself .
• Claim on my insurance and get a professional to do it, when I know the waits for marine folk is long (I go back in the water in three weeks).

Anyone know how deep the gel coat is on a Bavaria? Fix myself or defer to the artists of gelcoat?

This is almost certainly deliberate damage..the regularity, angle and depth are inconsistent with accidentally passing traffic. It's hard to believe someone could hit on your Bav but there is no shortage of drongos in this world.

You won't be satisfied with a DIY job. You can roughly plug it to let the profis do it in their own time if you have to sail soon. But leave the dremel in its case. You can't polish out this depth of damage, the boat value will suffer if you try.

Try to stay positive and enjoy your season.

 

[Ian_Edwards]

I've been reasonable successful repairing minor damage on my Southerly, using gelcoat bought form East Coast Glass Fiber, by simply quoting the RAL number, and buying one of their repair kits, which has everything you need in it.
The first time I made a repair, I was a little disappointed with the colour match, but by the end of the season, the repair had weathered and the colour was so close to the original, I can no longer see the repair. The boat was built in 2007, so it seen a lot of UV.
My take on that, expect the repair to weather and change colour a little, so don't be too hard on your self if it doesn't immediately quite match, it may match perfectly when it weathers down like the rest of the boat.
I just realised that's more or less what AngusMcDoon said in an earlier post

 

[Praxinoscope]

The damage was slightly different to the OP but as an example of what diy can be achieved with careful matching of pigments in the topcoat, (see the attached,) and polishing with very fine wet and dry (2500 grit) leaves a surface as polished as the original.

 

[Bob@SYH]

Random thoughts...The major scars, I count three plus some smaller ones, all appear to be very approximately in the form of a V or U shape. So the scratching object would start high then dip and raise again to transcribe the scar.
If and it's a big If, there was something lodged in the lifting strop which is positioned under the boat, then lowered to re adjust before taking the weight, the result would be a scratch starting high, perhaps lowering then moving fore or aft as the strop was repositioned then running up again as the weight came on the strop. It might be worth checking the lifting strop to see if perhaps there is not a stainless screw, off cut of metal or something similar lodged in the woven fabric of the strop.

It's unlikely to be sling damage, that presents itself with vertical scratches as the slings are pulled up... and only likely where the lifting points are. Although I appreciate your thoughts on a screw or similar embedded, the OP said they weren't there during his previous visit to the boat when it was already on the hard.

A casual accidental ladder strike isn't going to cause that amount of damage, although the weighted falling ladder theory (with casualty clinging on) might be one to look into, it might be worth asking into the wellbeing of your hardstanding neighbour, perhaps the yard had recorded something in their accident book?

A third option is to enquire if your neighbour has had any large equipment hauled up onto their boat ( a genset, or something in a metal frame) that was being manhandled up a ladder or with a rope, before they possibly lost control of it... just a thought.

 

[eilerts]

This is almost certainly deliberate damage..the regularity, angle and depth are inconsistent with accidentally passing traffic. It's hard to believe someone could hit on your Bav but there is no shortage of drongos in this world.

A third option is to enquire if your neighbour has had any large equipment hauled up onto their boat ( a genset, or something in a metal frame) that was being manhandled up a ladder or with a rope, before they possibly lost control of it... just a thought.

I really hope the hardstanding neighbor has been oblivious to this discussion. Having his boat depicted, with boat name and all, and several forumites pointing in his direction is not pretty. I got it that OP says it was not there the day before, but he could be wrong about it. Such things happen every day and is a part of life.
If this is a deliberate damage, then OP must have really pissed someone off. I have no reason to think he has, and it makes no sense to take it to the forum in that case.

A lot of good DIY tips and encouragements above, try it or hire a professional. If nobody in yard can explain it, then it is a better narrative that "you got this damage somewhere, but did not see it before", than "my neighbor damage my boat, and lied to me with a straight face".

 

[Bob@SYH]

I really hope the hardstanding neighbor has been oblivious to this discussion. Having his boat depicted, with boat name and all, and several forumites pointing in his direction is not pretty. I got it that OP says it was not there the day before, but he could be wrong about it. Such things happen every day and is a part of life.
If this is a deliberate damage, then OP must have really pissed someone off. I have no reason to think he has, and it makes no sense to take it to the forum in that case.

A lot of good DIY tips and encouragements above, try it or hire a professional. If nobody in yard can explain it, then it is a better narrative that "you got this damage somewhere, but did not see it before", than "my neighbor damage my boat, and lied to me with a straight face".

I appreciate what your saying but I don't think anyone has implied this, I certainly didn't intend to.

With regard my post, at no point did I intend to angle accusation at the neighbour (and I apologise for any misunderstanding if my comment wasn't taken as intended), they may be completely unaware of any incidents (if indeed there had been any) if for example they had a third party undertaking work on the boat... and determining whether the neighbour had fallen from their ladder and enquiring into their well being, can similarly be hardly described as an accusation, I think you'd be hard pushed to find anyone who would apportion blame if it had been such an accident, it would merely answer the question.

 

[eilerts]

I appreciate what your saying but I don't think anyone has implied this, I certainly didn't intend to.

With regard my post, at no point did I intend to angle accusation at the neighbour (and I apologise for any misunderstanding if my comment wasn't taken as intended), they may be completely unaware of any incidents (if indeed there had been any) if for example they had a third party undertaking work on the boat... and determining whether the neighbour had fallen from their ladder and enquiring into their well being, can similarly be hardly described as an accusation, I think you'd be hard pushed to find anyone who would apportion blame if it had been such an accident, it would merely answer the question.

I read your post once more. I agree, you did not imply it was deliberate.
Both loosing control when lifting heavy things, and not paying attention to the top part when hauling a platform between boats, are not unlikely events. There is a problem that the next neighbor boat is so clearly identified in the pictures, and nothing on internet really goes away (although, it feels so when you are trying to find the informative article you read last year).

 

[Sandro]

The shape and the number of the marks strongly support eilerts' theory of the nail protruding from a pier and the wavelets.

 

[MagicalArmchair]

Thank you for the helpful DIY advice.

I really hope the hardstanding neighbor has been oblivious to this discussion. Having his boat depicted, with boat name and all, and several forumites pointing in his direction is not pretty. I got it that OP says it was not there the day before, but he could be wrong about it. Such things happen every day and is a part of life.
If this is a deliberate damage, then OP must have really pissed someone off. I have no reason to think he has, and it makes no sense to take it to the forum in that case.

A lot of good DIY tips and encouragements above, try it or hire a professional. If nobody in yard can explain it, then it is a better narrative that "you got this damage somewhere, but did not see it before", than "my neighbor damage my boat, and lied to me with a straight face".

Yikes, okay, so I have not irritated anyone, there are no axes to grind here. I would value the input of the neighbor, and if my neighbor has been damaged, I would have no gripe against someone asking me or posting in the same fashion (and pointing out, as I am next door and asking, if I had accidentally clonked it or had someone working on the boat, or observed anyone doing the same). Either way, I have removed those photos. A note of correction, I was there a week (not a day) before I noticed the damage (the boat was out of the water at this point), and the damage was not there.

Here are some thoughts:
Sometimes it is easy to overlook something you don't expect to be there, and once you have seen it, it becomes impossible not to see. I have been there many times.
If the scratches are so deep as they look on the photos, it takes a lot of force to make them, and there is a lot of them. If this was caused by carrying ladder or a platform past the boat, it must have been a real stampede. The repeated waviness look just like you would get, if the boat was moored alongside a bad pier with a protruding nail and it was hit by the wake of a passing boat. And, yes, they look fresh. Did you for instance leave the boat unattended at the marina dock, while waiting for lift out?
If you just washes or polished the side, then have to believe you are right.

I have a photo of that part of the boat immediately after lift out that the yard kindly took for me (as I was absent) - the damage was not there at that stage. Very unlikely to be sling damage also, as it is simply too far aft - the slings sit forward of the gate and the damage is aft of the gate.

And thank you for posting the below - both cracking examples of what can be achieved and give me courage to attempt it should the professionals not be available.

I can understand that. It's quite a lot to repair in a visible place. However, it's not that hard for anyone who's practical, and the kit is cheap. So maybe next time you have a small scratch in a less obvious place give it a go then. It's a useful skill to have. Flat or gentle outside curves are the easiest - inside curves, corners and textured surfaces are harder.

Here are the steps I did for an easy example filling holes on a flat horizontal untextured surface. The boat was 18 years old and I used the same RAL colour code flowcoat that the manufacturer used during build...

After removing superfluous fittings - the task...

Clean up with acetone...

Dremel to feather the edges and fill the holes with tissue paper...

Blob in flowcoat to a level above the existing surface...

Heat to cure on a cold day...

Sand to level finishing with 1200 grit then polish with Farecla...

Very slight almost imperceptible colour mismatch which disappeared to invisible in 6 months.

This was using flowcoat which can be polished to a high sheen. I've found that generic tubes or tubs of gelcoat filler from chandlers cannot be polished so well and always look like a repair.

The damage was slightly different to the OP but as an example of what diy can be achieved with careful matching of pigments in the topcoat, (see the attached,) and polishing with very fine wet and dry (2500 grit) leaves a surface as polished as the original.

View attachment 152412 View attachment 152413

 

[eilerts]

I have a photo of that part of the boat immediately after lift out that the yard kindly took for me (as I was absent) - the damage was not there at that stage. Very unlikely to be sling damage also, as it is simply too far aft - the slings sit forward of the gate and the damage is aft of the gate.

Then I were wrong and am corrected.

One clear befit of DIY is that you learn new skills. Even if you don't get it right (poor color match, pores or uneven), a professional can correct it fairly easy. Judged from the photos, the one thing that you should not do, is to try to just sand and polish it away. The damage looks way too deep. Even if the gelcoat looks thick enough, you may end up in a layer that is full of pores.
I see no harm in postponing the repair to the next lift out, if there is no time for it before launch. This would give you better time to find matching gelcoat. You can even ask the marina if they have a scrap cutout with gelcoat, that you can exercise on.

 

[MagicalArmchair]

To put the record straight here, with a hung head of shame, after the wonderful Rob came to offer me his assistance, I set about finishing polishing the topsides. As I approached the area of damage, I had an epiphany that it WAS me. Exiting the lock earlier last season, I let the first mate take us out of the lock. She steered us beautifully into the lock, and then on exit, with the current on the ebb, she headed too far to starboard side of the lock, rather than steering straight out, to steer our course down river, effectively cutting the corner. The tide and our course would have had us connect on the starboard side, so I, foolishly at this stage, murmured encouragingly "hard to port", not wanting to wrest control from her, and she diligently complied. Mirage will turn on a sixpence... so she did and we connected with the opposite side of the lock with a little bit of a wallop.

I apologised to the first mate, leaned over the side and checked for damage. To my relief there was none... only there was, that I have only just noticed some nine months later!!

I will be buying the marina some chocolates me thinks...

 

[Concerto]

To put the record straight here, with a hung head of shame, after the wonderful Rob came to offer me his assistance, I set about finishing polishing the topsides. As I approached the area of damage, I had an epiphany that it WAS me. Exiting the lock earlier last season, I let the first mate take us out of the lock. She steered us beautifully into the lock, and then on exit, with the current on the ebb, she headed too far to starboard side of the lock, rather than steering straight out, to steer our course down river, effectively cutting the corner. The tide and our course would have had us connect on the starboard side, so I, foolishly at this stage, murmured encouragingly "hard to port", not wanting to wrest control from her, and she diligently complied. Mirage will turn on a sixpence... so she did and we connected with the opposite side of the lock with a little bit of a wallop.

I apologised to the first mate, leaned over the side and checked for damage. To my relief there was none... only there was, that I have only just noticed some nine months later!!

I will be buying the marina some chocolates me thinks...

The title of the thread sums it up, "3 years of crashing into stuff".
More likely that buying some more fenders than chocolateswould be better, as I feel sure the marina wall would appreciate the extra protection.

 

[Irish Rover]

To put the record straight here, with a hung head of shame, after the wonderful Rob came to offer me his assistance, I set about finishing polishing the topsides. As I approached the area of damage, I had an epiphany that it WAS me. Exiting the lock earlier last season, I let the first mate take us out of the lock. She steered us beautifully into the lock, and then on exit, with the current on the ebb, she headed too far to starboard side of the lock, rather than steering straight out, to steer our course down river, effectively cutting the corner. The tide and our course would have had us connect on the starboard side, so I, foolishly at this stage, murmured encouragingly "hard to port", not wanting to wrest control from her, and she diligently complied. Mirage will turn on a sixpence... so she did and we connected with the opposite side of the lock with a little bit of a wallop.

I apologised to the first mate, leaned over the side and checked for damage. To my relief there was none... only there was, that I have only just noticed some nine months later!!

I will be buying the marina some chocolates me thinks...

Click to expand...

"I have a photo of that part of the boat immediately after lift out that the yard kindly took for me (as I was absent) - the damage was not there at that stage"

 

[MagicalArmchair]

The title of the thread sums it up, "3 years of crashing into stuff".
More likely that buying some more fenders than chocolateswould be better, as I feel sure the marina wall would appreciate the extra protection.

Thanks for the advice Roger! I’ll instruct the first mate to aim at Concerto next time

 

[Daydream believer]

The repair needs to be done by a pro.
Has anyone been on board the boat? It could be the top of a ladder that is too short & the sharp edge has dug in. If not tied it could have moved about, or been moved, by someone trying to climb up to do a bit of thieving. The insurance would cover theft & damage done by act of theft. Worth checking just in case you have not checked on deck etc.

 

[Concerto]

The repair needs to be done by a pro.
Has anyone been on board the boat? It could be the top of a ladder that is too short & the sharp edge has dug in. If not tied it could have moved about, or been moved, by someone trying to climb up to do a bit of thieving. The insurance would cover theft & damage done by act of theft. Worth checking just in case you have not checked on deck etc.

Keep up at the back. You should read post #33

 

[Concerto]

Thanks for the advice Roger! I’ll instruct the first mate to aim at Concerto next time

Mark, at least it was not you. That would have been embarassing.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

The repair needs to be done by a pro.

No it doesn't/didn't. Look at posts 14 and 25. Smooth flat and outside curves are quite easily done by an amateur.