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Question 3: I'm looking for info about how well the ballast stands up if its hull fiberglass covering has been damaged. My question is should this be disqualifying in considering a purchase? The Pearson 424 and 422 have the same hull with a lead keel incased in fiberglass. At the aft end of the keel the fiberglass is about 3/4 inch thick. Above that is a deep sump. That is considered the weakness in the boat. Some answers from our owners: I have had several on several occasions run a ground. Although requiring
some major work the damage never put the vessel in real danger. The yard
I used (both times) has a real "expert" at glass repair and
he never indicated any special concerns. In fact he was in the process
of restoring a Pearson for his own use. First, the 'bilge box' you describe - the sump aft of the ballast keel
- can be a weak area in many boats as the hull was laid up in two parts
(just like a plastic airplane model) and then mated by laminating across
the two halves. E.g. Bristols have a high reputation but are also known
for this area to be weak & I've known 2 Bristol 40s that had to have
the keel area of their bilge box repaired after grounding on sand (no
immediate damange) and surge & wave action pounding the boat enough
to pop this section, which has no internal reinforcement. Typically, this
occurs when either the inner or outer 'joining' laminate was omitted by
the builder. (We would probably grow weak in the knees to watch most boats
being built, especially our own!) The repair is straightforward and, yes,
I've known owners of several different designs lay up additional glass
in this area despite having no detectable problem. We have at least one
424 member who poured a large amount of concrete into their bilge box,
in part to reinforce it and also to make the bottom of the bilge more
reachable. My own 424 was very badly damaged during a storm before I bought her.
She ended up on the rocks and lost her keel and rudder. She was only three
years old at the time. The boat was purchased as salvage by a local boat
yard and restored. The yard did a great job reglassing her. I had the
boat surveyed by a reputable surveyor before I made an offer. I've since
had her offshore in rough conditions with no problem. I suppose that the
bottom line here is that it is possible to properly repair damage such
as you described, but be very careful. Have a proper survey done. After I heard this the first time around, I checked in with Bill Shaw
(Pearson designer/chief engineer) and asked him about this "weak
spot." He said the glass on the bottom of the keel is at least an
inch-and-a-half thick, since it's in fact doubled over (as Jack described).
Bill did not think the bottom of the keel was a weak spot at all -- and
anyone who's ever spoken with him knows he's a very cautious person. So
we decided not to worry about reinforcing that area (although paranoia
may yet bring us to it). BTW, we've grounded the boat more often than
I'd like to admit, including one fairly hard grounding on gravel, and
have not had a problem. |