Hardley
Hi,
A friend living overseas is considering buying a damaged Sonata and as asked if I could find anyone who has suffered similar damage.
It appears that the boat has been hit on the port-side abreast of the chain plates, the deck has lifted in that area and has also slightly lifted on the starboard side.
Would you say this is repairable and any idea of cost of repair or could it be a DIY job.
Many thanks.
timowen
Hi, sounds like it was squeezed! At least the bulkhead is in the right place to define the hull shape and pull the decks down. I believe the Sonata deck-hull joint is just glassed with no mechanical fixings. I have done similar (?) repairs on another boat on a semi DIY basis. Your friend needs to assume that the boat was most likely crushed i.e against a quay, and check very carefully for damage in the bulkhead and any other areas which would have been relatively inelastic and thus taken the main stress – it may be difficult to do this without stripping out linings etc. Look at the areas where the bulkhead bonds to the hull. If the hull and decks have just flexed and the laminate has not been badly deformed, cracked or torn and the bulkhead is undamaged it should be possible to get it all back together and restore the original integrity on a careful DIY basis.
If bits of hull and deck need cutting out and replacing or reinforcing or deformation extends beyond a limited area then its not really a straightforward DIY job and may be expensive – in which case your friend should definately get a survey – it will almost certainly be a fraction of the cost of a professional repair and can be used to barter the price down!
Probably the best general advice is that if he needs to ask, he needs to ask a surveyer! ( that said I’m not a lover of the species!).