damage to kneel and center seem

[bowhx]

Hey I hit a tree about 5 years ago with my tracker guide v16t. it put a dent in the aluminum along side the front kneel and a few others along the center seem. I've got away with putting caulking in the gap until a month ago. then I used JB marine weld and it worked for an hour then started leaking bad. I need to make it last a few more years until I get a new boat and can dismantle this one to fix properly any suggestions?

 

[richg99]

Since it is your life at stake... I'd head to an aluminum welder right away.

 

[BigTerp]

I agree with having it welded. Do you have to tear up your floor to get to the spot in question? If not, all you should have to do is clean up all the gunk around the leak and have it as weld ready as you can. Shouldn't cost too much to have it welded up, I wouldn't think.

 

[onthewater102]

I hate to be doom & gloom - but those keel seams aren't easy to repair from the outside. You've probably got a pin-hole or two at the stern end in the keel (most that I've seen have this), so even if you've patched the front perfectly there's probably water getting at it from behind/within the keel covering, and imagine your damage extends back behind the keel covered section into the seams of the two sheets of aluminum behind the keel.

I had something similar on a 12' sea nymph and the previous owner had silicone caulked the entire keel - which worked - but it was a terrible mess that I couldn't clean off and ended up having to add to each year to keep it water tight. :|

 

[Clint KY]

A word on the cost of having it welded: Most of the money will be in preparation. So the more you do to get it ready the less it will cost you. Like Terp said one of the biggest chores may be getting access to the interior. Cleaning off all prior sealing attempts with a wire brush and what ever else it takes will go a long way to getting you a good repair. Another plus is that if you can tell your welder that it is all prepped and ready he/she may be able to work you into his/her schedule much more readily. The fellow who does my aluminum welding is always booked solid as I live 3 miles from Kentucky Lake and he is never at a loss for work fixing boats (mostly pontoons) that have hit something and sprung a leak.

 

[bowhx]

Is there any type of factory seal along the seams that would be disturbed by welding? I think I'll have the problem areas welded for now but down the road I might barrow a mig rig and just strip the inside and weld every seam on it or is that a bad idea?

 

[onthewater102]

depends on the manufacturer...

 

[bowhx]

It's a tracker

 

[onthewater102]

I don't have any experience with their tin boats, sorry - mine is glass...

My sea nymph had some sort of black tar like substance between the seams, as it gummed up my drill bit, but then my grandfather's ancient row boat doesn't...so I know it varies from one manufacturer to another. Hopefully someone who's been down that road with their line can chime in.

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

Clean off all the old gunk and drill out some rivets and see what's really going on.