Fiberglass repair?

[coop]

I have an older ski nautique, my first boat. There are some places on the boat showing the cloth of the fiberglass. They are not big, smaller than a dime. Is this something I can do my self or is it something a pro needs to do. Thanks in advance.

[morfoot]

I think you could do it yourself if you have the patience and a little bit of mechaic in you. Buy some marine grade resin (small kit) from a supply store and mix as little as you need according to specs. Tape off area exposing damage so you don't get resin over everything. Heat up the damaged area with a hair dryer as best as you can before you apply resin. (This will make the resin flow better and the fibers will soak it up better as well.) Use a $0.10 brush to dab the fibers making sure the fibers soak up resin. Hit the area with the hair dryer again to speed up cure time. Expose area to sunlight if you can to help as well. Sand a little bit after curing and apply gelcoat( with one of those little kits) or fill area with more resin by first tapeing over area with some clear wide tape.( postal packaging tape). cut a small slit in the tape and fill up a syringe with resin and inject it through the hole until the cavity is filled up with resin. you may have to cut a small slit to allow any air to escape. Once filled then tape over area again(so the resin won't drip out and wait for it to cure. Remove the tape when cured and you should have a nice smooth surface with little or no sanding to do. Email me if you have any questions and I'll be glad to help you out if I can.