Sea-doo RX Shop Manual page 325

Air Bubbles
Possible cause:
– Air pocket trapped between layers of laminate
and gelcoat.
PREPARATION OF SURFACE
Remove all of the damaged gelcoat surrounding
the air bubble with a putty knife or preferably a
carbide grinding tip. Make sure all loose and weak
areas are completely removed. Sand a small area
of the gelcoat surface with 220-grit sandpaper. If
needed, sand the cavity itself. These areas must
have a rough surface to allow the gelcoat putty to
bond properly.
FILLING THE CAVITY
The prepared surface must be cleaned with ace-
tone on a cloth. Use the Bombardier gelcoat repair
kit (P/N 295 500 100). Follow the mixing instruc-
tions in the kit when preparing the gelcoat putty.
Carefully mix the required amount while making
sure there are no air bubbles in the mixture. With
a putty knife, fill the repair area and cover with
plastic film. Curing time may depend on tempera-
ture, amount of putty and percentage of catalyst.
After 2 hours, press lightly on the surface with fin-
gers to test the hardness. When the area becomes
hard, remove the plastic film.
SANDING
Begin block sanding the patch with 320-grit sand-
paper until you come close to the original surface.
Remove dust with a water soaked cloth and con-
tinue sanding with a 400-grit wet paper. Finish wet
sanding with a 600-grit to remove deeper scratch-
es. If needed you can wet sand with finer grit pa-
per such as 1000-grit.
BUFFING AND WAXING
Buff the surface using a heavy duty polisher with
a buffing pad. Make sure the pad is free of dirt or
you may damage the gelcoat. Carefully begin buff-
ing with a white medium compound. Finish off us-
ing a fine compound. While buffing, pay close at-
tention to avoid overheating the surface.
Blisters
Possible causes:
– Insert catalyst.
– Improper catalyst/gelcoat ratio.
SMR2000-071_12_02A.FM
Subsection 02 (ADJUSTMENT AND REPAIR)
A blister is a visible bump on the watercraft surface
that may not necessarily come right through the
gelcoat layer. In the case of only a few blisters, follow
the same repair procedure as for air bubbles. If they
are numerous and in close concentration, spray liquid
gelcoat to achieve proper repair. This procedure is
covered in Minor Gelcoat Fractures.
Minor Gelcoat Fractures
Possible causes:
– Flexing of fiberglass laminate.
– Gelcoat thickness.
– Direct result of impact.
In case of fractures which have not penetrated
past the gelcoat layer, the repair concerns the
gelcoat only. If flex cracking or impact are evident,
then additional reinforcement may be necessary.
This subject will be covered in Compound Frac-
tures.
PREPARING THE SURFACES
Small Fractures
Open the cracks up with a sharp triangular can
opener or preferably a carbide tipped die grinder.
The V groove will provide a good bonding area for
the gelcoat. With 220-grit sandpaper, sand the
sides of the notched out areas.
Numerous Fractures
Using a grinder with a 24-grit disk, remove the
gelcoat. Sand the area edge with 220-grit sandpa-
per.
FILLING THE REPAIR AREA
Small Fractures
Refer to the same procedure as in the Air Bubbles.
Numerous Fractures Over Large Surface:
Prepare the area for spray application of liquid
gelcoat. Wipe down the surface with acetone.
Mask the area off to protect the watercraft from
overspray.
Mix the needed quantity of gelcoat and catalyst
according to suppliers recommendations. The
gelcoat can be thinned with acetone up to 10%. If
it needs more consistency you can add cabosil.
Make sure that the air supply is free of oil, dirt and
water.
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Section 12 HULL/BODY
12-02-17