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What is the difference, cored vs non-cored. I am taking a look at it this week and would like to know what to look for.
Edited for spelling.
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The age itself isn't so much of an issue as the way it was built and abused. The 60's era boats tended to be very solidly built, but heavy. When they went to cored boats everything went to hell. I wouldn't touch any sort of cored fiberglass that age, even it it looks good.
What is the difference, cored vs non-cored. I am taking a look at it this week and would like to know what to look for.
Edited for spelling.
First, one of the keys of strength of any composite material is how far apart the layers are apart from each other. Further apart=stronger for any given layup. Having said that, you have to keep the layers attached.
In the early days of glass boats they were not real sure how strong they really needed to be so they put a lot of fiberglass in them. It is not uncommon on older sailboats to have a hull 1/2" thick and around the keel several inches. Works well, but is very heavy and expensive.
A little time goes by and people figure out you can put a light/cheap material in between the layers of glass, save weight and keep it plenty strong. Core material can be foam, roacell, wood, end grain balsa, you name it. There are issues. The typical foam breaks down over time, a delamination occurs due to impact, wood rots, etc. The problem is once that compromise occurs it is a bitch (impractical) to fix. This is when you hear people talk about "soft spots". The quick fix is to drill holes, eject epoxy and vacuum bag it back together. But soft spots are like herpes, it may not be showing, but it is still spreading.
The other issue is the polyester resin used in most boats is very brittle. Years of pounding in chop or going on and off the trailer start causing small cracks which eventually grow into big cracks.
Like I have said before, the only thing more expensive than a cheap boat is a cheap woman.