Gouge On Bottom (Advise Requested)

I have this gouge on bottom of boat about 6 inches up from very bottom of boat close to keel gaurd. I know every gouge is a unique situation. I don't like the looks of it but I'm quite certain it's not hurting anything at the moment. I was thinking of trying to epoxy it with some paste epoxy made by PC-7. It claims to bond to anything and be waterproof. It is black so would somewhat match. Gouge is on a greatly slanted surface. I thought that might protect the area in case it ever got hit again. Any thoughts?

If you are not hyper about matching color, I would look at West Marine stuff. Epoxy resin + hardener, then silica microbaloons that you mix in to make a peanut-butter like filler. Sand with 100 grit to remove any remaining threads or fibers, then wet with just the resin/hardener, let it partially cure, then fill with the resin + silica mixture. Sand to match contour. This stuff is VERY strong and also resists water intrusion. Marine Tex is another choice but don't think it is as strong overall.

This is the product I was thinking of using. That is unless I'm advised against doing so or better options are available. The surface is almost upside down so thought a paste epoxy would be best so it doesn't say. I'm an amateur at all this at best even though I want the best for my boat:smile:

Black marine-Tex and lots of wet sanding, you’ll never know it was damaged if you sand it properly.

This product will work, but it will not match the original gelcoat, especially if you are putting it on a 2017 hull.

If you do not care about cosmetics and how it looks it will certainly fill the gouge.

Marine Tex will work, but does not come in black, only white and gray, you would need to buy some gelcoat tint and try to pigment it to black, but again you will not come close to the original factory black.

To make it look new you would need to order a small quantity of correct color black gel from Bass Cat and fill/sand/compound.

Sorry, I could have sworn that I saw black marine Tex. Guess not.

No problem grout-scout. And thanks for the pm explanation. It still helped me learn about epoxying for the future.

Use Marine Tex. If it's into the glass you're getting water in there and it's hurting it.

It looks to me that in one area that the gouge is right down to the pink fibreglass. In that case, I would be darn sure that the area dries out thoroughly before any repair.

You can buy a can of Gel Coat in the color of you hull from BassCat parts. You will just need to buy the hardener from a local auto parts store.

Ok so I took the cheap way out on this one and used epoxy instead of ordering gelcoat from BassCat or buying the Evercoat kit many of you suggested. The chip is sealed, sanded and surrounding area has been brought back to shine after sanding. I thought the epoxy would cure darker than it did. I'll never fill a gouge with it again. But now that it's done, what's the best way to go about making that spot look black? Spray paint? Sharpie? Should I not mess with It?

I'm sure I would have to periodically recoat whatever I did put on it. I learned a lot about sanding and compounding during this project. But I'll be more of a perfectionist from now on. At least it's in an inconspicuous place.
Thanks for anticipated suggestions as always.

You could still get matching black gelcoat and cover the epoxy.

Cured epoxy will have a waxy surface after curing called Amine Blush, how much depends on how much moisture is in the air at the time of curing.
Amine blush will usually come off by using warm soapy water and a scotch brite pad to scrub the cured epoxy, then while it is still wet wipe with paper towels and let dry.

Once dry, Gel coat should adhere with no problems, make sure it is at least 70 degrees when doing any of this though.

If you don't want to cosmetic finish the repair you could always try a black sharpie to color in the repair, but remove any Amine on the surface first.

Wow. I had never heard of that and had no clue. Thank you Basscat7!!!!

I’d get it repaired professionally, it would drive me nuts if it didn’t match.