Spider Cracks on Gemini Sailboat

[mandrj]

I am about to buy a 2004 Gemini 105MC but am hesitant due to about 20% of all the topside having spider cracks. Based on research this seems common for the Gemini. Do the cracks continue to get worse as the boat ages? The answer will help determine if I buy or not. Looking for some guidance from Gemini owners. I love the boat, but not all the cracks.
-Mike

[Dulcesuenos]

Its common and no biggie, I believe it slows down and I've seen gems painted and have not seen the cracking continue once painted.

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[paxfish]

Spider cracks can be chased, filled, sanded and painted (or re-gel-coated.) Some will return.

Some folks will tell you all boats get them. They can be engineered out, but few builders take the effort. The main cause is that the underlying structure is moving/ flexing etc. Also, you have different expansion rates between gelcoat and glass and structure.

Sometimes, they also betray an impact.

[zeehag]

also known as stress cracks, theese can easily be covered with epoxy paint, which is the most common way to disappear them that is not a cure and yes they return on other boats with stress cracking.
i am always hesitant when i see a stress cracked deck.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Mike.

[captstu]

My previous Gem had a spider colony worth of cracks. I think they are cosmetic - painted the deck every year or so with house paint - kept it looking OK.

Gem's are not very well made - but they are a lot of boat for the money. You can keep them running yourself with attention - as they get older, it makes sense to convert to an outboard, but otherwise they seem to run OK.

[LeeV]

Very common; mostly gel coat. We had tons on our 1987 Catalina. Used Capt. Tolleys crack cure and it worked well for our purposes. Had a 1986 Condor 40 tri and after painting it, all were gone and didn't resurface by the time I sold the boat.

~Lee
Getting closer to a 2004 Corsair 36 tri!

[Jack Lahr]

Owned a 2004 Mc for 10 years Minor spider cracks never got significantly worse with time. Not a structural issue.

[valhalla360]

Unless there are signs of an impact or other major damage, they are typically just cosmetic. The boat is built fine but to keep weight down, the fiberglass flexs a little and that causes spider cracks without any additional damage.

Now if you were buying a 40,000lb full keel tank of a boat, I would be worried.

[Dean Paul]

Try this to repair spider cracks in gelcoat. These cracks are mostly cosmetic and are easy to repair. You need to get an alkyd satin paint that matches your gelcoat color. A simple way to do this to take a hatch cover or other outside piece to Home Depot where they can measure the color of your faded gelcoat. Buy a water based alkyd satin paint. Using a small brush cover the crack with the paint. Immediately wipe all excess paint off with paper towel. The colored paint will fill the spider cracks and make them disappear. Have been doing this on my 1973 Islander 30 MKII sailboat for years.

While you are at it as you have a matching paint consider painting the nonskid in the cockpit sole...and ?

[makana]

We have some gel coat cracks in our catamaran, we sailed our across the Atlantic and to and from Maine to the Bahamas for the past 8 years, any FRP catamaran which has sailed will have cracks. it used to bum me out until I went to the Annapolis boat show a few years ago and went aboard a brand new Catana costing well over a million $ and noticed gel coat cracks.

[mandrj]

Folks, thanks for the feedback. Had an expert fiberglass guy look at them and assured me it was purely cosmetic. However, when looking at the boat we noticed a hook in the hulls aft due to the cradle it sat on with not enough surface area to properly handle the weight.
Anybody have this issue? We see no cracks, so should I stay away or pursue purchase. Appreciate any advice!

[Dulcesuenos]

Join gemini owners group on yahoo. They should be better to answer this question.

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