TOPIC: Fiberglass Fatigue and useful life

I'm contemplating getting a late 50's early 60's fiberglass boat. One that I looked at a while ago looked in excellent condition, always in covered garage. So no transom or stringer work noted.

If the gel coat just needs a good polishing, is there any reason to believe that the fiberglass will not last another of couple decades?

Has anyone had a boat crack open?

It would mostly be used to pull skiers and run about in lake/reservoir environments. Light use too, not multiple times a week. A weekend past time.

Thank you in advance for your opinions. I searched the forums, but wasn't able to find anything.

Sincerely,
David

Welcome aboard David. I believe it's perfectly reasonable to expect "another couple of decades" out of fiberglass construction as long as it's taken care of, and not left out in the elements. As you stated the gel coat may need some rejuvenation, but there are "original survivor" boats out there still operating today from the era you mentioned!

Most catastrophic failures are due to the wooden structure underneath rotting and not receiving the attention needed. Kept in decent condition, I don't think fiberglass has any problems lasting longer than it's human owner.

Just my two cents, others may have their own opinion.......

Good morning and Welcome to the site David. Styrofoam, Fiberglass, and Nuclear waste will all be around after we are gone. No one ever expected Fiberglass to last as long as it does. Especially the boat manufactures who have a hard time selling new boats with so many fixable boats laying around. There is a newspaper article I have been looking for from the late 50's to very early 60's about dropping a fiberglass boat off a 3 story building. Bill Tritt then founder and owner of Glasspar boats dropped the boat along with another one off the roof. The other boat shattered, the hand layered fiberglass Glasspar with minor damage was able to be used in the water immediately following the test. Eddie G. a member of this site long ago told me about this. He was present at the event and employed at Glasspar at the time.

SO! do your do diligence to you hull and go have fun!

Float Happy

Morris

Worry about your wallet not the fiberglass.
Here is a relevant article.
http://www.ericgreeneassociates.com/images/Boat_Longevity.pdf

Personally I think the fiberglass in these boats will outlive all of us and our grandchildren. In Florida it is becoming a problem with what to do with all the old boats.
The only boats that come apart are severely neglected or have hit something.
I am still using this boat.

Thanks for the replies. It was actually that article I had read that caused me to post here. Despite all the signs of long term durability mentioned in the article, there is a sentence that said, "However, we're still concerned about how long the mechanical properties of the pure laminate can last."


Thanks again. I enjoy reading all the posts. When I was a kid we had a 1960 Marlin Wizard Imperial with a 50 hp Johnson Super Seahorse. I have recently tried to track it down because I knew some of the sales path after my father got rid of it, but alas, it wasn't to be found.

The 1966 MFG Niagara I have was built with a hull formed via a pre-form, then molded via two matched metal dies at hundreds of tons of pressure and 230 degrees F. (The pre-form was made of chopped glass and resin.) The hull (and deck) have absolutely no spider cracks, look pristine, and are exactly as I remember my dad's same colors of Horizon Blue deck and Birch White hull on his 1966 MFG Westfield, also built the same way. The floor and stringers are all fiberglass. Since mine was stored in a dry garage under a boat cover at all times, there is no wood rot in the transom, original and in use seats, or in the encapsulated wood behind the dash. There is not one crack in the compound used to attach the hull to the deck.

I'm always surprised when I look at it how well it looks after almost 50 years with the original gelcoat. I have had it on Lake Erie several times in decent waves and still handles them well with a dry ride. Even bouncing in larger waves, the thing is built like a tank, which I find truly amazing for a boat 14' 4" long.

I agree that if not stored outside, these things have an extremely long, almost unknown lifetime. I believe it will look pretty much the same 50 years from now, if maintained and kept in a relatively dry garage. I surely won't be around to see, but I'll bet my future grandkids will.

David, X2 on all that was written above. The only real badly damaged glass boat I've seen, that wasn't smashed on something, was a '60s glasspar that was on a roller trailer and was used to haul a guys summer stuff to his cottage. Too much weight in the boat and poor support from the trailer. The rollers punched up through the bottom. Even if abused and sometimes neglected they still survive.
Cal

Do not forget, Fiberglass is fairly easy to repair if holed. Make sure the supporting structures are solid and all should be fine. Gelcoat cracks do not mean fiberglass cracks. Believe me mine has kissed the bottom regularly. My Winner I just got on the water this year hit a submerged log last trip out hard and all is fine. I love my boat.

I can remember seeing pics of one Glasspar Seafair Sedan that split open under the waterline. There had apparently been a small hole repair near the transom that might not have been repaired properly, and the boat had been converted from an I/O to a large outboard hanging off a long outboard bracket. But the boat split open along what looked like a chine, from stem to stern. This boat also had an open cavity between deck and bottom, maybe allowing more flex.
The only formal study that I've seen on the viability of older f/g hulls was a 20-year study done for the US Navy, starting sometime in the 1980's. Most of it was technical-eze way above my level, but it did show a loss of 50% of flexibility in the first 11 years, with lower loss/year after that. Without flexibility, fibers in fiberglass can tear at each wave impact, eventually allowing a hull to fail.
So it might not be a bad idea to use a manufacturer's max HP specs conservatively; perhaps add some extra support when redoing stringers / transom; consider filling the space between the deck and bottom with foam, and in general don't expect 50+ year-old fiberglass to take the kind of abuse that might not hurt new fiberglass. Remember also that in 1960 the f/g boating industry was still in it's infancy, and much of what they did then was not the best way to do things.
I've also seen some older f/g sailboats come apart at the hull/deck joint, but only after misuse/abuse. If that joint is riveted or just glassed, might be a good idea to add nuts/bolts/with a backer.

Thank you for your response. It is great to see so many helpful people contribute to a "newbie."

So if I found a boat that didn't need a transom or stringers replaced because it had been garaged it's entire life and was well taken care of, are you suggesting that I actually redo them so that the boat is safe?

Unlike most on this board, I'm not looking for a project boat.

Also the boat is not intended to be treated hard. We don't have children. Maybe some water skiing and tubing with a couple of friends, but mostly cruising.

Thanks,
David

If it's solid as you described just clean it up, some elbow grease on a wax job, fill up the tank(s) and have a good time. Don't forget that ethanol fuel will eat up old motor rubber parts, fuel line, bulb, carb so I would advise if you find some "no ethanol added" gas get it.

David:

Welcome to the website Sir!

The other FG Members have given you some great answers and links as to the durability of older fiberglass boats. Personally,...I would not worry about it at all. If any older fiberglass boat has been taken care of it should last a very long time. If they sit out in the sun and rain I have seen the fiberglass get "brittle" sometimes but let me add that I am no expert on that.

For what it is worth, our 1960 Glasspar G-3 Skiboat is now FIFTY FOUR (54) years old and we have had NO ISSUES with cracking or problems on the bottom and the boat is used alot. My Dad bought our G-3 new way back in 1959 and the boat has been garage kept. I have attached a photo of it for you to see.

Anyway,....good luck and welcome aboard Sir!

Beautiful looking vessel.

damartinca,

WELCOME ABOARD.

ImVho, "our boats", i.e., Glassics of the 1950-70 era will likely be here for the 400th Birthday of the USA, as they were OVER-built, as the builders didn't know how heavy-built that they needed to be so they "erred on the side of thicker is better".

Some years ago, I saw one "come off the trailer at speed", bounce off a Jersey wall & end up in the ditch. - The hull itself was essentially undamaged, though the OB & windshield "took a hit".

yours, satx

Great looking boat.

I'm still working on moving forward with the purchase. I just don't want to get something that seems to be I great condition and the have to do all sorts of work.

The info onto is site has been awesome.

I'll post pictures if I end up with the boat.

Thanks,
David

I intend to use my Fiberglass boat until I'm 174. I better hold out.