Nacra 5.8 fix up

I am fixing up my 5.8. I just purchased new decks. The big concern I have is the softness of the hulls. the port hull also takes on water(not sure from where) I was thinking of laying a new sheet of FBGlass along the whole hull on the inside. How firm should the hulls be. Is this just a bad idea? I dont race it, I just want it to be solid and safe, and to last a while.

Dave, perhaps others can offer ideas on the hull work, but to find leaks, try running a air line (low pressure..5-10 lbs. leave it lose not air tight !into the drain plug. then spray soapy water all over the hull..(dagger board wells too) you will likley find your leaks ! mine foam like scrubbin bubbles..lol mark the area with a soft lead pencil. "Get'er done mate"

Hair blower on no heat works great.

Doug

Great idea..... what about the "softness" of the hulls? i was trying to right it and thought my foot would go through the side wall? that cant be normal... how firm should that be?

any help here?

Is it a foam core boat? If not then the hull will have a bit of flex in the side which is normal, but not too much.

If it's an 83 it's not foam core. So where exactly is the soft spot? You may have bigger problems than you think.

Lee

By Soft, if i am using the righting lines, and pushing against the hull, it feels too soft. but if i walk up and push, then it feels reasonable, just a little give. I have had people tell me that this is normal. Is it? ???? i am considering just putting a layer of FBglass in the whole inside. what do you think?

Don't do it. Be carefull where you stand when righting.

So how much "give" should the hulls have on the sides? i don't want to add weight unnecessaryly, but i want it to be safe and strong.

keep in mind that a nacra usually has a lot more hull volume than an equivalent sized hobie, but much the same weight

meaning those larger nacra hulls must be made thinner

also i think most/all? hobies have been made with the foam sandwich technique which is stiffer than the early 80's nacra single glass layup

so in general a 1983 hobie hull will feel stiffer all over than a 1983 nacra hull

so if both your nacra hulls seem to flex the same amount all over the boat then they are either completely stuffed, and beyond saving, or it is quite normal for a nacra

so either i am screwed or it is normal. How can i tell? quite the conundrum.

i don't know of a way to tell from a distance but it seems to me from what you've said that it's normal

what is important on old nacras is that your bulkheads, 5.8, are still solid and without cracks and on 5.2's that the stringers forward of the main beam are still bonded to the hulls

have you turned up the cracking bulkhead issue in any searches yet?

no, there are no cracks along the bulk heads. The decks are very soft, i have new ones comming.

I had very old hulls that were taking water, with soft spots and all. I couldn't find where exactly they leaked and I decided to change the plugs, without any conviction, just to discard that possibility, and It solved the problem.

Then I replaced the hulls with newer ones (still used). And one of them was taking water again, but now the plugs looked better and were newer. But I checked them anyway, and one of the screws was sort of loose (don't know the transaltion, it's "rodado" in spanish). I took the plug out, and realised that I needed to rotate it and drill another hole for the srew. Put it back, sealed it correctly and, one more time, no water on the hull.