We started sanding off the bottom paint, down to the primer, and through a lot of the primer on the upper part of the hull. Down towards the keel (where the hole is) we went down past the primer. Right around the hole I went all the way down to the glass.
This is a shot of the hole before the start of the repair:
After I ground all of the delaminated and broken glass out, the crack became a 2 inch by 24 inch hole. There was no practical way to do the repair from the inside, but I could get my small hands inside the hole no problem. So I decide to put some glass tape inside the keel using my hands.
Using my hand, I spread thickened epoxy inside the keel. I have smallish hands so it was easy to get a nice coating of it inside. Then I cut 3 inch long strips of 6 inch wide 12 oz biaxial tape. I wet out each strip first, then laid them inside the hole cross ways using my fingers, overlapping each piece. After that got tacky, I applied thickened epoxy on top of it, which was then fair with the outside of the keel. After that got tacky, I pre-wetted a 24 inch long strip of 12 oz biaxial tape and applied it. I pressed it up tight with tape and wax paper.
It came out pretty nicely, and it seems rock solid:
After that all cured, I sanded it, wet it, and then applied at 36 inch long strip of biaxial tape on top of that:
It now seems even more rock solid. The next step will be to sand this, and lay over it a 40 inch by 12 wide piece of 1708 glass. I don't know if this is overkill or not, but I'm doing it anyway.
I did get one good sized bubble on the second layer of tape which I will grind out and fill with thickened epoxy. It is towards the end of the tape and not near the original hole. Next, we prime and paint the bottom.
Here's a picture of my buddy Julian, relaxing with some 80 grit:
And here I am, the Toxic Avenger:
