MacGregorSailors.com

Take it to a car wash and pressure wash the bottom first thing.

Well I believe daydreamerbob. I have blisters on my 2 rudders in the gel coat, 8 months after my purchase. Few of the them busted and peeled off.

Bob,
After my last trip this weekend where what every thing that could go wrong seemed to go wrong, (motor wouldn't start,{kill switch not engaged} windex broken, broke second dagger board, anchor dragged me into shallow water overnight, float thingy on starter key came off, and motor quit running when time to go home) I thought of You and possible name for your (or mine) boat, "SHIP HAPPENS". Hope for us all that every thing that goes wrong gets fixed.

Steve

Both products are using the same 'active ingredient' . . .
Oxalic acid. Handle with care.

School House Steve wrote:Bob,
I thought of You and possible name for your (or mine) boat, "SHIP HAPPENS"

Ya gotta love it!

Well men - the boat is out of the water and pressure washed. there is no doubt that they are blisters. they run like a rash from bow to stern in two parllel stripes symmetrical to the centerline. not on centerline and not on waterline...i would say that the stripes are roughly 8-12 inches from the water line and 3-5 inches from the centerline. they are bigger now than i thought - but there are thousandss - it cannot be a good thing. i will take some photos when there is daylight

photos:

Wow! Have you taken this up with the dealer and manufacturer? If so, what result? Please keep us updated. I think there are many potential Mac buyers who would be interested in how this is resolved, if it is. To my mind, this should be repaired and you should be compensated for the time you do not have your boat, or you should just get a whole new boat. No way this should happen on a brand new boat. Kripes, my old 1983 Mac 25 sat in slips for more than one season without any barrier coat, bottom paint or anything, and did not develop any blisters. So why does a brand new boat develop them right away?

johnnyonspot wrote:Wow! Have you taken this up with the dealer and manufacturer? If so, what result? Please keep us updated. I think there are many potential Mac buyers who would be interested in how this is resolved, if it is. To my mind, this should be repaired and you should be compensated for the time you do not have your boat, or you should just get a whole new boat. No way this should happen on a brand new boat. Kripes, my old 1983 Mac 25 sat in slips for more than one season without any barrier coat, bottom paint or anything, and did not develop any blisters. So why does a brand new boat develop them right away?

Absolutely Johnny.
This is one aweful situation I cant imagine the disappointment as a New Boat owner, and something like this occurring. Absolutely incredible.

Good......Photos are important.
I was aware from the start your problem was serious and wasn't going to be solved thru 'washing'.

Do you have a boatbuilder or repairer in your area??
These guys that work with fibreglass will know exactly what you have on your hands. That is their trade.
You need to do 3 things straight up.

1. Get hold of a tradesman in fibreglass (as above) and have it inspected. Don't use a backyarder, because what he writes on his report is going to be damned critical to you.
He may be the independant man working for you, so get that one write.
2. contact your dealer
3. send MacGregor photos and tell them you have contacted your dealer and probably the report from the inspection.

Maybe 1 and 2 can be reversed.....either way, I would go for an independant inspection early in the piece so you have independant facts that are yours, a report done independantly for you. 90% of the dealers are probably as straight as an arrow, and so is MacGregor.

Take it carefully, and do it properly.

You just don't want someone taking an easy way out....

At the end of the day, there is probably a simple solution to the problem, so i certainly wouldn't worry too much.
Everything will turn out fine.
Afterall it is only blxxdy fibreglass, so sit tight and don't worry.

Just my opinion Bob.
Cheers
Phillip

I agree with Philip, everything I have read or heard at "Strictly Sail" seminars seems to suggest that blisters are inevitable, and not so much of a big deal as an annoiance that can be easily but should be quickly fixed with epoxy.
However, from the description of your broad stripes, it appears that there may have been a problem during manufacturing or during shipping that caused the gel coat to break down in these areas and that is something that the factory and your dealer should make right. (another case for choosing a good dealer over a good price) Get a professional opinion as well as several estimates if possible on the cost to repair and take some high quality/high defination pictures as well. Send them to both the factory and the dealer. Keep us posted as the saga unfurls and have patience, it is my impression from reading many back posts that the factory works slowly its wonders to preform at times and becomes quite defensive if attacked but there are also numerous posts where they were very helpful and went the extra distance, ie: rudder bracket failures.

Those pictures suggest to me that something has gone wrong during manufacturing. Boats with chicken pox so soon after being wet does not look good for quality control. It would be very interesting to know if anyone else has had a problem with a boat of a similar date of manufacture... perhaps there was a faulty batch of resin??

On my previous boat, (not a Mac and of much older fibreglass manufacture, permanently in the water) numerous osmosis blisters became a significant problem, eating well down into the fibreglass. Regular inspection and repair became a necessity. I hope yours can be fixed before this occurs.

I hope tangentair is right and that the factory "goes the extra distance" if approached diplomatically.

Do keep us informed

Looks very similar to what I had on my '02 X. I don't know when they developed or how long they had been there as I bought the boat knowing they were there.

I tried test sanding some of them to investigate and was surprised when they blended out without leaving any cavities/voids..... there probably are cavities, but under the surface. I did what others have writen about on this forum..... I allowed the hull to dry out over winter (just let it sit, nothing special), then in the spring I applied several coats of Interlux Interprotect 2000E epoxy barrier coat followed by Interlux Micron Extra bottom paint. Then the boat was in a slip all last season. When I pulled it at the end of the season I could see no evidence of any further problems. It's back in the slip now..... when I run my hand along the hull bottom, I can't feel any pimples developing.

I feel for you and hope that you have success with the waranty, but if not I understand how annoying/irritating/worrying this is. I did a lot of internet research an unearthed thousands of contradictory opinions on the subject of blisters which didn't help. While I was contemplating what course of action to take, and settling on the above remedy, I was plagued by thought of, "What if it doesn't work and I make the situation worse?!" Now it's behind me (I hope!) I think that it was no big deal and the mindf&#K was the worse thing about it. Your blisters look like mine...... thousands of them, none bigger than 1/4 inch diameter, difficult to see unless you get the light right, more like pimples than blisters. I think they are more a cosmetic problem than a structural one, though I wouldn't want to leave them to develop into bigger blisters. The barrier coat works.

If you have no joy with the warranty try blending one of them out. If there is no void to fill, just go for the barrier coat, probably best let the hull dry out first. So in the meantime, keep an eye on it that it doesn't get any worse, but relax, go sailing, enjoy yourself, and make your plans for the Spring!

daydreamerbob wrote:.i would say that the stripes are roughly 8-12 inches from the water line and 3-5 inches from the centerline.

This seems to be about the same place the water ballast tank is located. Could this have something to do with it? Perhaps some internal leak from the tank out through the hull?

Steve