Hi everyone,

I just bought a used HC16 from the late 70s from a relative of mine at a very low price. I wanted to ask two questions.

I thoroughly inspected the hulls and found a small soft-spot (appx. 2x2 inches) 2-3 feet in front of the front pylon. Its not super soft but there is some deflection when I apply firm pressure with the top of my fingers - kind of like putting pressure on a fully inflated basketball. I assume this will be OK to repair through drilling holes and injecting epoxy - I just wanted to check how critical you guys would consider this? Would it be OK to sail the rest of the season (i.e. maybe 5-6 more times - located in Sweden so season is very short...) and then perform the repair after the season?

Also, I found a hairline crack in one of the hulls, and some cracks where the forestays attaches to the hulls (attached pics below) - is this something to be worried about or is it more cosmetic?

Any input highly appreciated - thanks a lot in advance!!

Best,
Filip

Forestay attachment

Hairline crack

That is a very small delam area...I'm sure it will be fine for the rest of the season.

Thin stress cracks in the gelcoat are nothing to worry about....my 2008 H16 has lots of them! Make sure the one at the bow tang doesn't go all the way through, and you should be fine. You can fill and drill it as needed when you fix the delam.

Funny, but my daughter happens to be in Sweden for the next few days as part of some study abroad work!

Thanks a lot!! input highly appreciated.

Your daughter is very lucky then since we just had the first week of really nice summer weather the past week

...And don't walk on the soft spot, until you get it repaired. It could get larger very quickly.
Actually, it would be good practice not to walk on the top of the hull in front of the pylon. With the age of the boat, and if the foam has been exposed to excess moisture over its life, the hulls might have a tendency to delaminate. No sense pushing your luck. If you do step on it, do it close to the pylon where the resin is thicker.