Gelcoat Problems

[Bad Boy]

Took delivery of my Tomcat 255C and had to put on a trailer and take it home quickly after the sea trial because it was Labor Day Weekend.

After admiring and showing off the boat to friends, I noticed several problems with the quality of the gelcoat. Big wrinkles in the area below the dining table. The port side had several areas of gelcoat repairs the factory did prior to shipping.

All of this should have gone unnoticed by the buyer if the factory had done their job correctly. The filling and sanding was not good of good quality and showed up with the re-gelcoat spray. The whole port side has many waves, bumps, and indentions. I could take it back to dealer but four trips of 4-1/2 hours one way does not appeal to me. Local fiberglass shops can take care of it if the factory agrees.

I would like to get the majority of this repaired by the factory and would like to know if anyone has had luck getting these problems resolved.

[tsturm]

[Bad Boy]

The gelcoat problems I mentioned on the portside were exterior. There was a bubble in the starboard side in the cockpit area down by the floor. The gelcoat problem in the dining area were interior. Apparently, I got the latest change in the interior in that Tomcat interior cabinetry is now built with fiberglass rather than laminated plywood. It made for a quieter ride on the boat than the demo I rode in, very few squeaks.

I am not familiar with how to add pictures to my post; otherwise, I would.

Also, when adding my profile as a new member, it does not allow me to include the model year 2008, which is what I have.

[matt_unique]

Shoot a PM to Tyboo and he will hook you up with photo album space.

No need to return to factory. Discuss the issue with your dealer, send them detailed photographs, and ask them where you can go locally to get the work done. They should pay the repair shop directly, you should not float any balance at all.

When you say fiberglass cabinets, are you talking about fiberglass tabs that hold the cabinets to the floor (as opposed to L brackets)?

[Bad Boy]

The entire set of cabinets, port and starboard of the boat is now made of fiberglass. Cabinet doors are inset flush instead of hung on the outside. Like I said, it makes for a much quieter/cleaner setup, but it limits any modifications a person can make to them unless they are expert at fiberglass/gelcoat work.

Excuse my ignorance, but what is a PM and who is Tyboo?

[thataway]

PM is a private message, and Tyboo is one of the Moderators.

Definately notify the dealer and the factory. My understanding is that the factory is not doing warantee work, but you can have it done any where you want.

Find out where the best fiberglass shop is and have it done. Matching gel coat is hard, but when you have the origional gel coat it should not be a problem.

My Tom Cat had several places where the factory had done fiberglass repair and it was less than ideal. They also had cut some holes in the deck and "repaired" these--again noticable. I may be picky--but have left them for now. I probably will have all of the gel coat issues taken care of at once.

Sorry to hear of the defects--and congratulations on the new Tom Cat. It will be interesting to see the new interior. However if the tanks every have to be worked on, it will be a nightmare--or so it would seem. On the other hand, it does get rid of the problem of putting screws into a cored deck or hull, and actually makes a stronger boat. It can also make the boat lighter if properly done--so in the long run the fiberglass interior may have some real appeal.

Take care,

[Bad Boy]

Talked to the factory about the gelcoat problems and they had me get a couple of bids from local fiberglass shops. I emailed the bids and C-Dory's customer service talked to the fiberglass shop to verify what repairs were needed and how it was to be done. Factory will send gelcoat to assure it is a perfect match.

Thanks to Rich and Scot Reynolds of C-Dory for following through to take care of this problem. I appreciate the response and suggestions from the C-Brats members also.

I am planning quite a few modifications and additions to the Tomcat to outfit it like a sportfisher at considerable cost so I would like to start with a boat free of these gelcoat problems. Modifications are also planned to the trailer to make it easier to launch and retrieve by one person to keep me dry and to keep the undercarrigage of my truck out of saltwater.

[thataway]

I don't know what type of trailer you have. The Float on trailers we are using in the Gulf Coast are working very well--and the Tom Cat is a one man loading and unloading proceedure.


The trailers are aluminum, which gives lighter weight. The box guide ons in the center, give good and substantial support as you put the boat on the trailer, and outside pipe guide ons give visual cues. The 8 foot slicks eliminate putting the truck in the water, even on shoal ramps.

Wondering what you are doing to make the Tom Cat a "Sport fisher"--If you are putting a half or full tower on--what the results will be?

[Bad Boy]

There will be no tower on my Tomcat. My idea of a sportfisher on this size boat is to set it up to do a lot of offshore tuna fishing as well as lake fishing. I hope to keep all additons and modifications as clean and factory-like as possible.

1) My list includes adding six flush-mounted rod holders (thus, no cockpit rails). 2) Installing a custom rail on the transom that allows me to fish off the edge of Armstrong bracket with a cross rail to keep me from falling off. 3) Custom radar arch with more rod holders, cockpit lights and radar mount. 4) Rod holder welded to the verticle grab rails at rear of cabin. 5) Padded bolsters around the cockpit 6) Remove rear bait tank/seat and install 40-gal bait tank 7) Modify rear steering station cabinet to accommodate a 7" Furuno Nav-net. 8) Install canister mounted life raft on cabin top 9) Modify dash at the front helm to flush mount a Furuno 10.2" display 10) Adding thru-hull scoops to allow washdown and bait tank to operate without air lock while underway at full speed. 11) Electric downriggers 12) 18-foot outriggers 13) Power steering and autopilot.

The C-Brat website was invaluable to me for ideas like modifications to the overhead console, drain tubes from anchor locker, extra grab rails in the cabin, storage ideas and inverter installation. My my first boat was an old 18-ft tri-hull and I worked my way up to my last boat which was a 43-ft sportfisher, but I have not been as excited about a boat than this Tomcat. It's smooth ride, quickness to plane and overall accommodations is a perfect way to end my ownership of boats as I believe this gives me the most economic compromise of trailerability, fishability and cruising.