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Just how strong is the cockpit of the Ches. 18 with the by-the-book tape plus cloth? I'm near the stage of adding the deck and looking at that area of the floor, being big at 6'4" 235 lbs, and wondering, "should I add one more layer of light glass cloth" in the area of the cockpit that you tend to put weight on when you step in? I know the overall strength of the boat is good with weight distributed, but has anyone ever had a problem with damage from a single point of weight like where you might step into the boat a little too hard, like from above on a dock or whatever?
1 reply:
RE: How strong Ches. 18
» Submitted by Casey Wilkinson - Wed, 10/14/09 » 5:05 PM
Adding an extra layer of glass in the bottom of the cockpit will only give you very minor strength improvement, if any. It will give good abrasion resistance and add extra weight. I weigh about the same as you and have stood in the cockpit on land, hit rocks while beaching, and a host of other horrible things. The most penetration I have seen is a tiny bit into the glass. I had an extra bulkhead that I fiberglassed to do some strength testing on. I took an old screwdriver and only just penetrated into the wood using all my strength.