MLB Chuck Huff

That's the outside of the of the hull...Keelsons aren't found on the inside of boats. Hers's the inside of the hull...this was taken when it had a crack. And this is what the inside looked like after MLB did the first repair. I glassed inside and out with tape and bi-axial after the second crack to make sure the issue was resolved once and for all...so far so good.

Mark actually retired right after this boat developed its second crack. This was a Rongers Era boat, but from what I understand Mr. Stone was doing the building for him at the time. Anybody is welcome to jump in and correct this if its incorrect, but that is what I have been told by numerous people.

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And a closeup...notice the moisture still present - this is where the water was seeping in.

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Steve
 
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Well, my bad in photo interpretation...guess that's why the photos I've seen show a gelcoat. I'll have to look the boat over closely for cracks this summer, perhaps some reinforcement is in order regardless.
 
Didn't mean to come off like a butt on your photo interpretation. Another preventive measure I took to, and Dave I may have got this idea from you, is to go to Tractor Supply and get one those heavy horse mats and place it in the bottom of your boat to knock down on some of that hull flex. You'll need to cut it down to size, but it never hurts to take some measure to prevent a cracked hull. I enjoy the heck out of my boat, but I tend to be very paranoid with it.
 
i owned one of these brand new from the shop, had a 25 on it. was a rocket ship. great summer boat but i wouldnt break through ice and hunt the season with it. pretty thin in the skin. felt fragile to me. mark and jamie are great guys but those boats aren't hardcore. remember your not paying an arm and a leg for it.
 
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I took a few photos of the inside of my hull. I get very little flex in my hull. The lack of flex is due to the construction process as seen in my particular hull. I can not speak as to how all other MLB hulls have been made, I can only share how mine is built.

My hull is not a single layer of sprayed chopped glass. My hull is built with foam core stiffening panels. In my personal opinion, this foam core construction is essential to having a satisfactory hull.

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This picture is looking forward at about the front edge of the cockpit. The area in the middle of the picture is single thickness and the raised areas on either side and beyond(forward),are the areas with the foam core.

Some more views;

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Once again, I must say that in my opinion the foam panels are absolutely required in this hull to prevent flex and eventual cracking of the hull itself. I know for a fact that at least one MLB hull did in fact leave the factory with out the foam core construction. That particular hull was one that I received. That hull was returned to the factory and exchanged for the hull shown in the pictures.

I have personally driven three individual MLB Chuck Huff hulls.

Hull "A" This hull was Mark Ronger's personal boat. I traveled from my home in Iowa to Mark's residence in Indiana so I could test drive the Chuck Huff. I drove it and was extremely pleased with the performance and function of the hull. So much so that I ordered one built for me.

Hull "B" This hull was the one I received to fulfill my order. I picked it up at the factory and hauled it back to my home in Iowa. Unfortunately it was not constructed with a foam core in the hull and upon a test run on my local river, I decided it was unacceptable.

Hull "C" This hull is the replacement hull that Mark built for me in exchange for the defective hull "B". Hull "C" is the one I have been using for several seasons now and is the hull shown in the above pictures. I am very satisfied with this hull and expect it to outlast me. I try not to abuse my equipment but I don't baby me equipment either. Each season will usually see me breaking some ice with my boats.

I hope by sharing this information, that the information can help others in the future, regardless of whether they are buying or building a hull.
 
Well that explains a lot...My boat is completely lacking these foam cores. Maybe I ended up with the "Boat B" that was deemed unacceptable some how. I can't believe that one would have made it back to market, but who knows? Thanks for sharing the pics Dave. I'll have to look into having these added to may boat somehow for future use. Your boat looks much more structurally sound than mine did when I got it. It's not as bad now, but it still has some serious flex that just bothers me knowing the possible outcome.
 
Well that explains a lot...My boat is completely lacking these foam cores. Maybe I ended up with the "Boat B" that was deemed unacceptable some how. I can't believe that one would have made it back to market, but who knows? Thanks for sharing the pics Dave. I'll have to look into having these added to may boat somehow for future use. Your boat looks much more structurally sound than mine did when I got it. It's not as bad now, but it still has some serious flex that just bothers me knowing the possible outcome.
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You can add the foam core at anytime, Simply grind down the surface glass and then 2 layers of 1.5oz CSM then lay the core into the mat and cover. But I would cover with something other than mat in this type of boat. maybe some biaxial of woven roving.

I probably got enough scraps I can give ya to fix it. I have divinecel thats 3/8" thick and should work just fine with a good bed to put it in and a nice cloth over it.
 
Steves last picture doesn't look like the cloth was even wet out. Considering it looks like dry glass cloth with paint on it.And it appears to be where the Keelson starts, no wonder it cracked. A big air bubble will do that.
 
Steve,

I believe the company was sold to the gentelman that actually was producing the boats for MLB. His name is Jamie Stone from Bremen Indiana. He owns a fiberglass shop that produces a lot of different products. The boats were not his main focus. Jamie is an an outstanding individual, and if you know anything about Mark Rongers and the MLB products he represented he would only work with the best. It's been a few years since I was at his shop. Good Luck.

Rod V
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Jamie Stone is a POS.

I sent Mark a check for $2500 for an MLB II (boat & crating) in October 2010.

YES, 2010!! I had no idea he had sold, but found out after the fact (ie - check cashed).

He made promises, never delivered. Then stopped answering calls. Signed for 2 registered letters, never replied.

Want an MLB boat?? Send me a check and I'll kick you in the nuts. It'll be the same as trying to buy a boat from him, but you won't have to wait for the kick to the nuts.

Unfortunately, the MLB name will be destroyed by this worthless pond scum.
 
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All of this talk about the resurrection of the Chuck Huff molds and going back into production got me looking into old posts on the boat. I do Root Cause Analysis from time to time and as an inspector by trade I try to solve issues. Looking at Post 21 of 29 in this string, there is a close up photo of the keep area on the inside of Steve's hull that you can clearly see fluid propagating from. I have one theory on this hull and that is the glass cloth was not wetted enough with resin in this area nor was it properly rolled down into this geometry or "stress riser" area. The rest of the theory is that water got trapped under the semi-sealed cloth and froze thus the cracks were generated by the water freezing in this void or annular space. The thermal expansion took the least path of resitance. Just a theory but I think it may the a strong possibility. Sorry to bring this up but there has to be a reason and many fiberglass hulls flex for many years without fracturing.
 
Ron,

Look familiar?



Did you sell your Huff or are you still running the PPF motor on it?

Tony H was around for this discussion but it's probably a good refresher when one decides to bring back a product that warranted the discussion.
 
Absolutely remember that photo...right after delivery.
Here's a couple with the Woody. I also have an Evinrude 9.5 that goes on even with the PPF mount bolted in place.



On the Mississippi, The PPF Woodduck works great on this boat



In the driveway
 
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