Balsa Core Alternatives

Greg Bull

When you need to repair your fiberglass boat’s balsa core but don’t have any replacement core material on hand, what can you use as an alternative? I tested some different replacement core options to see how they’d perform in flexibility and strength alongside original balsa core in a fiberglass laminate. One popular core material is vertical grain balsa but, if it stays wet for too long, it can start to rot. This may make a soft or spongy spot you can feel if you step on it. If the softened balsa core is near or under a winch, stopper, cleat, or stantion base, you may not notice a problem until the object shifts position when it is under a load. It can be scary to see movement in a part…

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Sailing World (Digital) - 1 Issue, Summer 2022

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