MASTERCRAFT DESIGN PROCESS
4-2
use, molds are hand-waxed with an
industrial quality paste wax. This ensures
a mirror-like gel coat finish and easy mold
release. After 50 uses, every mold is sent
back to the mold maintenance shop for a
complete overhaul, allowing us to produce
a boat with a superior finish. Also note
that our molds are green in color. Our
molds used to be orange, but we
discovered that the green pigment was
more environmentally friendly (no lead),
so we switched.
Step 2: Gel Coat
Boats are built from the outside in. The
first layer to be applied to the model is our special Ultimate 8000
TM
neopentyl glycol/isophthalic 20-mil gel coat.
Our skilled production team can control our gel coat to tolerances within .005" for optimum strength, gloss and
resistance to cracking, fading, blistering and water and chemical damage. Most manufacturers do not even have
standards for gel coat thickness.
Some graphics are applied right in the gel coat, and this extra care pays off. New MasterCrafts come out of
the mold with a gloss that looks like they were just waxed and buffed.
Step 3: Hand-Laid Fiberglass
There are many ways of building boats, but the best way we have found is to do it by hand. MasterCraft uses
multiple layers of hand-laid fiberglass for the hull and structural components. Three types of fiberglass are used:
matting, woven roving and coremat. There are even two types of woven roving—biaxial stitched and triaxial
stitched cloth.
Why so many? Because the different types of fiberglass provide strength in different directions. The result
is a hull that resists the tremendous forces generated by running across the water at high speed and taking
tight turns.
Our hand-laid method is superior to chopper-gun fiberglass application because it ensures uniform strength
and consistency throughout the boat. Chopper guns can create thin spots in the hull that are weak.
Step 4: Integral Monocoque
TM
Stringer System
MasterCraft uses no wood for structural components. Over
time, wood weakens and rots. MasterCraft pioneered the use of
fiberglass stringers (or hull bracing system) in ski boat construction.
All the way back in 1983, we developed an entirely new stringer
system. The exclusive Monocoque
TM
stringers, constructed of bi-
directional fiberglass and closed-cell foam, are precision built to
aerospace tolerances, then fiberglassed into the hull so that they
become an integral part of the structure. It is as if the hull and stringers
are one single piece.
That means extra strength, more stability, and a great feel for the
driver.
Step 5: Floor Liner
The fiberglass floor liner, another hull component that adds
strength, is chemically bonded with GlassLock to the hull and
stringers, under tons of pressure. The result is a bond that is stronger
than the fiberglass itself, proven far superior to mechanical bonds
that other companies use.
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