Crack in front of overcab bed.

Not having a good time at the moment as you may have seen from other posts. Driving down the motorway at 60 when a pigeon decided to fly straight out of the trees and into the front of the overcab. Need less to say he didn't enjoy the experience. However I have now discovered that his last act was to crack the shell. An irregular crack about 2" long. Cant get to any dealers for the moment so used some bathroom silicon to stop any water penetration until I can find out how to have a long term repair. Any advice would be most welcome.

Some good quality duct tape will stop the crack spreading till it can be attended too.

thanks Peter

Hi Crisp, from experience have done a couple of repairs for friends in the area you describe I was shocked to find just how thin the overcab mouldings are . Normal repairs to grp would involve progressively grinding out the crack and layering in new glass but the panels seem to be thin gel coat with one maybe two layers of glass backing . Admittedly these were not A/s vans but I dont expect they will be any different. 
        You have done the best thing in quickly sealing against water ingress and possible further damage. Clean off area using meths and overlap sealer at least an inch around the repair to seal well. Repairer will easily remove at time of repair.   Whether choosing insurance or a  local coachwork repairs , I would be looking to access the rear of the moulding to patch using fibreglass/ resin to reinforce the  damaged area and minimise the chance of spider crazing occurring in future as flexing and stressing has occurred before moulding cracked.
         I remember my workmate hit a pheasant, broke headlight , burst radiator and grill, required bonnet, landing panel , respray - all in £1500. He paid up as had not long passed his test and insurance would have rocketed and had just bought the car new a few days before. All the best with whichever route you go down to repair...

Thanks Kaspian, Looks like that pigeon is going to cost me big time, and he didn't even make lunch in a pie!

A good way of stopping a crack in GRP spreading is to drill a tiny hole at each end of it then fill it.

groundhog wrote:A good way of stopping a crack in GRP spreading is to drill a tiny hole at each end of it then fill it.

 I would drill the holes at either end of the crack now, don't wait for the repair it could potentially spread and be even more difficult/costly to repair.

groundhog wrote:A good way of stopping a crack in GRP spreading is to drill a tiny hole at each end of it then fill it.

As Kaspian mentioned, this is an extremely delicate and vulnerable area. I would not recommend using a drill, if it slips....... You could turn a drill bit with your fingers gently, but personally I'd just get it to a professional as soon as practical.

Peter Brown wrote:

groundhog wrote:A good way of stopping a crack in GRP spreading is to drill a tiny hole at each end of it then fill it.

As Kaspian mentioned, this is an extremely delicate and vulnerable area.  I would not recommend using a drill, if it slips.......  You could turn a drill bit with your fingers gently, but personally I'd just get it to a professional as soon as practical.

crisp has said he cannot get to a dealer at the moment otherwise that would of course be the logical thing to do.

If the area is extremely delicate then even more reason to stop the crack spreading further, Peter, you recommended strong tape would do this, I am glad you have had that experience and it worked for you but it is not one I share.

The Dremel multi tool was invented for the purpose of drilling tiny holes in delicate items, it is what I would ( and have) used to carry out the task.

If you cannot do that then you have already done about all you can in using silicone to stop the water getting in, hope you can get it looked at professionally soon.

I have experience.  This kept everything in place for 6 weeks last September/October till I returned from France and had it repaired. Not a mark on the tree!

Thanks Peter a picture paints a thousand words. We seem to be talking at cross purposes. Faced with the sort of damage in your picture or what I imagine is under the tape I would do exactly what you have done. It may well be fractured or split but it doesn't seem to be a panel that is under any significant load if any at all. To me that is a split, crack or big hole but not a stress crack.

The overcab roof however is under stress and the more it flexes the more the crack could run because of the pressures on it. Under those circumstances I would want to stop the pressure on the crack and there is only one quick and temporary way to do it.

Once again impossible to say without seeing it though.

Quite a lot about GRP on [url=yachtsurvey.com]yachtsurvey.com[/url]

Hi Groundhog, yes a Dremel type tool ideal for work required but sadly motorhome grp panels are incredibly thin unlike boat or car panels which can be easily 30mm thick in certain areas. 
       Take a look at motorhome or caravan grp side panels which have such thin gel coat that the underlying mat can easily be seen. A real challenge to repair these as how do you replicate the underlying weave pattern in the area of damage? Luckily overcab pods tend to be smooth gel coat finish and easier to repair and blend in so repair is hidden. Unfortunately they are built so light that normal repair techniques of grinding out the crack in a v section and progressively filling using mat and resin does not work as the panel is the thickness of a cornflake packet! Easy enough repair but access to area may require scaffold tower/platform to safely work on damaged area and gaining access to the rear of the pod to reinforce repair.

Hi Crisp,
we had exactly the same as you, we were heading up the M6 to Blackpool when a pigeon hit the overcab of our Clubman, the bang was such I thought a frozen chicken had flew into us, We lost both covers of the high top marker lights and the air vent cover above the cab swung down, there were grey feathers around the damaged area.
We used duck tape to keep the water out until I could get it repaired, local garage done the work it cost about £350.00 and I couldn't tell it had been repaired.
Pete

Thanks for the encouragement Breakaleg. Now contacted the insurers as I have noticed some more cracks where the pigeon obviously stressed the frame!
They have suggested a company well to the north of us so well see what happens next

I had a narrow escape from this type of incident. Travelling along M4, I heard a very loud bang! What had I hit? Looked in mirror to see a large bird cartwheeling through the air in a cloud of feathers. Pulled over onto the hard shoulder to examine the damage when I noticed the car behind me was also pulling over, and he had a large depression in his windscreen. 
The noise was so loud, I thought the bird had struck my van.
The unfortunate motorist had no idea what he'd hit.

Hi
   I would go back to Autosleepers for a quote ,as I think just to fill the crack may not be a permanent repair
Regards
Alan

Just an update. Motorhome should arrive back tomorrow. Has it repaired through insurance (SAGA and that's a whole story in itself). Apparently only one hole and lots of cracks in the gel coat, will see what it looks like when it arrives back. An expensive pigeon and didn't even get it as a light snack!
Thanks for the comments and advice.