HST Construction

I currently own an ‘87 HST and have a few questions about its construction. It appears that some kevlar was used in the construction of this boat. Is this the case? Second, is the hull of this boat cored (or were HST hulls cored in general) and with what? And last, the tunnel extensions, they sound hollow (I’m sure they are) but are they open to the hull? They are MUCH thinner than the rest of the hull and if punctured and open could very well sink my boat! Any information you could provide will help a lot.

Bill,

Yes HST's had a little kevlar in them. Not a lot but some in key areas. There were an equal amount built without so you could have one without. They used Nytex and stuff called S-glass in the high load areas on those and even with the kevlar ones. The layup was varied a lot from my memory as they were always trying to improve the strength to weight ratio. All the boats were cored with baltec balsa and the pad had 2 layers. The pods as we'll call them are hollow and yes, they are pretty thin. Poke a hole in one and get it on the trailer! The fit around that area between the hull and deck was a problem and the boats sometimes leaked there.

Randy

Please submit whatever questions you have to IHRTechTalk@yahoo.com.  All questions and answers selected will be displayed on this page as they come in.  Note: though all boaters are welcome, priority may be given to I.H.R. members.  Randy can not be held responsible for any advice given.  Though his information and expertise is second to none, he has no control over what you do with your boat.  It is up to you to boat safely and act responsibly, and his advice is only to be used as a guidance for your high performance boat/motor of which you are the one responsible for the risks involved.

Thanks,
Mark C.

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