EPO rudder- Trailing edge missing- need to worry??

Ive seen on a few early 80's Hobie 16's ive been looking at that the trailing edge of the EPO rudders is missing and you can see the foam beneath.

my first question is how the trailing edge can wear off, my only thoughts is that while stowed on land, the trailing edge is up and the UV has degraded it.

Do I need to worry about this?

could I mix some graphite & epoxy resin together, lay it over the edge then sand it back?

see photo here:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150368800550121&set=a.10150368800530121.597138.898540120&theater

Yes, you should worry about the trailing edge of your rudders. If you have exposed foam you need to take action and rebuild the edges. It's not hard to do, just takes some time. Take a look at the March/April 2009 issue of the HOTLINE magazine. There is an article on rebuilding / repairing the trailing edge. The article shows polyester resin (vinylester) and heavy glass cloth (from woven roving) being used, but for EPO blades just change to epoxy resin with grapite, or black pigment for the color. You can still use heavy glass strands as shown in the article, or if you have the $$ you can use carbon fiber strands which will take care of the black color for you without having to worry about using graphite or black pigment. Good luck, let us know what you decide to do and how it turns out.

You can get pre-made carbon fiber / epoxy sheets from a hobby store (Tower Hobbies on-line - http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wt ... LXA277&P=7). You can cut it into strips to reinforce the edge once the foam is cut back.