Small Boat repair

I apologize as I am not even certain if this is the correct folder to post a thread. I have inherited a 1985 Astroglass 16.5 foot combo boat with a 115 hp outboard motor, and I am looking for advice/wisdom/suggestions to restore her.

I would guess that it a small job, being that:
1) It is ony 16.5 feet long
2) The motor runs great (for what it is)
3) It floats!
4) My definition of restoration is to get it looking nice (not showroom)

Here are a few pictures of her (sorry, I have named her yet):






The "restoration" means carpeting (you can see the dirt and residue left from the old carpet) and then addressing the gel coat. The dirt showed up a lot worse in the pictures. Once I hit it with my power washer it should look better. I have already tackled the electronics and all instruments and switches are working (except the trim gauge). So my questions are:

1) Is there any recommendations to renewing the gel coat? I understand that restoring metal flake is harder.

2) Is there a special carpet or glue (and source/supplier). My brother gave me carpet to use but it is just the cheap indoor/outdoor stuff. I think I need the tough stuff to hold up to water/UV rays.

3) The hull of the boat is in good shape and even the gel coat looks ok . . . do I need to mess with it or can I just do the part above the "bumper molding?"

My brother had wet sanded it a few years back and used some type of clearcoat from an aerosol spray can. It sat in the Texas sun for 2 years after that so it is pretty rough and dull. Compared to what you guys build and repair, I am sure this is small potatoes, but is a big pumpkin to me. Any suggestions would be helpful (including pointing me to the correct forum to seek advice).

Last question. There is a part that needs repair, the floorboard below the steering wheel. I cut out a piece just to get a look, but the whole area is about 2' x 2'. Any thoughts on how to handle this?!? Below is a picture:



Thanks in advance for any help. Hopefully I can get it looking nice (and sea worthy) pretty soon. dc

 

Is that rot under your console? And if it is then I would question your transom. A lot of companies used wafer-board or ac ply and polyesters will allowwater to intrude the material and the ply will rot. If the boat has sat in the weather then check the structural before doing anything else

 

You might sand everything you want to refinish with rough grit sandpaper (32-80 grit) then blow all the dust out of the surface, then apply several layers of epoxy with light sanding in between coats. This will give you a more-or-less waterproof surface to begin with. Then you can worry about covering the epoxy with paint or carpet or other such surface treatments ...

 

What you see is the foam that is in the hull. There was some type of plywood underneath but it has rotted away. My plan is to remove a 2' x 2' square and replace the plywood and then cover it with fiberglass. The struts (is that the correct terminology) cast into the hull are in good shape, so I can attach the plywood to those.

The transom is solid as a rock, and holds the 115 hp motor like a soldier holding his gun (read: you can have my gun when you pull it from my cold, dead hands).

The other side has no cracks but it feels weak as well, I have not decided how to handle it yet. Either tear it open or put a piece on top. It will depend on how the driver's side goes.

Anyway, thanks for the advice. I plan to keep the pictures coming. dc

 

32 grit?!? that is like concrete! Seriously, I guess that would take the place of the 1000 grit sanding and the compound? The surface is rough so I was thinking starting lower. Can I use a power sander (random orbit sander) or do I need to do it by hand?

The thought of using epoxy seems like the best solution, but also very intimidating. Seems like it could be hard to apply evenly, especially on verical surfaces. Is that a misperception? Plus it seems like it would take a bunch to do the whole boat.

Thanks for the reply and the advice. dc

 

The goal is to get into the existing surface enough to rough it up and remove all the material that's been damaged by the sun weather or whatever, then create a new surface with epoxy since it will stick exceptionally well after the existing surface has been properly sanded and prepared.

Epoxy is very easy to apply, but it takes time to fair it smooth. Yes you can use a power sander but you should not sand through the epoxy into the underlying polyester / glass of course since this will breech the waterproof coating.

Maybe your finish is better than it looks, in which case the use of epoxy as a base for a new painted finish wouldn't be necessary anyways. It's hard to tell without seeing it personally so all I can go by is your pictures. It also depends upon how much time and effort you want to put into it. To me, making it 'look good' is a waste of effort if it only lasts a year or two because you took shortcuts in the prep work ...

 

Restoring the shine

Mr. Grome-
I agree that if I am going to take the time to sand it and "refinish" it, then I want it to last. Once it is done it will stay covered up about 360 days of the year.

Since the pictures were taken I power-washed it and it looks a lot better, but still feels rough. The place where the trolling motor was mounded is as smooth as glass, but the rest of the boat is a different story.

Anyway, thanks for the help. dc