hello, need advice (repairing/modifying my 21ft wood boat)

Discussion in 'Wooden Boat Building and Restoration' started by manos mit, Apr 14, 2013.

  1. manos mit
    Joined: Apr 2013
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    Location: greece

    manos mit Junior Member

    hello and nice to meet you all,im manos from Greece and i need your advise on my project.i started repairing my 21ft wood boat,its plywood on frames build,the hull is fiberglassed with polyester resin and cloth.it was out of sea for 5 years and i want to make it like new!i want to make some changes to the boat cause i have it for 25 years,id like to convert it in open side console so i have to cut the cabin superstracture above the deck line. i dont use the cabin and i thing there is a lot of space wasted. by removing the cabin would this affect the hull strength?id like your advise and your opinions.thank you very much!this is my beauty
     

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  2. michael pierzga
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    michael pierzga Senior Member

    Nice looking boat.

    I dont think you will harm the structure at all by removing the cabin.

    Its possible that the rear end of the cabin is a bulkhead and this bulkhead is structural.

    The foredeck is structural. Be careful when modifying it.

    Post a picture of the rear end of the cabin, interior frame locations, interior furniture and the side deck sheer clamp details.
     
  3. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    thank you michael for your time,the foredeck wil be the same i wont cut it,the cabin trunk i want to remove,maybe ill hold the top sides.in the cabin there is a v-birth and a galley and has two semi bulkheads left and right.ill post later some pictures
     
  4. michael pierzga
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    michael pierzga Senior Member

    Yup...interior furniture can also be designed to be structural.

    Best to post pics.


    Many sportfishing boats use side console.

    Do some googling

    [​IMG]
     
  5. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    i forgot to tell that the boat has 11 frames,only these fotos i have in my cell,the boat is in my cotagge and ill be there next weekend
     

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  6. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    the stern
     

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  7. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    i love corolina hulls that boat has the look i want
     
  8. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    The cabin very likely is a structural element, particularly the bulkhead and athwart furniture. The aft deck and it's related bulkhead are also probably structural. With the lose of the roof and bridge across the top of the bulkhead, the hull sides will very probably move outward and generally make the hull shell a bit floppy. Simply put, if you remove structure, you have to put it back some how. It's difficult to tell how to proceed without better pictures. You may be able to just extend the fore deck aft a bit to pick up the stiffness lost with the cabin removal. On the other hand adding stiffness to the side decks could also solve this problem.
     
  9. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    thank you par,i spoke with the designer and he said iwont have any problems but im afraid to do anything yet. i also thought your advise about extending the foredeck to the steering console and making a big free deck but then the cabin height will be 1,2m aprox. and i wont be able to go to the cabin
     
  10. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    With a companionway hatch and a low V berth, the "new" cabin would become a cuddy, which is really just a place to stow gear and dive into when a sudden rain shower dumps on you. Yes, it'll be a little cramped, but this is typical of a cuddy cabin and really only used to sleep in or stow stuff. The longer fore deck may make the boat more functional and getting around for deck handling duties, would be a lot easier.
     
  11. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    here are some pictures from the cabin,any ideas?
     

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  12. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    hello!this weekend i started removing the antifoul paint of the hull with water pressure gun and i found a major problem,as i told the boat is ply with poly resin and cloth,the glassing under the water line has serius bonding issues,the water is trapping between the cloth and the ply,small holes are in all surface and in some places i can pull and tear the cloth by hand!!the ply isnt rotted yet.the results are logical for poly after 25 years,now what can i do to fix it and seal the ply,do i have to tear all apart and reglass it?the problem is under the water line.thank you
     
  13. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    If the polyester sheathing is compromised, there's no saving it. Usually when they get like this you can easy remove huge sections in one yank. This is especially true under the waterline. You can resheath it, preferably with epoxy and cloth, or you can just fix the damage and paint it, no sheathing involved.
     
  14. manos mit
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    manos mit Junior Member

    hi PAR,youare right again,i can pull it very easy.can i remove the sheathing and and not glass the hull again,just use some paint sealer?or the boat will fill with water?its an old boat and i dont know how water tight is the joints,thanks
     

  15. PAR
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Wooden boats, don't need a 'glass sheathing to be water tight. Assuming she's in good repair, she shouldn't leak. This said, applying a 'glass sheathing to a boat, that isn't in good repair, will stop the leaks for a while, but eventually you'll have problems.

    Without seeing the boat and inspecting seams, etc., it's difficult to tell you what to do, but you could re-sheath if you want or skip this step, if the hull is sound. By sound I mean she has tight seams, the planking is well attached, solid fasteners, through hulls are well bedded, etc. If the boat is sound, or made sound, you can just sand the hull so she'll take paint, prime and paint as usual.

    If the seams are questionable, but the boat other wise sound, taping over the seams can offer some insurance against leaks. Epoxy is the only recommendation on a wooden boat. 6" (150 mm) wide tape (two staggered layers) on the seams of a boat like this will be fine. I'd recommend a 45/45 biax, so you get the best from the tape. Fair this into the hull shell before paint. A modified alkyd over an epoxy primer will work fine, for less money. A single part polyurethane over epoxy primer is more durable, though also more costly.

    The only real reason to fully 'glass a hull, is to provide some abrasion protection to the wood. Of course, the seams also benefit from this, but not so much as just abrasion resistance.
     
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