Not so proud owner of a restoration project

Discussion in 'Fiberglass and Composite Boat Building' started by Adam, Jan 11, 2020.

  1. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Sounds great appreciate the tips. I'll be back at it tomorrow
     
  2. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Today I've completed preliminary grinding of old material. I'll be back into it later with a vacuum and acetone to see what i've missed but so far she looks great. I've come to the conclusion that my boat was laid up over the course of a weekend in the factory, with a Friday side and a Monday side. Friday side has a poor layup with numerous pits and voids, and what appears to be copious dumping of resin. I've even discovered the chines were hollow. On the Monday side, the glass was laid up nice and level, not nearly as much excess resin, and much easier to grind out. And of course, some areas I ground a little too deep into the glass, so those will get the necessary treatment. The fun part will be rebuilding up the chine channels that got ground down. Thankfully they run near enough to the stringers they can be tabbed in.
    Ordered first round of resin and glass today as well. Should be arriving before the end of the week.
    Once I get her all cleaned out I'll post some updated photos.
    I've also been logging hours, I'm over 26hrs of labour (started logging after stringer and foam removal), and a tad over 20 hours of grinding with 15 flap discs. Dollar store near me has 40 and 80 grit discs for $2/ea.
    Looking forward to more, and hoping to have her on the water this year
     
    bajansailor likes this.
  3. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    I'll post some photos tonight but I wanted to put my layup plan out there to see what everyone thinks.
    Because the builder made a 3 piece transom instead of a solid 1 piece, I have to get a little more creative.
    And, because I got a little carried away with the grinder, the transom was ground down to literally gel coat in several spots.
    My plan is to build up the ground down sections with 1708 on the outer sections, laying over as far as I can into the area in the swim platform where I did grind (its not a lot).
    Once it's approx 1/4" thick, laminate 1/2 ply into each of the outer sections of transom, with thickened epoxy (combination of fumed silica and strands).
    Using a combination of magic and luck, I'll slather on more thickened epoxy to both the newly glassed in pieces and the new 1 piece 1 1/2 ply transom (as well as some for bedding), and clamp down thru the key hole again using a combination of magic, clamps, and 2x4's. Also using calipers to clamp down a total thickness of 1 3/4" at the keyhole.
    Bedding will be filleted as required, and transom laminated with 4ish layers of 1708 (to achieve another 1/4").
    Mercruiser states they want minimum 2" total thickness of transom in the manual for my particular motor.
    Stringers to be manufactured at a later date.


    Any objections/suggestions/recommendations?
     
  4. SamSam
    Joined: Feb 2005
    Posts: 3,899
    Likes: 200, Points: 63, Legacy Rep: 971
    Location: Coastal Georgia

    SamSam Senior Member

    Removing structure weakens the hull so you have to make sure you haven't lost the correct shape before you lock it in when you replace stringers etc. Especially watch for hook in the bottom from sitting on the trailer supports.
     
  5. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    That was one thing I was definitely concerned with before I blocked her up. I ended up making giant custom blocks and the keel is sitting on a total of about 10ft of 2x6. There is a small 4 or 5ft section unsupported in the middle and the rest is bow, blocked right where the bow rise starts.
     
  6. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Here's where i sit right now.
    In the space under the swim platform are 2 pieces of ply I left in place. I saw no reason to remove them as they were above the water line and sound relatively solid. It may be hard to see but the ply comes almost right to the edge of the transom. My new tentative plan is to clean up the ply and wrap 1708 up from the transom gelcoat up and over.
    Unless anyone thinks this is a bad idea?
     

    Attached Files:

  7. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Now that I've put it out there and I'm thinking of it, my OCD would not permit me to cut a corner like that. It's only an accessory mounting plate anyways, I can cut it back several inches to make a proper bond with the glass and scarf a new piece of ply back in. The boarding ladder is mounted on the port side in a separate well independent of the pieces you see in pics.
    Little more work but oh well
     
  8. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Latest update. As of yesterday, the new transom was installed and epoxied into place. I ended up removing both accessory plates completely from both sides, and I feel much better about that. Starboard side was built up with 2 layers of 1708 and 1/2 ply to fill the gap, port side was only a single piece of 1708 and 1/2 ply. I did underestimate the amount of gap to fill so the glass on the port side was added on the fly. All clamped down last night, big reveal today at some point.
    I did learn several important lessons during this process. Most importantly - the best cleaner for uncured epoxy is vinegar! Call me crazy, but it works better than acetone for cleaning tools up.
     
  9. fallguy
    Joined: Dec 2016
    Posts: 7,598
    Likes: 1,674, Points: 123, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: usa

    fallguy Senior Member

    I am late to the party. Sorry. I did not see any alerts for this thread.

    will help when able
     

  10. Adam
    Joined: Dec 2019
    Posts: 15
    Likes: 4, Points: 3
    Location: Innisfil, on

    Adam Junior Member

    Not a worry, I'm a hands on learner/problem solver anyways and I've been enjoying this project, finding different ways to fix problems. I'm sure what I've seen has been encountered and covered elsewhere. All the tips and input so far have been appreciated
     
Forum posts represent the experience, opinion, and view of individual users. Boat Design Net does not necessarily endorse nor share the view of each individual post.
When making potentially dangerous or financial decisions, always employ and consult appropriate professionals. Your circumstances or experience may be different.