1967 Hobo Houseboat rebuild, and mods

[fallguy]

From the start the plan was to get it in the warehouse and figure out if it is what I want or needed. I'm not far into it money wise yet.

Believe me when I tell you, I am looking out for you. You could build a great GT23 hull in the amount of time it'll take you to jig and decore the rotted hull.

You will basically need to make the bottom solid frp now. Probably on the order of 3/16" thick. This is like 0.1875 or about 3-5 layers of glass like 3x 1708 plus 2 1700 or maybe 5-6 layers of 1700. Otherwise too much flex... can you add a core? Maybe, but to do it well means weights and those weights will push on the jig, etc. Then any margin will result in a void on the bottom skin which will hydraulic erode easily...

The amount of glass and epoxy is enough for a better hull..

 

[Tops]

Is there enough headroom in the boat to have a righteous cabin sole?
Perhaps a couple layers of 1708 inside the hull to get existing 1/8" (3.2mm) to 3/16" (4.8mm) and then add a grid work (stringers, ribs, floors) to stiffen the boat and support a cabin sole and existing bulkheads? I am just spitballing here, not an expert by any means.
Tough decision whether to proceed or pass, especially since the boat is similar to one that made memories for the OP and the OP has boat building experience so it's not so much a question of if it can be done but what is best overall in terms of time, effort, money, desired end product...

 

[fallguy]

Tops makes a good point about an existing skin, but deduct the gelcoat from any thickness assumptions. The existing skin is in the number, but making the bottom stiff enough in glass will take some thickness of new. If the exterior is only mat; it offers little in the layup.

 

[silentneko]

Believe me when I tell you, I am looking out for you. You could build a great GT23 hull in the amount of time it'll take you to jig and decore the rotted hull.

You will basically need to make the bottom solid frp now. Probably on the order of 3/16" thick. This is like 0.1875 or about 3-5 layers of glass like 3x 1708 plus 2 1700 or maybe 5-6 layers of 1700. Otherwise too much flex... can you add a core? Maybe, but to do it well means weights and those weights will push on the jig, etc. Then any margin will result in a void on the bottom skin which will hydraulic erode easily...

The amount of glass and epoxy is enough for a better hull..

I understand and appreciate it. Believe me when I tell you I am in this with eyes wide open. You've suggested the GT23 before, and I was interested in one years ago until I spoke to a few guys on bateau that built them. It seems the plans, like some others on BBC, were flawed. In this case it is a lack of forward volume that leads to stuffing the bow in anything but calm waters. However, I do agree that I could likely build a new boat quicker then rebuild the Hobo, but it will be harder to insure it and sell down the line. I may go that route, but I'd rater convert an existing hull for the same reasons.

As far as the hull goes, yes that was the plan more or less. Support it, decore it, bulk it up. More on that in a minute.

 

[silentneko]

Is there enough headroom in the boat to have a righteous cabin sole?
Perhaps a couple layers of 1708 inside the hull to get existing 1/8" (3.2mm) to 3/16" (4.8mm) and then add a grid work (stringers, ribs, floors) to stiffen the boat and support a cabin sole and existing bulkheads? I am just spitballing here, not an expert by any means.
Tough decision whether to proceed or pass, especially since the boat is similar to one that made memories for the OP and the OP has boat building experience so it's not so much a question of if it can be done but what is best overall in terms of time, effort, money, desired end product...

Yes on the question of a sole, but I'll circle back to that in a minute.

So let me say this, yes there is maybe 1/8" of fiberglass at most on the bottom of the hull after I remove the core. However, it is 57 years old, sagged in some areas, and brittle in others. It sounds like rice crispies when I was jacking it up to get some wood under the runners. So any glass on the bottom can really only be used as a form for the newer glass on top of it. If it were just flimsy it wouldn't bother me much. So lots of fiberglass, epoxy, time and weight just to get the hull back to being semi solid.

As far as a sole goes, the newer boats (1969-1984) all came with a sole. That said they were built on shallow horizontal runners spaced out every 14" or so. No stringers. I was going to duplicate this, but raise the sole an inch or so for more support to the side walls. Then add stringers to run under the rear berth that would support the hull extension. Obviously this would help support the hull bottom, but it's an inefficient way to do it, and still leaves you with a thin skinned boat.

As far as time, effort, money.....Ultimately this wouldn't be a long term boat. I just really wanted to save her cause there's nothing like it around these days.

 

[fallguy]

I'd say, you have to make a form around the chines, keel, transom, and stem. Like 2x10s... then fill the spaces in between with 2x6s. All on edge...

Eventually; the boat gets lifted off the trailer even because the trailer is probably distorting it.

 

[silentneko]

After poking around with trying to lift it off and support it, I determined it would be best to keep it on the trailer. The only solid parts are the runners, which sit on the trailer. I bought a set of screw jacks to level out the trailer along both planes, which worked fine, but then I couldn't get any more of it done with the wood I had on hand. I would then build supports along the sides and middle of the trailer. It's all doable, but is it worth it is the question.

 

[BlueBell]

It's all doable, but is it worth it is the question.

NO!
Painfully obvious for everyone but you.

Carry-on.

 

[silentneko]

NO!
Painfully obvious for everyone but you.

Carry-on.

Well, no need to be rude about it. Obvious, no, because I'm not afraid of work, and the boat would be worth double what I would have into it. These boats have a strong following. The only reason I'd really be giving it up is because ultimately it's not quite ideal for our family needs. So I'd rather use the time on something we will keep longer term.

 

[jbo_c]

Make sure you’re being realistic about the value. I’ve only seen a few of these for sale, and I think the highest ask was $5k(which I thought was WAY overpriced) - not to mention, you only see the ask and don’t know what the sales price is.

Jbo

 

[silentneko]

I am. I actually got outbid on 2 of them. The ones you see for 5k still need restoration, or it's someone who doesn't know what they have because they inherited it. That's why I jumped on this one. These stupid little boats are like Volkswagen bugs. Completely impractical in size and function today, but still have a cult following. Really anything you can trailer and live on, without a ton of draft, has gone up in value the last few years.

That said, money is not my motivation. It's time spent and function once done. I'm going to look over it again this week and try to measure out the interior rebuild we would want. It will either work, or not.

 

[jbo_c]

The one for 5k was a basket case with fresh paint and a newer engine. I’d wouldn’t price any of them for more than the value of the motor and trailer. Too much of a niche and as you found, probably too much work to bring up to an acceptable level.

- again, unless it’s exactly what you want for some reason. Everybody probably has something that they’d pay “whatever” for just because they want it.

Jbo

 

[silentneko]

Well I decided to officially call it. I put it up for sale and got several offers within the first 3 minutes. Maybe I should have asked for more, lol. It's not about the money, just trying to pass her on to the next guy.

 

[jbo_c]

Sorry. Probably a smart call though.

Now you’re available to find “the one” again.

What is it? . . .

Jbo

 

[silentneko]

Well I figured after some poking around that it would likely be easier and cheaper to just build a new hull again. I've done it before a few times before, but it gets harder and harder to find insurance on a home build. So I am looking to convert another hull into a similar boat like the Hobo. More on that in a minute.