Fiberglass over a vinyle boat?

[Dan coffin]

Hello I was wondering if anyone has fiberglassed over a vinyl blow up boat. Can I use fiberglass to cover the boat to make it much stronger. It is a small 7 ft blow up boat. It will be just on a lakes. Could I wrap the whole thing with some fiberglass and what kind of paint to seal it up. What kind of resin to use with a vinyle and 1sy and 2nd more affordable idea. Or what order of layers of what would you use. Considering price and use

 

[bajansailor]

Dan, I think that you would be much better off in the long run if you find a set of plans for a small dinghy that will suit your requirements, and building a boat from these plans.
Your idea re throwing fibreglass at a vinyl (PVC?) inflatable boat sounds rather dubious to me.
The money saved on buying the materials for this project can be applied towards the materials for a boat that will work, if you build it correctly according to the plans.
Have a look at Duckworks - do any of their small dinghy designs appeal to you?
Plans & Kits - Plans by type - Page 1 - Duckworks Boat Builders Supply https://duckworks.com/plans-by-type/

Or the small craft designs from Chesapeake Light Craft?
Chesapeake Light Craft | Boat Plans, Boat Kits, Boatbuilding Supplies, Boat Kit, Kayak Kit, Canoe Kit, Sailboat Kit https://www.clcboats.com/

These geodesic dinghies have a dacron skin with kevlar reinforcing where it matters, and they are properly engineered -
Our Boats - Geodesic AiroLITE Boats http://www.gaboats.com/boats/

 

[Dan coffin]

Thanks i will look into building a plywood fiberglass boat! Seems alotb more fun and about same cost and stronger

 

[Dan coffin]

I have already bought plans for a 12ft skiff made out of 4 sheets of ply and fiberglass I am new to wood work though it seems possible watching you tube

 

[bajansailor]

Which plans have you bought re this 12' skiff?
Do the plans have full size templates, or do you have to plot the outlines on the plywood before cutting them out?
Re being new to woodwork, a bit of practice with an electric jigsaw first (if you have not used one before) should see you cutting out your panels fairly easily.
And then you use tapes and epoxy (with epoxy fillets under) to join them all together after first temporarily 'stitching' them together with ties.

 

[Dan coffin]

Plotting on lines on ply I can use powertools I have a jig saw poly and apoxy resin fiber tape and cloth I have built things no boats the laying out of on ply seems the hardest part with making lines and string to get the correct curves

Have you used thexio for seems instead of apoxy mix?? It seems easier to use a caulk gun then mix and spread??

 

[bajansailor]

A gentle reminder again - Which plans have you bought re this 12' skiff?

the laying out of on ply seems the hardest part with making lines and string to get the correct curves

Do you remember plotting graphs at school in maths class, where you have a vertical 'Y' axis, and a horizontal 'X' axis?
Plotting the shapes of your hull panels on to the plywood is a similar sort of process - you will have X and Y dimensions for each station on the curve. Once you have plotted these points on the plywood, then get yourself a nice batten (it might be timber, or plastic) that will give a fair curve when you bend it - sight along it with your eye, and bend it various ways. It should always be a nice looking curve.
Then use this batten to draw a 'best fit' curve through all the points you have plotted.
If a point seems a bit 'out', check the X and Y dimensions again - you might have made a mistake in plotting the point.
You could try using weights to hold the batten in place, or maybe small temporary nails on the side of the batten (ie not actually going through the batten)

 

[Ike]

When building a couple of dinghies, I used a 1/2 PVC pipe as a batten. You can get them in lengths of ten feet, but I'm sure the one I had was longer than that. Just use some small nails to hold it in place.