Josenunez94 Posted March 20, 2021 Report Share Posted March 20, 2021 Alright guys I'm gutting it completely out. All the foam is socked throughout the whole boat upon further inspection. So I might as well redo the stringers. My first question is what's the best way to separate the deck from the hull? Second question is do I have refill the whole boat with new foam like is it really necessary? And last question for now is can I use epoxy resin on this project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 20, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2021 I also got this a couple weeks ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted March 21, 2021 Report Share Posted March 21, 2021 The cap can be worked off the hull (disclaimer....I have not personally done this). When constructed, the cap and hull are installed then the foam is injected to fill the cavity. The foam bonds to both the cap and hull in addition to adding floatation. The "easy" part to start this process was removing the screws behind the rub rail. The motor hoist will work but be careful to not try to put too much pressure on one corner or you could risk stress cracks. In the perfect world, if you could rig a hoist from a tree going to the corners of the transom and to the bow and lift that way would be better in my mind. Slowly raise the hoist and see how that works with the separation process. You may need to tie the hull to the trailer to gain some additional weight to accomplish this. As you do this, please take pictures and a good explanation so others can learn from your experience. Putting the foam back in will be beneficial in cutting down on noise and helping to support the floor so it does not flex. If the hull cap is strong (core is solid and no signs of flex), it could be put back without the foam as long as the stringers are providing support on the floor when re-installed. This can be kind of tricky getting the height close enough within specs so the adhesive putty that would go on top of the stringers will properly bond. I feel that epoxy is over-kill. Vynilester would be a better choice as it has a lot of characteristics like the original resin used to build the hull and has better bonding than polyester resin (but less than epoxy). Vynilester is also less expensive than epoxy. Be very careful regarding the weight of the motor you will be hanging on the bracket. Moving the motor back 30 inches will have a drastic effect on how the hull sits in the water, both at rest and running. It will sit lower in the water at the transom, so consider how this will impact the scupper drains. Also, that bracket has no floatation chambers built into it to help offset the motor being further back. Finally, make sure when you rebuild the transom that the core is of sufficient density and it has additional braces to tie the transom to the stringers. I made my knee braces as high as possible at the transom to help transmit the load over a larger area. Here is the link to my rebuild as it explains some of the transom bracket considerations.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 21, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2021 2 hours ago, 2-N-TOW said: The cap can be worked off the hull (disclaimer....I have not personally done this). When constructed, the cap and hull are installed then the foam is injected to fill the cavity. The foam bonds to both the cap and hull in addition to adding floatation. The "easy" part to start this process was removing the screws behind the rub rail. The motor hoist will work but be careful to not try to put too much pressure on one corner or you could risk stress cracks. In the perfect world, if you could rig a hoist from a tree going to the corners of the transom and to the bow and lift that way would be better in my mind. Slowly raise the hoist and see how that works with the separation process. You may need to tie the hull to the trailer to gain some additional weight to accomplish this. As you do this, please take pictures and a good explanation so others can learn from your experience. Putting the foam back in will be beneficial in cutting down on noise and helping to support the floor so it does not flex. If the hull cap is strong (core is solid and no signs of flex), it could be put back without the foam as long as the stringers are providing support on the floor when re-installed. This can be kind of tricky getting the height close enough within specs so the adhesive putty that would go on top of the stringers will properly bond. I feel that epoxy is over-kill. Vynilester would be a better choice as it has a lot of characteristics like the original resin used to build the hull and has better bonding than polyester resin (but less than epoxy). Vynilester is also less expensive than epoxy. Be very careful regarding the weight of the motor you will be hanging on the bracket. Moving the motor back 30 inches will have a drastic effect on how the hull sits in the water, both at rest and running. It will sit lower in the water at the transom, so consider how this will impact the scupper drains. Also, that bracket has no floatation chambers built into it to help offset the motor being further back. Finally, make sure when you rebuild the transom that the core is of sufficient density and it has additional braces to tie the transom to the stringers. I made my knee braces as high as possible at the transom to help transmit the load over a larger area. Here is the link to my rebuild as it explains some of the transom bracket considerations.... Thanks man I really appreciate the help and I'll keep you up to date Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 22, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2021 (edited) Breaking news The stringers don't appear rotten at all and the foam seems pretty dry for the most part. So I don't think I will be seperating the deck from the hull thank GOD. lol Edited March 22, 2021 by Josenunez94 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 22, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 22, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2021 Cleaned up a little for better pics and did some more cutting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted March 23, 2021 Report Share Posted March 23, 2021 Glad to hear the foam was relatively dry. As for those stringers, the way they glassed over them back then, I honestly believe the wood could be rotten and there would be no weak spots as the glass box structure was more than sufficient to keep the hull ridgid as long as the tabbing where it attached to the hull was still intact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted March 23, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2021 2-N-TOW question how many transom supports do I need to add to the new transom. I know they are supposed to be attached to the stringers correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted March 24, 2021 Report Share Posted March 24, 2021 Two is all I installed on my rebuild. Take the knees up as high as possible to spread out the load of that bracket. Mine ran up high enough to help support the bottom of the deck and extended forward maybe 16 - 20 inches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted April 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 Got most of all the old wood out of the transom today. Now time to grind the last little bit down to the fiberglass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted April 3, 2021 Report Share Posted April 3, 2021 If you have an air compressor with a 25-30 gallon tank, one of the cheap Harbor Freight air impact hammers will clean that wood off the fiberglass skin real well. https://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools-compressors/air-tools/air-impact-hammer-kit-92037.html Use the wide chisel laid up against the inner skin and have at it. Very little grinding will be needed once done, and not having so much fiberglass dust in the air cuts down tremendously on the 3 day itch! While at Harbor Freight, get one of their cheap 4" grinder and lots of 36 grit discs for rough sanding, a box of 2" and 3" chip brushes, and disposable gloves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 2 Author Report Share Posted January 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 2 Author Report Share Posted January 2 So new plan I'm doing 3 sheets of 3/4 Coosa but now I need some guidance on what to do next lol its my first time and I really don't want to mess her up. Specifically on sanding and how far to sand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 You cleaned it up real good. Are you planning on re-installing the wet well? You also need to scuff the fiberglass about 8" back where the stringer ends at the transom so it can be tabbed back into the front of the transom when putting it all back together. Just hit the surface of the glass enough to give it a rough surface for the tabbing to adhere to. Also, extend the rough sanding forward about 8" from where the transom core will end to allow for tabbing all around the transom to the hull on both the sides and bottom. Use the edge of the grinder to get into that area where the transom transitions to the sides, too, all the way to the top. This makes a much better surface to bond to. Another thing...where the stringer will meet the transom after it is glassed will need a limber hole to allow any water that is on the outside of the stringer to drain to the bilge. Probably the easiest way to address this is after the transom is in the boat and all tabbing complete. Then drill a hole as close to the bottom of the stringer as possible and either glass in a piece of pvc tubing to seal the hole from the wood in the stringer. That swiss cheese looking fiberglass around the transom cut-out...cut it out now. What is your plan for attaching the core to the transom skin; epoxy or resin? If resin, use vynilester as it has much stronger bond properties than polyester. I used vynilester and mine has held up very well over the years. Once that bond between the core and old skin is complete, you can finish up with polyester as it is compatible with vynilester resin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 3 Author Report Share Posted January 3 My buddy has a hook up on poly resin so I'm going with that but I might try vynilester if I can afford it I've already cut out one sheet of Coosa for my transom for shirts and giggles 😃. Does it seem right like should I make the cut out shorter or leave it be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 3 Author Report Share Posted January 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted January 4 Report Share Posted January 4 Poly will be fine...was just throwing the vinyl out there as an option, especially if you were considering epoxy. What are the plans for the top of the transom? Just a flat area or are you going to construct some type of livewell / cooler arrangement? If livewell, height is fine as you can add to the bottom of the lid structure so it sits at the same height as the gunwhales. I personally like having the transom the same height as the gunwhale. Adding a piece to the top of the existing coosa board is no big deal since it all gets glassed over. When you install the coosa, be sure to make up a thickened mixture and load up the radius on the hull side and bottom so when you bed the coosa in it, there are no voids. This will also allow you to pull a filet where the second board meets the hull and bottom, making it so much easier when glass over the radius of the filet instead of trying to do a sharp bend from the transom to the hull. I forgot you were going with the full transom when I replied yesterday. Take a look at your stringers and plan on extending them back to the transom at the full heigjht. This will help stiffen the transom and also give you some support for the floor when installed. I made some filler blocks from coosa to extend my stringers to the transom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 5 Author Report Share Posted January 5 On 1/3/2022 at 8:59 PM, 2-N-TOW said: Poly will be fine...was just throwing the vinyl out there as an option, especially if you were considering epoxy. What are the plans for the top of the transom? Just a flat area or are you going to construct some type of livewell / cooler arrangement? If livewell, height is fine as you can add to the bottom of the lid structure so it sits at the same height as the gunwhales. I personally like having the transom the same height as the gunwhale. Adding a piece to the top of the existing coosa board is no big deal since it all gets glassed over. When you install the coosa, be sure to make up a thickened mixture and load up the radius on the hull side and bottom so when you bed the coosa in it, there are no voids. This will also allow you to pull a filet where the second board meets the hull and bottom, making it so much easier when glass over the radius of the filet instead of trying to do a sharp bend from the transom to the hull. I forgot you were going with the full transom when I replied yesterday. Take a look at your stringers and plan on extending them back to the transom at the full heigjht. This will help stiffen the transom and also give you some support for the floor when installed. I made some filler blocks from coosa to extend my stringers to the transom. So I'm thinking I want a bench seat stretching across the whole transom and I'm gonna do a leaning post live well. I'm trying not to put to much weight in the back cuz I'm using the Armstrong bracket and it'll make her sag more in the back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josenunez94 Posted January 6 Author Report Share Posted January 6 And another question? The pecs for this boat says that it drafts in 9 inches of water. Is that really true I'm sure after I make these modifications that it will change the draft but is it really originally 9 inches like Holly crap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2-N-TOW Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 Maybe with no fuel, batteries, and motor trimmed up! Motor down...better add another 8-12 inches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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