~1978 Sport-Craft Project

[st_rasputin]

I am new to the iBoat forums, so let me introduce myself, My name is Jay, i live in Detroit Michigan. I am a Senior at U of M Dearborn. I sometimes like to think i have the will and the intellect to be able to take on a project like this. I have remodeled my home from start to finish on my own, rebuilt many cars.

I am sure many of you out their would agree that there is allot to be learned and to be considered before taking on a project like this. I believe my safety and the safety of everyone that will be using my boat comes before anything, you can replace a boat, but you cant replace a person or your health.

I want to welcome any and all constructive criticism, as i am a novice when it comes to fiberglass work and boating. I like to think of life as a big fat learning experience.

I have setup a section on my blog dedicated to this project. I will be uploading photos there whenever i work on the boat.

As titled this is a approximately a 1978 sport-craft, I am not sure of the exact age, as the title dosnt mention it. I bought this boat for $150. In my opinion the trailer is probably worth more than the boat, It didn't come with a motor, but did come with three new seats.

Issues with the boat i know of:

• The previous owner decided to spray automotive primer on the gell coat
• I need to replace the rollers on the trailer
• I need to replace the the electrical system, but thats not a big deal
• there are plenty of poorly patched holes in the transom.

My father in-law mentioned the the transom seems to be rotted. I then began the dissection of this 16ft beast.

I removed the bumper rail and separated the hull from the topside, and this is the result. A rotted transom and a nasty looking floor:

EDIT PHOTO removed TOO LARGE !! 2592 x 1944


I got a little chain saw happy and made a cut about 8 inches long in the side of the hull that i will need to fix:


Things i need to learn:

• How to lay fiberglass
• How to strip this primer off the boat without killing the gell coat
• How to apply a new layer of gell coat, or paint the hull

At this point i would like to get some opinions and some input on this. What do you guys think? Here is a link to the blog if you want to see more photos and more details http://lapenguina.com/?p=74#content

Thank you in advance for all your input!!

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

Welcome to iboats. Yup... I removed that huge photo because it was far too large for the forum. We still have some people on dial-up and it would take years to load.

Yup you have your work cut out for you.

Read through the restoration section here and learn to use the advanced search.... we have some serious pro's here and a many shade tree people that will guide you right through your project.


What are you going to use for an outboard?

 

[st_rasputin]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

Bob_VT,
Yeah i realized that a few mins ago. I will put up a smaller image. I am not sure about the outboard yet. I was hoping to get a few suggestions. I think it had a 70hp Johnson. At this point i really want to get the hull repaired.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

well you need to do test test holes in the stringers. I imagine there is rot inside that fiberglass and the stringers will have to be replaced.

How to lay fiberglass - this is fairly easy but the prep is very imporatant read this thread to help http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=234392

How to strip this primer off the boat without killing the gell coat - you can strip it off. Gel coat is fairly thick and stands up okay to wet sanding to restore the shine..... most paint strippers will not have any effect on gel coat so you can use a stripper then wet sand to a shine

How to apply a new layer of gell coat, or paint the hull do a search for roll and tip (paint method)

You will need to establish a punch list. What needs to be accomplished and some sort of order.

Inside
Test boring for rot
Strip inside of hull
Lots of grinding - out with the old
Replacing stringers & transom and fiberglassing them in.
decking over the fiberglass sealed
Replacement foam

Outside...
repairing hull if needed chips, stress cracks etc
stripping the old finish of primer
re-attaching the cap and sealing to hull
Paint or gel coat ........ really some of the last work.

 

[st_rasputin]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

Tomorrow morning the first thing i am going to do is make a list of what needs to be done and in what order. I will also remove the remaining deck and drill holes in the stingers. Thank you for all the help so far!

 

[st_rasputin]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

I removed the remaining floor. It was a pain as this is a tri-hull. Whats weird is that there are no drain holes in the Stringers, is that normal? I found some nasty stagnant water underneath the floor.

 

[keepNitreel]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

I removed the remaining floor. It was a pain as this is a tri-hull. Whats weird is that there are no drain holes in the Stringers, is that normal? I found some nasty stagnant water underneath the floor.

Nope no drain holes in the stringers, they are suppose to be completely encapsulated in glass.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

It's not unusual to not have drain holes in the stringers. Some boats have them, some don't, and mass produced boats seem to follow the strategy in general of "water will never get in here". Obviously they're wrong, or maybe they just expect the boats to rot out so people buy another one.

I'd put holes in and coat the inside of the hole with resin and glass in the future, to keep water moving down and out.

Erik

 

[st_rasputin]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

erikgreen,

Yeah I was thinking the same thing. Water shouldn't get in there, but if it does the drain holes will help get it out.

Would it be stupid if i glassed the bottom of the new decks plywood to insulate the wood from moisture?

 

[erikgreen]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

No, that's pretty standard actually. It protects against moisture and also adds some strength, so it's a good thing to do. If you haven't bought your deck wood yet you can take that into account and use thinner wood than you would have without the glass.

If you're using poly resin, make sure you glass mat onto the bottom. Epoxy you can skip the glass itself if you don't need strength, but a thin cloth would improve waterproofing even more and add strength too.

Erik

 

[st_rasputin]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

I was told that I could replace part of the stringer that is roted and that there was no need to replace its entirety. Is this true? what are your thoughts concerns?

 

[airmail]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

I was told that I could replace part of the stringer that is roted and that there was no need to replace its entirety. Is this true? what are your thoughts concerns?

I hope someone answers that question because that is mine also.

I also believe there should be air flowing under the deck to dry things out. Now it doesn't need to flow while on the water but when the boat is sitting I would think this would be a good idea. Any comments?

I'm not trying to hijack your thread just your concerns are similar to mine.

 

[eaglejim]

Re: ~1978 Sport-Craft Project

Mine is a "77" SportCraft C-Gull got mine for 300.00 and like you the trailer was worth more than the boat (came with motor) that model will hold up to a 70hp.good luck I will be watching(without doing transom and deck I got it sea worthy for about 1200.00)