1979 Imperial

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

I also built the stand for my Johnson... That sounds funny doesn't it ! Hope mount the motor on it tomorrow after work... I also purchased the lumber for the dollies, I plan on working on that ASAP so I can get the trailer removed... Then the fun begins!

 

[boatnut74]

Re: 1979 Imperial

An old glasser with no rot? Who wouldda thought . Glad to hear that. I think you would be good to go putting down a layer of 1708 and csm to finish it off, would be super strong then.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Yep, It happens! My 1961 had no rot. Lay the 1708 and call it good. I wouldn't touch that gelcoat except with polishing compound and a buffer. It is in fantastic condition and will buff out to like new condition. That might be the cleanest 32 year old boat I have ever seen. Again, I would do Nothing but Spit Shine her and spend all my money and time on making the interior as nice as the exterior. Just my humble opinion.

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

I dig the white hull with the yellow sides also!

I decided to drill a inspection hole close to the bilge so I could take a look at stringers and deck... The boat is dry and no rot! Looks like I'll be adding glass, and building my casting decks, and will not need to do stringers and main deck. I may not need to pull the cap either! Here are a few pics...

You can see the inspection hole in this shot

I am wondering if that has been redone sometime in the past, when I cut up my imperial there was a substantial amount of foam in there, and yours looks to be pretty foam free..dunno though but its good to know you don't have to tear that apart! great boat

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

An old glasser with no rot? Who wouldda thought . Glad to hear that. I think you would be good to go putting down a layer of 1708 and csm to finish it off, would be super strong then.

That's what I'm thinking to add some strength, and even out surface for top coating...

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

I wouldn't touch that gelcoat except with polishing compound and a buffer. It is in fantastic condition and will buff out to like new condition. That might be the cleanest 32 year old boat I have ever seen. Again, I would do Nothing but Spit Shine her and spend all my money and time on making the interior as nice as the exterior. Just my humble opinion.

Yep thats the plan, the yellow is growing on me big time! What about the keel repairs, and after using rustoleum white to paint the bottom? For my front casting deck, I was thinking about leaving current structure, cutting the deck plywood to fit over the top, then tabbing and glassing the deck over the top of the old seating area. I could store my trolling motor batteries in the walkway. I plan on boxing it in. I'll get some graphic ideas posted ASAP so you can see exactly what I'm thinking. I'll need to frame and build the rear deck, but figured I could use the existing bow structure to support the bow casting deck. What do ya think?

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

I am wondering if that has been redone sometime in the past, when I cut up my imperial there was a substantial amount of foam in there, and yours looks to be pretty foam free..dunno though but its good to know you don't have to tear that apart! great boat

From the looks of things, my deck seems to be stock... I saw the doner Imperial on your thread. Do you remember how many stringers your Imperial had? One done the keel, and one port and starboard of the keel stringer covered in foam?

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

mine had 3 stringers, but between the stringers was completely full of foam, couldn't look down that. what also made me wonder was the difference in color....the greenish hue to your glass looks like a different resin was used then the rest of the boat...its just a thought, but could be wrong! any way you shake a stick at it, factory, or redone, the fact you dont have to tear out the deck is fantastic!

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Hey gang,

This is my lame paint drawing/concept for my casting decks.

The front deck has two side hatches for storage, the middle compartment for trolling motor batteries, and the round circle represents seat base.

The rear deck has two side hatches for storage, rear hatch for bilge access / starting battery, and the front/middle area to store my fuel tank. The circle again represents seat base. Any ideas for rear framework/support would be great. I'm thinking the boxing of the compartments will be adequate supports... Kinda like a stringer configuration.

 

[Pmccraney]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Also, just for what's it worth, you could cut some access holes in the deck (before your additional glass work) and just drop in some pour foam. I don't think that stuff is too heavy (I think Frisco has the weight specs on his thread), and would certainly give you some additional strength, floatation and noise reduction.

You could put back in the wooden plugs, and then glass over them.

Also, for inspiration and ideas you may want to check out this thread:

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=523412

Mike did an absolutely masterful job on his center console... Granted, his was not a conversion, but they way he finished off his deck and some of the other finishing touches could be some real nice "adds" to your boat.

Also, I know you didn't ask for votes on this, but I'd also vote in favor of keeping the yellow. That type of "character" is why we love old boats and is part of her identity/character. Plus, you could save yourself a bunch of time and money given that the gel is in fantastic shape. That said, I would also see softening it a bit, by doing a some keel repair and new white paint on the bottom with the yellow on the sides.

Plus, in keeping it yellow, you'd have no trouble finding your boat at the dock!!!

Have a good one and keep posting. Can't wait to see this one unfold.

thanks,
Patrick

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Hi Patrick,

That CC thread is awesome, I dig the deck non-skid pattern he did... Sweet resto for sure! I'm definitely staying with the yellow...

Managed to transfer my Johnson to the stand I built with a couple of buddies last night. Would have been much easier with a engine hoist but we managed... Transom appears to be very solid, and dry!

A few pics!

Working on the dollies next...

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Somewhere in my thread, I mounted an eyebolt through my ceiling rafters and it allowed me to use a come-along for an engine hoist, might help later down the road..I also used 2 come-alongs to flip my hull that way...I am thinking it was around page 3 of my thread how I added support beam in attic to carry my 300lb motors weight

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Somewhere in my thread, I mounted an eyebolt through my ceiling rafters and it allowed me to use a come-along for an engine hoist, might help later down the road..I also used 2 come-alongs to flip my hull that way...I am thinking it was around page 3 of my thread how I added support beam in attic to carry my 300lb motors weight

Hey JDA,

Good idea and thanks for the advice! I'm been pondering how the heck I'm going to flip this thing. I do have a 4 x 6 x 20' joist across the celling of my garage to support storage in the attic. I was thinking about using this to aid in flipping the boat. I have no experience using come-along's, or pulleys for this type of operation... My friend and I are able to lift the stern off the trailer but it's not easy. I was thinking with two other dudes, we should be able to flip the boat, but only if it was rested on the side first. That makes me nervous, as it may damage the gel and rub rails...

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

yeah, we used 2 come-alongs the on attached to the bow was a single chain, so it would just roll, and the one on the stern was connected to both transom hooks with a locknut at the pivot point, so chain couldn't slide (taking it off balance). this was one of the times I wished I had a video camera because that would have been fun to film!

 

[zopperman]

Re: 1979 Imperial

yeah, we used 2 come-alongs the on attached to the bow was a single chain, so it would just roll, and the one on the stern was connected to both transom hooks with a locknut at the pivot point, so chain couldn't slide (taking it off balance). this was one of the times I wished I had a video camera because that would have been fun to film!

This is what I would do.... Basically suspend and roll..

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Hey Gang,

I hope the holiday was great for everyone...

I made some good progress this weekend. I built the dollies, and with the help of some buddies managed to transfer the boat off the trailer without issues. Now with the trailer in the back yard, I can still use the garage to park my ride, and simply move the boat around when I require more space.

My next concern is flipping the boat so I can work on the hull issues, and paint only the bottom. I'm posting a few pics of the support joist in my garage, and it's supports. The joist itself is two- 2x6's glued and screwed together. It's supported on one end via an adjustable steel post, and the other end by a T support made from 2x6's, lag bolted into studs. In addition I've attached the it to the ceiling joists via L brackets and lag screws. I'm thinking the boat weighs ~ 450-500 lbs? Myself and three friends lifted it okay... Does everyone think this joist is strong enough to support the weight of my boat for the flip? See pics below.

Thanks in advance for any tips!

A few pics of the dollies and garage.

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

The problem I foresee is the span involved, two 2X6 alone over a 20 foot span, probably not a good idea. If you were to get some 4X4 and brace the 2X6s to the floor close to your lift point, it would be better. Also you will need 2 lift points 1 fore and 1 aft. I don't know how hard it will be to flip with all the hardware, windshield, etc. on, I would personally remove that to avoid breaking it. If you check out my thread, you will see where i flipped my hull using 2 lift points, but being completely stripped, it was substantially lighter. You could attempt a single point flip, if you and your friends can lift it, but raising the bow with a come-along and 3-4 guys rolling the stern while keeping it off the ground. just be careful, brace that beam closer to lift point and if it feels wrong when you start, stop and rethink it!

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

Good advice JDA . I was planning on two lift points. If the boat is directly under the joist parallel with it, the lifting points will be closer to the ends of the beam. I do plan on removing the glass.

 

[JDA1975]

Re: 1979 Imperial

good point...It is only a 15' so yeah side ways would be 2-3' away from your supports...Dunno why I didn't see that! do you have access to the attic overhead? if so what size are your ceiling rafters? you can get eye-bolts 12" long to go all the way through both your 6" cross beam and a 6" rafter, that would probably do the trick and then some! you also have to keep in mind ceiling height, if I remember right, that Imperial is about 60-62 inch beam, so you need to raise your pivot point at least 3' off the floor, so it will roll. depending on come-along it might be hard to get it that high from a 7.5' beam (assuming you have 8' ceilings in garage.

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: 1979 Imperial

I measured 6'10" from floor to bottom of the joist. I do have attic access, so bolting eye-bolts through the 2x6's and attic floor with washers and lock nuts should be good.