1980 starcraft SS restoraton

[jigngrub]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

whats the best way to secure the plywood to the stringers and boat? i noticed it was mostly riveted before, i was thinking of using some stainless self tapping screws to secure it.

That really depends on what type of deck finish you're going to use, carpet, vinyl, etc. Stainless screws will be fine with carpet, if you go with vinyl I recommend rivets. I strongly suggest you fasten your decking down through the finish (carpet, vinyl), this way you can remove the decking without destroying your deck finish in case you ever need to do repairs below deck (leaks, livewell plumbing....). If you try to use screws on a vinyl finish the screws heads will twist the vinyl.

Epoxy resin is the way to go on the decking sealer, it only costs a little more than urethane varnish but is much stronger.

I have a 12 volt 55 lb. Motorguide Wireless trolling motor on my 17' deep V Tracker and love it! I can run the trolling from anywhere in the boat and I'm not a slave to a foot pedal on the bow. The variable speed really saves battery power too, I can use it for 2 days without recharging.

 

[Starman8]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

I strongly suggest you fasten your decking down through the finish (carpet, vinyl), this way you can remove the decking without destroying your deck finish in case you ever need to do repairs below deck (leaks, livewell plumbing....).

I would think that would make sense for an access situation, like a below deck fuel tank. Most SS16/18 floors are made in 3-4 pieces joined together to make one.

The floor covering can encompass more than one piece, i.e main cockpit has at least 2 seams. Screwing thru carpet may not apply unless you want to carpet each floor panel separate.

I see no benefit to this with SS models and the main deck. There is a benefit to your method for the raised bow and aft decks though.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Screwing thru carpet may not apply unless you want to carpet each floor panel separate.

.

That is exactly the way you do it. Carpet each piece individually and wrap the edges around to the back and glue and staple them. Makes full or partial dismantling a breeze... and you don't have to worry about putting down a new finish.

 

[Starman8]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

That is exactly the way you do it.

You are correct, it is the way You do it, not me.

All hull maintenance is done prior to new installation. No way I want 4 lateral seams in my finished flooring of the main deck.

When stripped down to the ribs, most of the guys have done the same thing.

Clean
Examine rivets
Leak test
Fix as needed
Repair stringers as needed
Gluvit
Leak test again

There is no way I would do it your way. Reason, exposed seams on edges, and appearance.

After all my sections were fastened, each seam was filled with LokTite adhesive compressed in with a putty knife and fared. These seams were then lap covered with NASHUA waterproof butyl tape. This stuff has been tested underwater and works.

By carpeting each piece separate, regardless of how much epoxy you use, these seams become collection areas for moisture and will eventually buckle.

I also taped the entire outer perimeter edges of my entire floor.

To each his own.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Speaking of appearance, I don't think my resto job looks too bad.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=509163

I have one lateral joint in the front casting deck behind the pedestal seat base, I trimmed it out with 2 pieces of angle. I don't look for it to retain much moisture.

Speaking of moisture retention, if carpet was your choice of deck finish... you have a huge sponge to collect and retain moisture anyway. I installed vinyl instead of carpet because it sheds water instead of sucking it up like carpet does.

 

[Starman8]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Depends on the carpet quality and whether one abuses their boat or cares for it.

To avoid a piiiiising contest, I said "to each their own"

I also said raised decks can have seams.

I suppose all the boat MFG's are wrong for installing carpet.

Vinyl is nice for cleaning fish mess. I prefer the plush carpet, sound dampening, appearance, and when fishing, I made a snap in section that can be easily washed down out of the boat.

My boat, do what I want

Your boat, do what you want

 

[LonLB]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

You certain it was poly without glass Lon?

I'd be a backyard boat builder so I have no idea but...

I'd tend to think even the lowest quality boat builders out there would be using poly plus glass, eh?

Yep, I'm positive.....
Small sport boats with wood construction have the stringers/decking glassed in at edges and seems, and the rest is coated with resin only.
On bigger boats, the stringer system is done the same way.

 

[sqbtr]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

I sealed the deck on my bay with just epoxy and it showed signs of cracking within 5 years. From now on even the epoxy gets some glass.

 

[oops!]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

hi all.......i dont usually stick my head into tinny threads ....but i was asked to look into this one. too easy to get cut in a tinny thread....lol

any resin bought at a big box store for 35 a gallon (actually it was more like a quart (35 a gallon is just short of 5 gallon price) is waxed polyester resin.

ok.......wood encapsulation 101.

IF you are using polyester resin........coating the wood does NOTHING. you may as well paint the wood.
to water proof the wood you must encapsulate the wood with resin and glass.....
any repair shop or boat builder that is just resin coating the wood is incorrectly doing so because that is the way they were taught....not the way the manufactures of the resin have suggested the product to be used.
resin coating was used in small boat building shops in the 60's and 70's. but is no longer used today. it is considered an incorrect practice by the builders.
because poly resin is brittle by it self....it will allow cracks in the resin coat. thus, you have no barrier to the sub straight.

it is true that we all tend to over build on this forum. a wood deck alone can last 10 years. painted, much longer. but resin coated will gain you nothing. if anything, it will speed up the rot process by helping trap water, and keep air out.
however if fibreglass is used with poly resin and the wood properly encapsulated......30 years is common with standard up keep.

to add glass to a deck....is just one more small step beyond resin coating. if you are resin coating any how...why not just add a quick layer of 1.5 csm?...for the time it takes, and the extra 5 bux?.....why not?

epoxy is a different animal......studies have shown that coating a piece of wood with epoxy (no glass) shows minimal extra protection.....
2 coats slightly better,
3 coats sees good water intrusion protection.......
4 coats the protection is outstanding....something like 10 times the protection of 3 coats.

on the other hand,,,,,if you use multiple coats of polyester resin. the worse the protection becomes.

i hope this clears up some of the confusion.
if there are any questions regarding the use of resin.glass.....please, just pm me, and give me the link....as i mentioned before, i usually just respond to the glass threads.

cheers my friends.
oops

 

[LonLB]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

resin coating was used in small boat building shops in the 60's and 70's. but is no longer used today. it is considered an incorrect practice by the builders.
because poly resin is brittle by it self....it will allow cracks in the resin coat. thus, you have no barrier to the sub straight.

oops

Several boat manufacturers did that as late as 2-3 years ago. LOTS of deck/sport boat builders do it. Almost all.
I've built,tested,assembled, or taken apart several boats, from at least a few manufacturers that do this.

They may still do it, but I'm not in the industry anymore.

 

[oops!]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Several boat manufacturers did that as late as 2-3 years ago. LOTS of deck/sport boat builders do it. Almost all.
I've built,tested,assembled, or taken apart several boats, from at least a few manufacturers that do this.

They may still do it, but I'm not in the industry anymore.

if they did it.......they did it wrong.

my information comes from my own boat rebuilding company, (Boatworx) doing many, many boats myself... and studies by the manufacturers of resin and gellcoat. (cook composites parent company of composites one, and ashland) as well as no less than 5 mass manufacturers of boats that i have toured the factory with the owners.

IF they resin coated the wood then let it semi cure......then shot it with a chopper gun. that is fine. (in fact. the correct method of preping a surface to accept glass)
since the 80's most production builders went to chopper guns....instead of traditional hand layed laminates.
this virtually did away with any wood needing to be hand laminated, everything is covered fully with chopped strands. and the ill advised need for resin coating is a thing of the past.

(quick trivia fact) donzi was the first builder to prove a hull shot from a chopper gun was as strong as a hand layed hull.....
thus, labour could be cut and hull production speed increased to several hulls a day.

the manufacturers of these products, admittedly were not very good in the early years on proper training of the end users of the product.
i know veterans of the industry that said they thought they had the process down pat until they actually saw the studies and the testing that goes along with them.
the veterans admitted a lot of commonly accepted practices were just wrong. practises like resin coating....hot coating...mekp coating, thinning.....ect ect

 

[Keithwpg]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

think i will update. started on some stuff on the boat. Annual boat show is this week so i will undoubtedly be getting more and more antsy! plan is to bring the boat back from storage within the next few weeks and start plugging away. i set up a make shift paint booth in my garage and sprayed the splashwell, the 2 pieces that go under the splashwell and the 2 consoles. luckily for me my wood dashes were still in good shape so i sanded them down by hand and laid some fresh stain and some semi-gloss on top. i think they turned out pretty slick here's some pics

now in hindsight i should have gotten a 6 gang panel but i already bought the 4 gang then changed my mind on some stuff, i was going to return the 4 gang and get a 6 gang but i had already modified the panel to accommodate 2 on-off-on switches for my livewell fill/drain and bilge auto/on switches. maybe one day ill switch it over to a 6 gang lol




splashwell was in rough shape! i sanded it too bare aluminum and did my best. I'm not 100 percent happy but I'm picky


more pic to follow once i get rolling again. i have a pile of parts just sitting waiting to get installed!

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Welcome back, Keith. Good to see you haven't given up. Puttin' new parts in is always fun.

 

[Keithwpg]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

i never give up on a project! i may have a few on the go at some points but they all get done!

heres the seats i picked up for $20 each! the front blue/gray ones will be permanently mounted to the boat, the 2 gray ones will be removable for extra space when its just 2 people fishing (90 percent of the time) the casting seat is for the bow. im not a fan of the casting seats with no back so i opted for just a plane seat like the 2 rear seats.

 

[Keithwpg]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

got a little more done over the past week or so. painted the rest of the boat that was left. ill post pics of that later. i also finished mounting the floor. i used 1 5/8 - 1 3/4 rivets and some screws mostly where the plywood joins.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Hey keith, what did ya decide to go with to seal up that wood (deck/transom)?

Cheers buddy

 

[jigngrub]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Looks like maybe he's going to glass it and tab it in to the sides...

 

[Keithwpg]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

i used a product called "clear wood" its a wood preservative that is paintable. I put on a couple heavy coats. i have used it on other wood with pretty good luck. i know alot of people here say epoxy resin etc. but the way i look at it is the boat is from 1980, it was never covered and was neglected, the manufacturer used untreated wood and it lasted 31 years and was still usable (rotten in places as my earlier pics show but still holding together) so i figure im good for at least that much time, and hey if i gotta re do it in another 30 yeas im fine with that lol. i know not everyone agrees with me and thats ok with me

 

[Keithwpg]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

funny how its 71F pretty well all week, then the weekend hits and its only 33F lol. i did some more work this weekend. heres some pics

consols and carpet in finally!


splashwell mounted. need a warmer day to lay some sealant before i screw it to the transom




this is a rough fit of the wood, i still have to trim to make it pretty, and carpet it.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1980 starcraft SS restoraton

Looking good. Got a tip for you. Put your windshield up on there and check the fit BEFORE you trim down your console wood panels. I didn't, had some fairly major adjustments to make and was just barely able to keep using the panels I cut and vinyled. Almost had to trash 'em and redo.