1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

You can. Some do some don't. It give a bit more water resistance to the resin so you could use it for them to get rid of it if you wanted to.

 

[Galentheboatkiller]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Hilton, I will let you visit the golden prickly brush any time you want!

With the waxed resin, seeing as how you simply want to coat the layup resin when you are done, how about spraying it on with a cheap Harbor Freight spray gun? It would be quick and give you the covering you want.

Good luck with the build...it is looking GREAT!

Galen

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Well Gentlemen, It may not be perfect *(it's not) but I am finished grinding.










Here is the bulkhead I built. It's also not perfect, but I'm going to smear Jiff all around it. Bulkhead is made out of marine grade 3/4" plywood.



Tomorrow I plan to begin glassing. I'm going to try out FriscoBoater's "Hero method."

Here is my fresh new 25' roll of 1708


I cut 16" and 22" strips. Ready to glass tomorrow!

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Stringers are glassed in.







They looked a lot better while I was doing them. Good enough for government work.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Are the white area's I see air bubbles??

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Some of them are.
This was pretty difficult and I'm a little discouraged.
I'm going to look at it again today.

The first layer went down great! Smooth, nice.
The second layer was pretty good also.
I decided to put a third area just over the engine mount area. This may have been a mistake.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Air bubbles need to be ground out and patched back over. They will allow water penetration.

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

I think so too, but have a question:
The bubbles may be between layers. If I grind down an area that has a bubble between the third and second layers, do I have to patch that or can I just leave it?

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

I spent a little more time on the boat today. The stringers weren't as bad as I'd feared. I think I'll leave them alone.
Today I test fit the floor and screwed in some cleats for another section of floor. I plan to connect all the sections of flooring together underneath, then glass it as a unit to the hull and stringers. The floor pieces are 3/4" marine plywood, but I went ahead and put resin on the undersides and edges of them.

I put the engine cover and driver's seat back in just to help me remember what this boat originally was like. Now I'm struggling with the decision of two front facing seats or one curved rear facing lounger.

I'll have the driver's seat and engine cover recovered and build a rear bench and *(probably) a rear facing wrap around seat.

Posts without pics suck

 

[Badfish95]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

My advice would be to go with the rear facing lounger. That is a ski boat through and through. Give your spotter a nice place observe the skier. If a rider wants to face forward they can always sit on the doghouse.

Also, you may already know this but you should consider using a layer of 1.5 oz mat under the deck. It will add water resistance by keeping the resin from cracking and allowing water intrusion from the underside. Marine plywood is just a more tightly quality controlled plywood. It'll rot just like the marine grade you pulled out.

I learned to barefoot(off a boom) on an older Ski Natique. Once you've about had your arms ripped off by an inboard you really gain a lot of respect for them. That's gonna be a cool ride once finished. 0-50mph in Hang On!

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

I think I will mark where the floor comes together, screw some 3/4" plywood (I've got scraps) connecting the pieces and keeping them level. Then lay mat over the backs of them. On the other hand, I may skip the mat. Just writing down my train of thought, but wouldn't any water that splashes onto the underside of the floor just drip off because of gravity? It's not like it would soak there for extended periods of time.

I doubt very seriously that this boat originally was built with marine plywood. I know it wasn't 3/4".

Rear facing lounger it is! I think that'll be cool and will save me some money because I can just build it myself.

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

I spent a little time on the boat this evening after work.

First I attached 10" wide strips across the backs of the seams in the floor. I haven't glassed over them, but that's coming eventually.
They're at least level. No one will stumble or stub their toe.


Then I cut front and rear center pieces out of the same 3/4" marine plywood I used for the rest of the floor.






Next, I test fit the fuel tank.


Then cut a piece to cover it

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Continued


I'm still just pretending, but this is what it should look like eventually




I'm getting excited!

 

[Galentheboatkiller]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Hilton, the boat looks great! I really hope you have the family on the river by this time next month! One thing I worry about is be sure everything fits as you glass the front and back of the boards as the spacing between the boards will shrink before you start gluing and screwing the floor down.

Talk to you later.

Galen

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

The boards on the starboard and left side are already tied together. They can't change much lengthwise if at all. Width wise they can of course, but I can always trim the center pieces down. I don't plan on doing it all at the same time.

Glass back of all pieces.
Glue and screw outside pieces to boat

Tab to hull and to stringer, glass over the cleats at this time also
Go over the entire floor with 1708, MAYBE two layers.

I plan to have the center pieces removable in case I need to access those portions later for any reason. I won't even put these pieces back in until the engine is in.

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

I did a little more today.

Cut foam and wedged it in










Smoothed out with a quick hit of the grinder, wiped down with acetone, then glassed over the backs of the main floor pieces.






I spent a little more time on them after taking these pictures. They look even better now.

 

[Galentheboatkiller]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Looking great Hilton. You did an excellent job on the foam!

Galen

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Today I trimmed the excess fiberglass off of the backs of the floor pieces, then glued the floor to the hull and to the stringers. I then screwed the floor to the stringers with a bunch of stainless steel screws. I put cinderblocks on the floor to weigh it down, then mixed up some "peanut butter" and filled in the gaps between the floor and the hull.

If all goes well, tomorrow I'll grind everything smooth, vacuum it out, wash it down with acetone, then tab the floor to the hull and the stringers with two layers of chop strand, followed by a layer of 1708 over the entire floor.

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Another boat day!

I smoothed out the "peanut butter," most of the rough areas on the floor and about 9" up the hull. I tabbed the floor to the hull with first a 6" strip, then a 12" strip of chop strand mat. Then I covered the floor in a layer of 1708.
I've only done the left side of the boat. Starboard is tomorrow, then I'd brave under the cap.
















Now time to get cleaned up before the babysitter gets here. The wifey and I are going on date night!

 

[HiltonFerg]

Re: 1989 Ski Brendella (boat restoration progress)

Yo Ho Ho! Floor is finished! *(well, at least the portion that is permanent.)