1995 Crownline 202 BR refurb..

[Hauger]

Okay, so I bought a used 202 from a couple that clearly were in over their heads/have never been boaters. I bought it knowing full well the floor needed re-doing as did the vinyl and seat structures. I grew up around boats, and owned a few in the past so I knew what I was looking at....the engine (Merc 5.0 V8) ran smooth as could be...in fact started better than any other carbed engine I've ever owned, and the transom and mounts seemed solid, so I figured I'd take the project.

I've never done a refurb before, and there's nothing more dangerous I'd say than a beginner with youtube/internet access...

I floated the boat last weekend and it ran wonderfully, but it was clear the interior was put away wet way, way too many times. So this weekend the tear down began. First, the boat was DIRTY. I took the power washer to the exterior and waxed it last weekend which helped a lot. It amazes me the amount of neglect some people have for their things.

What I can tell so far is, at some point it was re-carpeted. The floor carpet didn't match the trim carpet. The seat structures were all rotted and shot and standing only out of habit if anything. I think the seats themselves are saturated with water, I've never felt PU as heavy as these are.

I think there's been work done to the fuel tank (replaced??). The floor covering it is just 1/2 inch PT plywood with no glass, and still in decent shape.

The floor is 100% shot. Even the parts that seem okay, as soon as I cut through the glass are clearly soaked and rotted. The stringers seem to be in better shape but still rotting from the top down.

The best I can tell though is the engine mounts and the transom are in good shape and don't need to be replaced. I've looked at them a lot and did a lot of hammer tapping, nothing so far makes me think they're bad at all which is good since I don't have the ability, knowledge, or skill to pull the motor and replace them.

Anyway, here's the pictures so far.....figured I'd start a thread and detail out either how it goes to success or where I hit a wall and admit defeat.

 

[Slager]

I'll follow along.

Hammer tapping isn't an effective way to assess the structural integrity of the transom and motor mounts. The way to check them is to drill a few 1/4" holes at varius places a couple inches up from the bottom of the hull. If you get light dry wood shavings, they are ok and you can fill the holes with marine putty or 3m 5200. If you get dark, wet and stinky wood shavings, or dark powder, they are bad and need to be replaced. Based on the condition of the deck and stringers, It's highly likely they are wet and rotting. You'll need to do a complete gut and rebuild.

There are lots of info and people here on iboats that can guide you through the engine removal and reinstall.

 

[tpenfield]

If I had a hammer . . . I'd hammer the transom . . . (singing to myself as I type )

There is a small forest that goes into every Crownline. and it looks like yours is wet and rotted, sorry to say. The few pictures of the stringers do not look good.

I would take a few core samples of the transom from inside the engine bay low and near the keel, as best as you can get and see if you have go water coming out of the sample holes.

Take a look at the many, many thread here on iBoats of similar restorations, and then plan out your 'cut & gut'. Plenty of time to get the boat ready for next season. We are here to help out with advice and guidance along the way. :thumb:

 

[Hauger]

Okay.tough but fair.....I can (and probably should) drill a few cores. Assuming they're good, how do I re-seal them? Would some 3M 4200 buttered in do the trick?

 

[tpenfield]

I would use some thickened epoxy to fill the holes . . . probably would soak into the wood better that just the adhesive stuff (4200/5200)

 

[Hauger]

Another question for the more experienced....I have no plan (or capability) to lift the top cap. With that said, I'm having trouble visualizing how I can access the floor under the bow section. Does anyone know of anywhere that shows how people have been accessing that area and cutting out/replacing the floor? Anyone have any tips or words of advice?

 

[tpenfield]

Often, the bow section is dry enough that it can be saved. Not saying that is the case, but something to hope for. Rather than removing the cap, you could cut out the floor section of the bowrider cockpit. Alternatively, some folks have managed to work enough under the limited space with the bowrider section in place.

It would be best to see what needs to be done when you get to that point.

 

[kcassells]

If you have to get under there make sure you begin taking yoga lessons. I kept my cap on and everything in the cuddy was rotted, front to back. Sore and contortionist. You can do it.

 

[kcassells]

Lots of belly crawling. I made templates out of 1/4", fabbed and double glassed then set in pb, tabbing was no fun.

 

[Hauger]

Thats incredible....really good looking work but I can't imagine working in that small area was much fun. At least I know it can be done.

I'm hoping the bow is dry and saves me the work, but not convinced that'll be true. I'm nervous about cutting out the bow floor section to look in case it's fine, thus needing to figure out how to patch it up.

 

[kcassells]

If you WANT to know that the cuddy wood is rotted or not then you can open the floor here for an inspection. I knew mine was rotted so my dissection was required. You can do something alot less dramatic. I saved the glass off the wood for install. That keel wood was mush...as was all of the wood in my boay.

Temporary refit.

 

[kcassells]

The mostesist favorite saying I've read on Iboats is; "Denile ain't just a River."

 

[Hauger]

No Title

So, as an update, I've been picking away at the boat. I've taken one of the side panels off, as expected the backing wood is completely rotted. Main floor is gone and the foam all removed. It's slow going thanks to a combination of working for a living and not having a suitable place yet to really work on it.

I'm absolutely amazed at the amoujnt of water deep soaked in the foam. Until this project, I had no idea that was a thing. The floor was completely gone, I don't think I've found good wood yet. The stingers, surprisingly, aren't terrible. Well, that's a lie, some are, but mostly they're mostly good with rot only from the top down.

I'm still going to cut them out and redo them though.

I'm itching to buy stringer and floor material. Now, I know this is a near religious war as to what type of plywood to use. Being in Canada, selection is more limited with less selection. Having said that, I'd drive to the US to access proper wood if needed. Having said that, for a 20 ft bow rider like this, what width of plywood should I be after? 1/2", 5/8", or 3/4"?

I'm also assuming the smoothness of the top veneer is important for the glass to adhere. Is that correct??

Thanks,

 

[Slager]

You should do the stringers and transom out of 3/4" and the deck is usually done in 1/2". You double up the 3/4 on the transom to give 1.5". If you wan't a good middle of the price to quality wood, look for acx douglas fir plywood. Arauco ply is also a good quality pine plywood. Bcx has been used, but it usually has a lot of voids and is usually avoided. If you want to spend some extra for longer lasting wood, look for kiln dried after treatment (kdat) plywood. It is about 2x the cost of the acx, but shouldn't rot even if it gets wet sometime in the future. I used kdat plywood, it was treated with micronized copper azole (mca). I live in Michigan and called all the lumber yards within 30 miles until I found one that had it.

 

[kcassells]

Wow...nice progress! Usually whatever size came out is what goes back in. ACX/BCX is perfectly fine. Make your cuts, fill the voids if you have any, sand, wipe down w/acetone and soak the wood with resin. Edges will really soak it up.
What size is currently in the boat? Looks like 3/4", if it got wet it swelled up some.
When everything is out you will need to sand the hull to good glass for a good bond. That's alot of wood in there. Take pics, measure, make notes. You will eventually need them.

 

[kcassells]

This is a good read;
Woodonglass ;
1961 Lonestar Flamingo - SPLASHED...Kinda!!
Fabricating Decks, Stringers, and Transoms
Paint Your Boat with Tractor Paint...Say What!!!

 

[Corjen1]

Great work!! I second the WoG links!!!

 

[Hauger]

No Title

Guys, thanks for all the replies, really do appreciate the support and wisdom.

I have a "before I do something I wish I didn't" question to ask. The bow section is slightly raised. I have no idea what the history here is, but it seems the bow floor is all gelcoated. At some point, I'm assuming the endcap to the raised part was cut and never resealed. As such, it's rotted and soft at least 8 - 12 inches back.

Now, I don't want to cut into the gelcoat to replace this, but I can't seem to figure out any other way to properly do the job. Any tips/advice??

Pictures attached for some clarity. The gelcoat looks terrible, at some point someone glued new carpet overttop and the glue is still in place.

Thanks.

 

[kcassells]

All the seats need to come out and then the entire area down to hull. There is no quick fix based on the pics. Bummer.

 

[tpenfield]

Some bowriders had the bow section molded as part of the 'cap' (i.e. top half) of the boat, while the main cockpit floor was part of the hull (lower half) of the boat.

This has been a challenge for some of the restorations we have seen as far as getting underneath the bow section to replace stringers, etc. It all depends on the boat's design and what needs to be done.

I would try to minimize, or avoid, cutting finished fiberglass, because it makes the cosmetic work all that much harder when you are putting things back together.

I would take all of the seats/cushion out of the bow and get them out of harm's way. You also may be able to figure out an approach once you see more of the bow structure.