'73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

[klaesaxx]

Hi- I just took on a boat project. I got a 1973 Glastron v173 with a 115HP Johnson. The boat has been in Phoenix, AZ for all of it's life and it's done a lot of sitting in the sun. It has a lot of cracking. I know (as I will show in pics) the boat has had some hits. That would account for some of the cracking. But I'm wondering if some of the cracking has occured from baking in the sun for 38 years? Summer heat can get up to 116 or so.

I am not that handy. I am willing to put in work. This boat does not have to be a beauty. I was looking for something that would be stable and fun on our big reservoirs here and that I could use a a good fishing platform.

The flooring feels very solid. I didn't feel any soft spots. The carpet will go and I'll replace with something. What would you do? Rememeber, basically a fishing boat. The chairs will be either covered/redone, or replaced depending on $$. The motor is in great condition. It runs great. I'll need to weld the skag but that's about it. The main thing I'm worried about is the extensive cracking.

Again, the boat doesn't have to be beautiful. What the easiest way to deal with these? Can I sand/prime/paint? What do I do about the big chips on the underside. The are under but I believe they're above the waterline. I can take more pics if needed. I just want to make this a serviceable/safe boat to fish from, play with my family. I want it to look respectable but am not overly concerned. Mainly, I want to get a good 3-5 years out of it while I save up for a really good boat.

Any advise would be much appreciated.

Here's a link to some initial pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/40066698@N06/5821238385/in/set-72157626812585009/

 

[Bondo]

Re: '73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

Hi- I just took on a boat project.

Ayuh,... Welcome Aboard,...

In that case, I'm gonna move this down to the dry dock, boat buildin' university in the Boat Restoration forum...

I am not that handy. I am willing to put in work.

Yer gonna want a power Sander,... Probably a couple of 'em...
And a comfortable respirator...

The carpet will go and I'll replace with something. What would you do? Rememeber, basically a fishing boat.

Roll-on bedliner... It comes in Colors now..., 'n better textures...

 

[klaesaxx]

Re: '73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

I was thinking about a roll-on bedliner for the deck, actually. I've seen it done on a friend's bass boat. It looks great, is super tough, and cleans up easy.

Does that cracking look like something I could tackle? What am I looking at timewise/money wise to try to repair myself as opposed to having someone else regel the boat? I'd like to do it myself if possible, not just to save money but to say I did it. But if this is over a beginner's head, I don't want to make things worse. All I've ever owned before were aluminum fishing boats.

 

[klaesaxx]

Re: '73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

Here's a few pics of what I'm talking about. There's more on the link of the opening post.

 

[klaesaxx]

Re: '73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

And a few more

 

[klaesaxx]

Re: '73 glastron- lot of cracking/ need some advise

Ok-- Just got the boat back. The engine is in great shape. I had some rollers replaced on the trailer and had the lights and bearings redone. Now it's time to start on the rebuild of the boat. I've looked through the pages here and think I have a good start to tackling the spider cracking. I am going to pull the interior and carpet. I'm going to lay some truck bed liner for the floor and put in new chairs. What I really need to know is how to repair bigger sections of damage on the hull than just spider cracking. I'll show a couple of examples. How would you fix these?

Both of these areas look to have been repaired by some type of epoxy. Suggestions?