This fall I am going to be working on 2 boats, a 1991 Ski Supreme and a 1998 SunTracker Pontoon boat. This post is about the Ski Supreme.
Exterior of the boat is solid but oxidized. It needs a good buffing, some touchups on the pinstriping and the teak swim platform needs to be re-finished.
1) Is there a preferred process and/or compounds that the folks here prefer for buffing?
2) Do people generally remove the logos/stickers or just try to buff around them?
3) If the stickers get removed is there a safe method to do so and where does one source replacements?
4) What is the preferred finishing product for a teak swim platform?
The interior of the boat is a completely different animal. Both of the padded pieces that run down the side of the boat are beyond rotten- they have literally fallen off. The wood is just mush (If this was marine grade plywood I'll eat my hat).
I really don't like these padded sides and was considering replacing them with teak that has had the Ski Supreme logo routed into the panel by a local sign maker and then finished. The less fabric and foam to trap moisture- the better as far as I am concerned. Any problems with that theory?
The engine cover is a problem as well. The fabric cover is shot and the wood at the base is also mush. In addition, because the cover has no safety chain, if you lose your grip on it the full weight of the cover will leverage the hinges right out of the floor- which is, unfortunately, what seems to have happened. You can't get to the underside of the floor here so I'm trying to figure out a good repair solution.
I was considering drilling out the holes, filling them with epoxy and then redrilling them smaller to accept another screw.
I was also considering replacing the hinges with something a little more stout if anyone has any ideas.
As for the cover itself- there is some damage in the front where it slid into the front of one of the pulleys (because, of course, the hinges had ripped out). I'm thinking of just repairing the cover, thoroughly sanding the whole thing and then painting it white to match the boat. I'd put dynamat or something similar (marine rated obviously) on the inside of the cover to keep down the heat and noise. Again I figure the less foam and fabric, the less moisture get retained.
Finally- given how rotted all the topside wood is, I'm terrified the stringers may be shot. I have no evidence of any rot. No soft spots, no engine movement, nothing to lead me to believe there is a problem except the unprotected wood up top. (This particular boat has been in the water (freshwater lake) from June until September every year since being built.) Are inboards any more or less likely to suffer stringer rot? I'd hate to drill the stringer, find out it's fine but then give the water a place to get in if I don't reseal it well. Are there any tell-tale signs I should be looking for before I have to consider drilling it?
Thanks-
Exterior of the boat is solid but oxidized. It needs a good buffing, some touchups on the pinstriping and the teak swim platform needs to be re-finished.
1) Is there a preferred process and/or compounds that the folks here prefer for buffing?
2) Do people generally remove the logos/stickers or just try to buff around them?
3) If the stickers get removed is there a safe method to do so and where does one source replacements?
4) What is the preferred finishing product for a teak swim platform?
The interior of the boat is a completely different animal. Both of the padded pieces that run down the side of the boat are beyond rotten- they have literally fallen off. The wood is just mush (If this was marine grade plywood I'll eat my hat).
I really don't like these padded sides and was considering replacing them with teak that has had the Ski Supreme logo routed into the panel by a local sign maker and then finished. The less fabric and foam to trap moisture- the better as far as I am concerned. Any problems with that theory?
The engine cover is a problem as well. The fabric cover is shot and the wood at the base is also mush. In addition, because the cover has no safety chain, if you lose your grip on it the full weight of the cover will leverage the hinges right out of the floor- which is, unfortunately, what seems to have happened. You can't get to the underside of the floor here so I'm trying to figure out a good repair solution.
I was considering drilling out the holes, filling them with epoxy and then redrilling them smaller to accept another screw.
I was also considering replacing the hinges with something a little more stout if anyone has any ideas.
As for the cover itself- there is some damage in the front where it slid into the front of one of the pulleys (because, of course, the hinges had ripped out). I'm thinking of just repairing the cover, thoroughly sanding the whole thing and then painting it white to match the boat. I'd put dynamat or something similar (marine rated obviously) on the inside of the cover to keep down the heat and noise. Again I figure the less foam and fabric, the less moisture get retained.
Finally- given how rotted all the topside wood is, I'm terrified the stringers may be shot. I have no evidence of any rot. No soft spots, no engine movement, nothing to lead me to believe there is a problem except the unprotected wood up top. (This particular boat has been in the water (freshwater lake) from June until September every year since being built.) Are inboards any more or less likely to suffer stringer rot? I'd hate to drill the stringer, find out it's fine but then give the water a place to get in if I don't reseal it well. Are there any tell-tale signs I should be looking for before I have to consider drilling it?
Thanks-