Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

[JohngeorgeIV]

WOW...I have learned more about Boats in 3 weeks then the rest of my life added together times 100.... what started out as a "quick fixer upper" Hit a pinnacle moment last night when I was standing in my bare aluminum boat (except for two stringers) looking out at a 5 foot high pile of wet foam, wood, and General CRAP in my driveway and saying over and over..." NO big deal, No big Deal, This wont be expensive....Any one been there before?

Questions looking for feedback....

1. I have added additional aluminum stingers riveted into place because of a "Good Hook Up" so that I could go with 1/2 exterior grade Arauco Ply for my flooring. My original plan was to Use a few gallons of Spar Varnish on each side and fill all holes with 5200 on installation. Then I was going to coat the whole main floor with "tuff Coat" or that type of paint on Rubber Floor....Now I am considering roll on Vynil Flooring with Adhesive? THoughts? experience? do both stick to spar varnished Plywood?

2.) I launched my boat this morning to do a quick seepage and leak test with everything removed. I only got a small amount in the floor rivets below the transom. A coating of gluvit? Marine grade Goop? or something more intense?

3. Originally was only going to replace parts of the Foam with Foam board cut down to shape. Due to the amount of "PROBLEM AREAS" I got pi$$ed and Ripped it all out. Does it only make sense to use pour in Foam? is that superior to Foam board or those pool toy things I see people using?


4. My boat orignally had a 2 foot wide Shelf angled down directly in front of the outboard with drain holes in the bottom out through the Transom. IM assuming this was helpful for "Splash Overs". Is this piece necessary? Has anyone customized it shorter? Cuz Does take up a lot of Casting deck room!!

5. Rather then have wires running everywhere I was considering running Plast Ptex pipe or PVC pipe for conduit to the Drivers console, to the rear batteries and Lights, and to the trolling motor and Bow lights. Was going to run it right thru the poured in foam. Anyone done it? bad idea? any experience?

PLease help and Thank you for everything you have showed me so far!!

Johngeorgeiv

 

[Teamster]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

The splash well is an import part of the boats structure,....................

 

[Bomber Goober]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

I'll try my best here but I'm no EXPERT,

1. No Idea, but Most of the tinny guys seem to like epoxy on both sides and then you could just vinyl over that.
2. If the rivets are tight then gluvit should work. If they are loose or damaged, I'd say replace them and then gluvit for added piece of mind.
3.I'd vote for foam board, a tinny favorite most dont go back with pour in.Easier access should you need to remove anything for repairs.
4. Pics would probably be best to figure this one out.
5.again, use foam board.

 

[lokonn]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

I to was thinking about running a pvc chase from back of boat to console. My thought was that if iI needed or wanted to run anything additional after the fact it would be easier to do. I haven't heard/seen any cons as of yet. Sounds like you are at the same point with your rebuild as I am. I'm gonna use epoxy on the wood and foamboard as opposed to the pour in stuff. Splashwell ties sides of boat to transon and provides structure. Seems like guys have modified them but you need to be sure the modified version is gonna provide enough support. I'm no expert either! So take my thoughts with a grain of salt. Good luck there is a lot of good information around here.

 

[JohngeorgeIV]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

I'll try my best here but I'm no EXPERT,

1. No Idea, but Most of the tinny guys seem to like epoxy on both sides and then you could just vinyl over that.
2. If the rivets are tight then gluvit should work. If they are loose or damaged, I'd say replace them and then gluvit for added piece of mind.
3.I'd vote for foam board, a tinny favorite most dont go back with pour in.Easier access should you need to remove anything for repairs.
4. Pics would probably be best to figure this one out.
5.again, use foam board.

maybe a really dumb question. but is there a big difference between types of foam board? I am going to lowes in the Morning and am planning on getting all that i need. I think there was a pinke, white, and Blue.?? man im new....

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Bomber Goober]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

I think most of the guys on this sitte prefer pink or blue from lowes

 

[jigngrub]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

It's actually the pink (Owens Corning), blue (Dow), or green (Lowes brand) extruded polystyrene rigid foam insulation board... the white stuff isn't that good for marine applications.

Using epoxy resin for sealing decking and transom wood is "worth it" when you have larger amounts (square feet), especially when you're talking decking. Even with having to order it online and paying the shipping. I've become less and less impressed with the spar the more I use it and have gotten much better results with the epoxy resin sealer. Spar is weak and epoxy is super tough.

When you say "roll on vinyl flooring with adhesive" do you mean the kind used for kitchen and bathroom floors? If so, this would be a big mistake. First of all, these aren't made for a marine environment and I doubt they would last or bond to the decking for very long and secondly they would be too slick of a finish for a boat deck.

The sheet vinyl used for marine decking is different than that used in homes. It's much stronger and has a much less slip resistant texture/design/finish. If you don't want to order the marine vinyl I'd go with carpet instead of kitchen and bath vinyl.

 

[JohngeorgeIV]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

When you say "roll on vinyl flooring with adhesive" do you mean the kind used for kitchen and bathroom floors? If so, this would be a big mistake. First of all, these aren't made for a marine environment and I doubt they would last or bond to the decking for very long and secondly they would be too slick of a finish for a boat deck.

The sheet vinyl used for marine decking is different than that used in homes. It's much stronger and has a much less slip resistant texture/design/finish. If you don't want to order the marine vinyl I'd go with carpet instead of kitchen and bath vinyl.

I thought a nice checkered black and white flooring would look sharp whel im out cruising the lilly pads for Bass!! haha...I need to learn to use more words when describing things. Yes I am ONLY considering using Maring Vinyl decking. The decision I am making is between using marine vinyl Decking or the paint on Rubber floors like "Tuff Coat" I am planning on using some Marine Grade carpet just on my casting plat forms. Curious who has used tuff coat or the Vinyl and which brands they liked or disliked. I have heard tuff coat is not comfortable to walk on with bare feet the way the vinyl floor is.

 

[greenbush future]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

My first tin resto was a Smokercraft, I think I pulled 500 lbs of rotted wood and foam out of her, 2 rotted floors later and some new rivets where needed, and she was a great fishing boat. Mine was so water logged, it wouldn't plane out with a 40 merc on her. After I was done, with a new vinyl covered wood floor it was a really nice boat. I created a great fishing boat that I eventually sold for a nice profit. Smokercrafts typically don't do well in rougher waters, and I needed something that would keep me dry, as in windshield!

 

[jigngrub]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

I used Nautolex marine vinyl in my boat and really love it:
http://forums.iboats.com/boat-resto...ir/97-tracker-pro-deep-v-facelift-509163.html

Everything that was carpeted in my boat I changed over to vinyl, no more soggy carpet to absorb and hold water.

As far as barefoot comfort goes, i dunno... I don't go barefoot in my boat, but I would guess it's as or more comfortable than walking on a sidewalk in barefeet.

As for ease of installation, I'd say the Tuff Coat is the easiest... but the vinyl is worth the extra effort to me.

I'll never ever have carpet in another boat!

 

[Watermann]

Re: Head spinning....help!! 16.5 1984 smoker craft....now full restoration/custom

Will be interesting to keep an eye on your progress, I have a fishing buddy with a Smoker of the same era that is in need of a gut job but he's being cheap and lazy right now. Post up some pics when you get a chance, it would be nice to see your boat even though it's in pieces right now.

To help the head to stop spinning, focus on the hull repair first off. Most guys leak test by adding some water inside the boat to the water line and crawl underneath to mark the rivets that are dripping. Seeing that you have water inside in a general area isn't a very effective way to nail down the leaky culprits. Start off by pressure washing and using aluminum hull cleaner to get the insides clean before starting the repairs.

Look for rivets with black around them on the inside, they will be loose ones. replace any broken, damaged or loose rivets. Some purists mush in solids, while others use blind rivets with backer washers inside and 5200. I like large flange stainless rivets but Bullfrog rivets with the steel mandrel have a high tensile pop too.

Gluvit is a must inside over the top of all the rivets from the water line to the bottom but not a replacement for fixing damaged or loose rivets. A little goes a long way and it has a very long open time. 1 quart should do for a 16 footer.

Be sure to inspect every rib and knee brace to the hull joints for any cracks while your at it. Once you have done the hull repairs and the gluvit is hardened, do another leak test just to be sure. Then your off and running with the foam and decking.