NEW BOATER!! Repairing stringers

[Bigreddon]

I plan on removing all of it. As far as "the base" I meant only a tiny bit of the edges as so to make sure I get the alignment of the stringers correct. I see now that there is no bend in them, so I am going to pull ALL of the old glass down to the hull. I appreciate the advice and I will heed what I've learned

 

[Bigreddon]

...and..I had no intention of leaving all that junk. Just a couple pictures to show progress and how badly delaminated it is!

 

[Rickmerrill]

It always amazes me how darned hard it is sometimes to communicate with written words. Reminds me of what they say about conversations: There is what you think you said, what the other person heard you say and what was really said. Have a nice holiday!

 

[K-2]

Bigreddon, pic #37 , that spider web stuff looks to me like it is from a chopper gun. Chopper guns are a cheap and dirty way to build a boat, generally adding not much strength for the weight added. Just explaining what it is.

 

[Bigreddon]

Rickmerill...thanks for looking out.

 

[Bigreddon]

Back again guys!! I have the glass ground down to the hull. As from my previous photos, the gap between the hull and stringer was filled with "chopglass". Leaving a void. My question is this : if the stringers are not supposed to be against the hull (void) and the existing space was full of "chop glass"(leaving voids)...when do I, and what with, do I fill the void between the hull and stringer? If I'm just filling the void...why wouldn't the stringer just sit against the hull anyway eliminating that void? And why would the manufacturer leave so much void if it's so critical to not have voids? I've read multiple threads and articles saying to bed the stringer in peanut butter, or fill it with peanut butter after the stringer is placed. So...if the goal is to fill the void between the stringer and hull...why make the stringer not ON the hull if the end goal is to eliminate voids.? Not looking for a shortcut, just wanting to know the "why". Thanks.

 

[Woodonglass]

This has been discussed "Ad Infinitum" here on the forum. If you do some searching I'm certain you'll be able to get your questions answered. Here's my take on the subject. Placing the wood stringers directly against the hull on small boats can cause "Hard Spots" on the hull and when the hull tries to flex, which it will, it can cause the hull and gelcoat to crack. Bedding them in a flexible material (Peanut Butter much more flexible than wood) and allowing them to FLOAT will then transfer the stress to the Fiberglass once it hardens and this gives a wider absorption point (once the pb fillets and tabbings are in place the base of the stringer is about 3 inches wide) for the stress to be dispersed across the hull. Hope this makes sense.

 

[Bigreddon]

It does make sense.

 

[Bigreddon]

I made new stringers!! Kiln dried Douglas fir. Total wet wood weight savings...15 pounds!!

 

[Triangleboater]

Very good work, nice to have templates to work from. Mine were complete mush so I have to go from nothing. I built mine up too high, bed them in and cut them down to size.

You're making good progress! Keep it up.

 

[alldodge]

Looking real good

 

[rickryder]

Nice job on the stringers. Looks like this will be a nice project. Just a couple of things.... what is the boat sitting on? The hull should be braced to prevent flexing/twisting of the hull shape. What is the condition of the transom? I see your splicing the stringers...I did the same on my resto but used plywood for stringer material...a butt joint is not recommended to splice a stringer. A lap joint or scarf would be a better choice.

 

[Bigreddon]

Boat is sitting on 4x4 cradle, lap joint, transom is good. After removing the floor and stringers...I found that the original wood was wet....but not rotten. I have ended up going way overboard on this. However...what's done is done. Looking fwd to the continued winter project.

 

[Bigreddon]

Round 1: boat wins. Not enough peanut butter to fill voids between hull and stringer. Time to sand and try again.

 

[Woodonglass]

How much PB did you mix? How big was the "Void"? Should have only been 1/4". A 16' long 3/4" wide stringer should require about 1/2 to 3/4 of a quart of PB to bed it(fill the void)

 

[Bigreddon]

It's only a 7' stringer. Being my first time using that REALLY EXPENSIVE epoxy and filler I mixed up about ten pumps of resin and hardner and filler material, 3 times.(total of 30 pumps). Once the peanut butter took hold, there were a few places that it wasn't quite thick enough.

The boat as it came from the factory, and using the original stringers as templates, had a solid 3/4" of space between the hull and stringer. The stringer I made fit perfectly in the original position. After I placed the stringer before epoxy, I made note of how much of a gap there was. Now...here's where I made my mistake...

After letting the peanut butter set with the stringer, and squished out enough to make a fillet and bed the stringer, there were still some voids. Being the inexperienced epoxy man I am, I thought "hey! I'll mix up more epoxy, and then, the thicker peanut butter will hold it in place if I apply it on the high side of the hull. It'll just seep into the voids!!" Well...it worked for about ten seconds...then dilutes the peanut butter allowing it to ooooze down toward the keel.

I made a valiant effort laying it back up in its semi liquid state...and put heat lamps on it to help it harden. I achieved a fifty percent success rate...which mean a zero percent success rate. So...back to the hull I go an I'm going to thicken my replacement stringer so there isn't as much of a gap. Please don't ridicule me . I knew I wouldn't get it right my first go 'round! But I will the second time!

 

[rickryder]

Why use epoxy? Poly resin would be less money...

 

[Woodonglass]

To Heck with what the Factory did, 1/4" is all you need. You can do it BETTER than they did!!! Also, add more filler to the mix so the PB is thick and gooey like Peanut Butter and it will stay in place and not run out from under the stringer. Add some Chopped up fibers to the mix as well. You should have to use a putty knife to spread it into place.

 

[Bigreddon]

Why use epoxy? Poly resin would be less money...

I bought the epoxy because I will be using it for the floor glass as well. It binds better than poly.(from what I have read). Also, the epoxy comes with nice pumps simon don't have to measure and weigh ratios. I have failed several times before mixing epoxy and always add too much or too little hardner.

I'll get her done. The errors I make on the first stringer will not go unappreciated. That will make the second a cake walk. I'll post up some pictures of the final lay in of the stringers soon....

 

[Bigreddon]

Oh...and what makes good filler materials
? The west system filler is pretty pricey. Can I use a fine sawdust?