Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

[aldfaa]

Have the engine removed, interior gutted, deck/stringers/ribs removed fom underneath the windshield back. Have most of the new ribs/stringers cut using Meranti 1088.

Found the very front section of wood under the bow seating to be in poor condition and the stringers that we cut in this area are poor as well.

I am thinking about lifting the top to access these areas. How hard is it to lift the top on this style of boat? I want to fix it right and I am thinking this is the only option?

 

[drewpster]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Was it built with a liner or just a cap? Some pictures would be nice.

 

[aldfaa]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Was it built with a liner or just a cap? Some pictures would be nice.

Not for sure what the difference would be, the front section of the bow has a fiberglass floor with wood underneath. The rest of the dect was just ply.

This pictue is a bit outdated, but the wood in question is what is still present to the front of the stingers. Currently the stingers are cut to 6" behind the deck section but only extend forward another foot. Like I said the bow portion has a molded in fiberglass floor.


This picture shows the current state



Really looking to replace the rest of the front stringers and deck. I don;t see a easy way without splitting the hull

 

[drewpster]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

It looks to me like the bow area forward of the dash boxes is a molded part of the cap correct?

If it is I would not remove the cap unless the cores in that area are soft or the wood is wet.

Are the stringers foam filled glass? Is the foam wet?

If the foam is wet you may be able to remove it by digging it out under the deck and repouring it without removing the cap.

Bottom line, I would not remove the cap unless there is damage under that part of the deck that warrants it. Looks as though removing it will require some cutting of the liner and some glass work to get it back together. Seems like allot of work to replace 1 foot of deck.
However if it is wet and rotten you may have to get the cap off to fix it correctly.
I would make the judgment based on the repair needed.
Bare in mind that the bow area (liner) is most likely glued and bonded in places where it meets the hull. I would try to get it off the hull in one piece, but it is likely that you will hve to cut it apart.

 

[aldfaa]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Yea the floor is rotten and wet in this area, there is actually a hole about fist size in it. I think the only way I will be able to sleep at night is to replace it. The stingers here are toast as well.

 

[aldfaa]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Decided to lift the top this morning. Started warming up my brother in laws shop at 8:00 and we had this at 10:30. Not to bad of a job really. I was more worried about it than anything.


there was no way out of it as it really needed done, I was originally going to splice into the stringers here and not replace this part of the deck. Really glad I decided to do this as the wood bassically falls about when you touch it and the strings were mush here.


Fitting the new deck into place:



The only wood we have not yet cut out is the transom, It's actually not to bad, but I think it shoulf be done for good measure. We have come this far why hold out.

We will set the cap back in place and finish fitting the deck and all the stringers and start prep for glass.

 

[chrisroberts916]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Doing a nice job, I to would replace the transom while your there.

 

[1996Larson]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Wow, you did a great job here. I need to replace the floor in my 1996 Larson as well. I have a similiar situation with the bow, I have a fiberglass floor that is part of the boat. How did you get the top off? Did you have to cut any fiberglass or does it unscrew from the boat rail?

 

[aldfaa]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

How did you get the top off? Did you have to cut any fiberglass or does it unscrew from the boat rail?

It wasn't bad at all to remove. Removed the trim from the rub rail and the rub rail itself (all held together with screws) After that was off there were multiple screws holding the halves together, there was also a layer of caulking holding them together.

The caulking was tough, tried a scrapper, and a windshield remover tool. Ended up using a scrapeper blade in a Craftsman oscillating multitool and it worked great. Cut through all the caulk in a just a few minutes. Using 4 ratchet straps and the cherry picker the top lifts off easy.

So far I have way invested into this than I want to admit to...When I bought the boat I thought it was in fine shape, after all it was sheded since new and only used a few times a year (I knew the previous owner) Then the engine dropped a valve seat and now this. Anyways, I know it could of been done alot cheaper, but I like to overbuild and have used quality parts throughout.

 

[1996Larson]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Thanks for the reply. Did you leave the wiring and throttle cable attached?

 

[drewpster]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

I am so glad to hear the cap came off as easily as it did! You should see some of the goop the factories use to bond those liners in. Sometimes you have to dive in, and in your case it went really well. I bet you are relieved to have a new deck? I know I was when I finally got mine done.

 

[aldfaa]

Re: Pop the top on a 1996 celebrity inboard bow rider?

Thanks for the reply. Did you leave the wiring and throttle cable attached?

Yes I left both inplace, there was enough slack that I could lift the top high enough to complete the work. It looked like it would be simple enough to unhook if needed

The new deck will be nice, fiberglass should be here Thursday.

The top needed to come off as there was no other way I could see to do am acceptable job repairing this. Its a good thing we did this as the 4 stringer stubs were shot and the deck had hole....It would of been a wasted effort to fix the rest and leave the front like it was.

Keep in mind I am a mechanic by trade but have zero experiance with wood and fiberglass but all in all this hasn't been difficult work.