Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Thanks for the comments, Tail_gunner. I traced the cardboard onto the ply, but didn't cut it. I really wanted to do a foam top. About 3 years ago I insulated part of my basement using the rigid styrene foam in 1.5" thickness. That stuff is rigid, and very firm. I wanted to use it in boat building, but knowing poly would melt it I didn't. So after deciding to go with epoxy, I could use the styrene and figured it was worth a shot before cutting into the ply.

Anyway, things are getting busy with kids birthday parties this weekend, maybe Sunday I can get the styrene. I also found construction adhesive that is specific to styrene panels, no acetone to melt it.

I'll see how it goes.

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Quite a while ago in your quest i remeber you posting on foam, i thought it was a brilliant ideal one could use to make a template for a wood structure. Never thought of using as structure it's self........ Anyway's this winter i will be using foam to create a hardtop for a bowrider and use foam as a template, 3/8" wood to follow and West System's along with mat to create a hard cover. I wil be watching your post with intrest..

 

[drwgblanks]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Kids schmids, we don't have time for that Mr. Pioneer.....you should know how easy it is to tell kids to wait because you have something to do......sheesh. You have many people relying on your project. We need results. I mean comeon, my little boy is due this week, but I'm going to be working on the boat. The ol' lady can go to the ER by herself......call me when his head crowns...right?





Can you spell.....D-I-V-O-R-C-E???

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Kids schmids, we don't have time for that Mr. Pioneer.....you should know how easy it is to tell kids to wait because you have something to do......sheesh. You have many people relying on your project. We need results. I mean comeon, my little boy is due this week, but I'm going to be working on the boat. The ol' lady can go to the ER by herself......call me when his head crowns...right?

Can you spell.....D-I-V-O-R-C-E???

I know, can you believe how family life dares to preempt critical boat building activities?

On top of everything else, my wife's 97 Mountaineer has a radiator leak I just can't fix. Spent half yesterday working on it. There goes 2 or 3 big bills to the local shop.... Time to replace that vehicle (230K miles) with a new tow vehicle. But I'll save that for another thread.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Finally got some time in on the hardtop. Today I picked up the styrofoam panels (1.5" thick for sides and 1" for top) and some 1"x4" that I ripped down to 1.5" wide strips. Used the wood to form the base of the hardtop. These strips run the perimeter of the top where it touches the boat, and gives a solid base to anchor the top to the boat. Also got some Tee-nuts and bolts. The tee-nuts will go in the wood from above, and the bolts will come up from below (through holes drilled in the gunnels and dash top). This will let me remove the hard top if I need to.

I also bought construction adhesive specifically designed to glue styrofoam. It has no acetone that can melt the styrofoam. I need this to glue up two or more 2'x8' foam panels to get the 27" dimension (height of the top) to cut the sides out of. I can cut two sides out of one 4x8 sheet, but because these are tongue and groove, it actually takes a little more than 2 sheets to make a 4' wide piece. Right now I have a test piece glueing to see how strong it will be.

My plan it to cut the sides, front and top pieces, glue them together with the construction adhesive, sand smooth, then remove the top from the boat, set it on some saw horses and then apply the epoxy and glass. I'll see how it goes. I have a plan and dimensional drawings to follow, but when I'm doing something for the first time, I end up having to 'wing it' sometimes.

Will take some pics tomorrow, but they are not too exciting, just need them to document the project.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

I worked on the top some more today. The foam glue is really holding things up. Takes about 4 days to dry. So I'm going to pack it all up until the spring. Tomorrow I'm going to make an "Tent" frame out of PVC pipe to put a tarp over. Then it goes outside for the winter.

In the spring, I'm going to order the glass and epoxy that the project will need, and use epoxy to glue the panels together. That should set up in a few hours and then I can finish cutting the windshield and roof panels.

It will be nice to have the hard top for next winter storage, won't need the Tent frame to drape the tarp over.

 

[KnottyBuoyz]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

You'll still want to keep your tarps off of your boat Mark. When the wind blows and the tarps move they'll chafe on the paint. The tarps will also trap and hold rain/snow/dirt against the paint which can cause problems too. If you're going to invest in making a PVC pipe frame just make it big enough to keep everything off the boat. Spending a little more and making it reusable is a good investment. Just my 2 cents worth. Looking forward to seeing your finished project.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Thats what I do with the MFG. The PVC frame is two upside down T shapes with a pipe connecting them. It sits inside the boat. The tarp (the blue plastic ones) is held on with bungie cords down to the trailer frame. It holds the tarp on very tight. So far no problems. The Bayliner is different and has that large bow rail so its going to need a different design. I think I'll start a new thread on this topic.

Thanks, Mark.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Found this thread from last year, so I figured I continue with it.

After cutting the roof panel, I decided to curve or bow it so that it would be more rigid. A few members here suggested it so I'm taking their advice (thanks guys!)

I ended up slicing 1/2" deep cuts every 3" lengthwize across the roof panel. Then made these bowed roof supports from 1x3 pine, ran a 3/8" radius on both sides to make the support round on the bottom. Easy on the head when I smack it, and the glass should form over it better.

One think I liked about bowing the top is that I thought it was looking a little too high. After test fitting the top, I decided to cut 3" out of each side panel. That left me with the same headroom in the middle, and gives the illusion of the top being lower and sleeker from the side.

Then I started in on the front window panels, made the bottom section with wood and a vertical foam section. Used T-nuts in there too with screws going up from inside the cuddy. Eventually got one window panel cut and fit. One more to go, and then all the panels get glued together. The plan is to unbolt it and move it to saw horses where I cut the window openings and start the glass work.

Here are the pics from this weekend.

 

[NSBCraig]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Glad your posting more.

I've been looking forward to seeing the results.

 

[dodgeramsst2003]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Looks like you have a good start there. Can't wait to see the finished product. Oh, and remember, you're doing this cause you enjoy it, lol, If you feel yourself starting to get tired of it, take a night off and relax. Enjoy your project.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Thanks for the encouragement, guys. I do appreciate it.

Not finding the Gorilla Glue really held me up last fall with gluing up panels to make larger pieces. Finally got the roof panel cut to match the bottom of the windshield V panel, then decided to bow the roof and that has thrown off intersection of the roof with the windshield planels. Things get a little funny with the curved point of the roof. But I found a solution to fix that, and to take care of the 1/4" gaps where the roof meets the side panels. Its called "Great Stuff". The expanding foam used for filling holes in your house. I tested it with foam scraps today and it glues them really good, and the expanding properties allows me to use it to fill the gaps where the roof meets the side panels, but more importantly, where the windsheild panels meet the curved roof. I can fill in areas with expanding foam, then sand to shape.

There will be quite a bit of sanding to get all the panels to meet and have nice smooth wide radius corners. I was practicing with some scrap foam and it really sands nice. Very easy to shape.

The thing that takes so long with this project is that every single piece of the top has to be custom hand made. That takes time. Finding the centerline, measuring the rear opening in an X to be sure its "square" as square can be on a boat. Its hard to get a level reading. There are few level areas on the boat, and I'm not sure if the trailer sits level. I can't drop a plum line, who knows if the boat is sitting square on the trailer? And working in the garage, I can't get far away to see if it looks right. And the top doesn not clear the garage door, so to move it outside means taking it all apart, push the boat outside and reassemble. Then disassemble again to put it away at night.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

I like the curved top look... I think I may have to curve my hardtop (in process now too) a bit... if nothing else it'll help it drain. Hmmm.

I'm using plywood with ribs for a core, basically an inverted shallow hull

Erik

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

I like the curved top look... I think I may have to curve my hardtop (in process now too) a bit... if nothing else it'll help it drain. Hmmm.

I'm using plywood with ribs for a core, basically an inverted shallow hull

Erik

Sounds good to me! I plan to add two supports about 2" tall from front to rear between the two bow supports. But all the supports make for a more difficult glassing job. So I will have to see once its all glued up and taken off the boat.

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

I'm almost done with fitting the panels together. I planned to use Great Stuff to fill some gaps where panels meet. So I attached some scraps of foam together using Great Stuff. After a few days I was not too happy with the results. Great Stuff cures soft and spongy, and does not work well as an adhesive for foam. The pieces broke apart easily, and the foam did not sand well because its soft. Try sanding a damp sink sponge and you'll get the idea.

So I was back to using Gorilla Glue to glue up the top panels. Knowing it expands with water, I did a test to see just how much expansion I could get out of the glue. A teaspoon was put in a plastic jello cup and 3 drops of water, then stirred to a creamy consistency. About 15 minutes later this is what came out of the jello cup. (note: Gorilla glue does not stick to jello cups!) . It also cures much harder than Great Stuff, much more like the styrofoam its gluing. So, when the top panels are glued up, it will be with some Gorilla glue with a little water mixed to get good expansion. I don't need it to expand as much as the test did, jut enough to fill up to 1/2" gaps. I suspect the more it expands, the weaker it is.

In case you were wondering, it is open cell foam, like a sponge. It soaks up water. Its OK for my use, because it will be encased in epoxy/glass.

 

[oops!]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

tee hee.....

just make sure that you can get it outta the garage after its done !

have atter bud. !

 

[zach103]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

i was just thinking that oops.. are you gunna build the whole thing fit to the boat..then remove it and secure it to the boat once its out of the garage

 

[Mark42]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

C'mon you guys I'm smarter than that. (wait 5 minutes while I update by build plan)

The plan is to glue it all together on the boat, then remove the 8 bolts that hold it on and put it on a pair of saw horses. The boat gets moved outside and covered. Then the top can be shaped, sanded, etc and finally glassed in the garage. Then the top is taken outside for mounting on the boat.

I am wondering if I have enough clearance to get the top off the boat in the garage. It will be tight. Worst case scenario, two people lift top up from each side, and I push boat out of garage.

Wish me luck. :redface:

 

[woosterken]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Mark,
if you can let the air out of the tires,just enough to keep the bead from breaking loose.
should give you a couple more inches of clearance

woosterken

 

[Thinblueline22]

Re: Project "1600 Capri Hard Top" has begun!

Just a note on Great Stuff foam...

There are several different kids. There is one kind that does cure very hard and is sandable (Is sandable even a word?). Don't use the stuff specifically made for doors and windows, it cures softer and does not expand as much.

Oh, and to cure it faster you can mist it with water.