(Somewhat) New to boating, New to the forum.

[sphelps]

I actually meant to fasten the ply or maybe 2x spacer to the 2x4’s on both sides below the cap level as to not touch the cap .
Ratchet in the hull sides so the cap will slip back on ... I don’t think you will have much problem regardless ..
Grinding down to glass then re-gelling without flipping the hull is gunna be a really big pita ...Imho ....
Im not saying it can’t be done but man that’s a lot of work ...If you want it to shine your gunna have to wet sand and buff it out around the bunks and rollers and such ..

 

[archbuilder]

Man that isn't going to be fun upside down. How about putting a coulple of 2x4s cross ways on the bunks and sitting it upside down on those? On the HIN, I guess you just have to sand around it.

 

[das_army_life_yah]

sphelps I get what you’re saying now about the spacers. Seems easy enough. And yeah I’m not looking forward to working around the trailer when I re-coat, but I don’t have the space or the capacity to do it by myself. Living on a military installation, I have to get a 72-hour permit from housing just to have a boat in my driveway overnight and I only get two permits a month. I plan on using the permits when I start re-coating so I can leave it out to cure overnight and not fumigate my house. I’m also not supposed to “park” anything in the yard. Technically I’m not even supposed to be repairing/restoring anything on the property, let alone storing it in my garage. I’m just a rebel. I don’t think they’d be too happy if I had a hull flipped over in the driveway or yard either. As far as the finish goes, I’m not too concerned with anything below the water line, so if it looks like manure by the bunks, I’m ok with that. The rest of it will be a gem lol. Any suggestions on how to get the leftover “film” of expanding foam off the hull?
archbuilder, I know it’s gonna be a pain, but I don’t have the ability to flip it or anywhere to store the cap. My garage is pretty tiny. Also, I was wondering if I should just sand around it. I thought I could maybe just cut it out carefully and just patch in the hole. Maybe find somewhere to glue it back to the hull. I’m thinking I might be able to get the HID number stamped onto a metal placard like a VIN on a car and just rivet into place somewhere else. I may have to call the Department of licensing today to inquire about relocating it.

 

[sphelps]

Yeah you have a tough situation. Not the easiest for boat rehab . LOL ! Are the blisters on the sides of the hull ?
‘If not, I think I would just grind and patch the spots then prime and paint ..

 

[das_army_life_yah]

sphelps no they’re on the bottom. It’s littered with them. That’s why I’m planning to strip it. I figure it will get rid of the blisters and give me a chance to roll on a thin layer of vinylester resin on the glass. My logic is that the vinylester resin will make it less prone to osmotic blistering. I know epoxy would do a better job, but it’s expensive and I’m trying to keep everything compatible with polyester to make future repairs easier. I’ve read a lot about it, and many veteran surveyors have said they have rarely seen vinylester hulls get blisters and that when they do it’s only a couple of blisters, not tons. I figure a coating of vinylester resin over a polyester-based hull would yield similar results.

 

[sphelps]

Idk if you have seen this thread but DW has a ton of gellcoat experience.. Just an idea on basically what your doing other than the boat flip part ... https://forums.iboats.com/forum/boa...repair/10097303-1968-glastron-v-174-resto-mod
I think he used a heat gun to take most of the old gell off ...

 

[das_army_life_yah]

sphelpskcassellsarchbuilder
So before I wind up over-working myself with the grinding, I figured I’d consult those with more experience than myself. I’m getting mixed messages across iBoats and google. What exactly do I need to grind? For example, do I need to just knock down the ridges where the old stringers were filleted? Do I grind out all the old tabbing? I’m a little lost in the sauce and can’t find a concise answer.

 

[das_army_life_yah]

Just for reference, I put in a pic of what I started grinding.

 

[das_army_life_yah]

Is this enough or can I get away with less grinding? I tried grinding down to pink in another spot like I read woodonglass say in another thread, only to go through the hull. The “pink” is ultra thin. I assume that taking it down to the roving should be ok? I’m gonna put it up until I can get a bit more clarification.

 

[archbuilder]

I don't get really carried away. I just make sure the surface is clean, then grind the glass till it has a texture to it for the poly to mechanically bond to. Basically give it some tooth. Some folks wipe it down with acetone to soften it up before the layup, doesn't hurt. You really just need a clean surface with a bit of tooth to it. I use 24-36 disc for that but 80 will work also. don't get nuts on grinding everything, just what you need to laminate new glass to.

 

[archbuilder]

good to go, you aren't drilling for oil. But make sure everything has a nice sanding scratch to it, that is how the resin mechanically bonds with it.

 

[archbuilder]

easy on the grinder lol! Jut give things a good scuff and cleaning not necessary in that order!

 

[das_army_life_yah]

archbuilder so no need to go down to the woven roving? I can also just leave the old tabs attached to the hull and just take down the high spots from where I cut the stringers out?

 

[sphelps]

You just need to get to clean glass and no further .. Getting down to pink glass is a little misleading but what he meant was fresh clean glass .. If your bonding to the woven .which is fine, I would put an initial layer of csm down before your 1708 tabbing .. You want your layers to go on wet on wet ... If a layer cures for over a day or so before you add another layer you just need to sand to scuff it up a bit before the next layer of glass ... Always give it a bit of an acetone bath after sanding ...

 

[das_army_life_yah]

sphelpsarchbuilder thanks for the clarification. I took a break from the project yesterday to relax and figure out the best way for me to go about attacking this grinding. I also took the time to pick up a ton of bags for the shopvac, more tyvek suits, and more flap wheels. Gonna try to hammer out as much of the grinding as I can today, hopefully finishing the rest tomorrow. As soon as I get done with the grinding, I’m gonna clean everything up really well. Is it safe to use a pressure washer to clean out the hull once I’m done with grinding?

Once I’m done grinding I plan to do all the patching on the hull from both the interior and exterior before I start bedding anything, that way I still have easy access. That brings me to another question I have. Due to the fact that the entirety of this next week is supposed to be cold and rainy, I won’t be able to start any glass work until it warms back up and dries out a bit. I plan to go ahead and use the time to scrape/sand off all the old gelcoat while I’m confined to the garage. What is the best/most-effective way to make a “stencil” of the old design on the boat so that I can replicate it when I go to apply the new gelcoat?

 

[das_army_life_yah]

Nevermind about the “stencil” of the design. sphelps I re-read that thread that you posted a link to for the gelcoat work by DW. Blast my ADHD lol. Still wondering about pressure washing the hull after I get done grinding though.

 

[das_army_life_yah]

So this is what the drainage was like before I started gutting everything out. It was untreated 1/2” ply that was literally just set in the hull and glassed over. I had planned to redo the drainage system with PVC. The only support in the hull was the two stringers, and I’m wondering if this drainage setup was intended to have a dual purpose from the factory, maybe providing a bit of extra support for the bow? I’m unsure and I’m wondering if it would be ok to just run the PVC like I intended, or should I rebuild the drain as it was from the factory, but treat the wood really well.

 

[sphelps]

Pressure washing is fine .. Just provide a path for drainage .. That will give you a chance to see how things will flow and think about drainage ...

 

[das_army_life_yah]

sphelps Thanks a bunch. I’m still curious if that piece may have been working as structural support as well. Any thoughts?

 

[sphelps]

Pics please ..hoto: Thats kinda sounds like a hull stiffener