Using composites instead of wood

[woody1969]

Hey all. My project boat an 85 bayliner 21ft cuddy, which was really cheap. Myself and my wife are both in the aircraft repair industry, so we are redoing the entire interior, floor, engine, controls, and transom. We are going to replace all stringers and flooring with composite panels, ie honeycomb. Ive gotten lots of tips here and am going to share my "learning curve" as I go along. I have found that composite panels are right around the same price as marine grade plywood. Hoping to have the boat in the water by march. My question, is anybody else doing this type of conversion? No plywood means no rot.

 

[EZLoader]

Re: Using composites instead of wood

Sounds like a good idea. Triton boats and others are using composites...<br /><br /> http://www.tritonboats.com/about_triton/ <br /><br /> http://www.midland-marine-uk.com/2004_hypercomposite.htm <br /><br /> http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=+"composite"++"boat <br /><br /> http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=+"composite"++"boat"++"stringer"&btnG=Search

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Using composites instead of wood

CW<br /><br />Honeycomb type cores can work, but you need to make sure it's water proof, or in an area that won't be sitting in water. The cells in honeycomb can fill with water and weaken over time, so it needs to be used correctly. The floor in my jet boat is honeycomb and has been in place for many years, the deck of my dock is also made from honeycomb, so far neither one has had any problems.<br /><br />The Penske board mentioned in one of EZL's links, while expensive, works very well.

 

[woody1969]

Re: Using composites instead of wood

ondarv,<br /> That was my concern also at first. Then I decided to use a poly cored material and I am lucky enough to be able to get my hands on the right sealants to seal all of the edges. I am so looking forward to getting the rest of the stringers out so I can start. I figured also that the weight savings over ply is worth it alone. This boat had no floatation foam in it anywere. Foam will be definatly going into every sealed cavity on the boat, as I will be using this boat in fresh and salt water.