1986 Campion bowrider restoration

[Jimmy H.]

​Hi, I am new to the forum but have read as much as possible over the last few months. I decided to buy a 19 foot fiberglass boat for $1500 knowing the floor was already partially removed. It had a good hull, decent trailer and well looked after inboard motor. The motor is a mercruiser 140 four cylinder. I have an automotive and woodworking background so I thought I could take this on. I was not planning on pulling the motor but was not surprised the transom had a few soft spots seeing as how the stringers resembled my wifes beef stew. I borrowed our engine hoist from work and with a bit of help managed to lift out the motor and spent last weekend with a chisel removing the transom. Was my first time grinding old fiberglass and I learned quickly not to leave any bare skin exposed. Everything was ground down and I just finished installing the new transom. I used four layers of 3/8's outdoor plywood. I used pl const adhesive as I want to conserve the 5 gallon kit of West system epoxy which was over $700 just for resin and hardner. My plan is to budget $1500 for repairs so grand total will be $3000 for a decent boat for fishing and pulling our kids in a tube. This is where I am at now. I have materials ready to start making stringers this week and hopefully bed them in next weekend. I have tons of pics I will post as soon as I figure out how too.
Since the floor was already removed Im not sure what kind of access port (at least a month away) I will need for fuel tank access and wether or not I should bother with a ski locker or not. Any input would be appreciated.
Thanks

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

WOW $700 for epoxy...... poly would have run 125 plus shipping and hazmat fee about 70 bucks....still less than 1/2 the price.

your gonna need a bunch more resin so I think your budget is going to be blown..... 19" boat transom,stringers and deck.... about 15 gallons..

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Thanks Rick. I know insane. Was the one thing I didnt consider before buying the boat . One gallon of west system hardener was $196 and the 5 gallon resin jug was 10% off but still $440 add good old 12% tax here and was in it for $740 ish. Any idea if I can use a different system that is compatible with west epoxy. If not I need to skimp on where I use it and hopefully do it with maybe just 10 gallons.

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Sell the epoxy on e-bay? Or maybe just use it for the transom....Epoxy will stick to poly but poly won't bond to epoxy...And I don't believe poly gel coat will stick to epoxy so if you plan to gel your deck.....You'll need to paint.

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

At this point even returning it and paying some restocking fee I would be better off if I decide to go with something else. Do you think 10 gallons might be possible assuming I dont use any on the transom layers or bedding the stringers? The two stringers are 15' long and average about 7" high. There is about 100 square feet of deck space. I could live with another $700 5 gallon purchase but 15 gallons and over $2000 for a $1500 boat seems a bit extreme for just resin/hardner. I saw US composites 13 gallon kit is $550. Wonder if they ship to Canada and how much it would cost for all the fees.

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Here is a guide to use on how much resin will wet out how much cloth....it's in the stickies on the top of the resto page....lots of other good info there....

Fiberglass Information, and How much resin do I need?
Please remember several things: These are estimates not hard and fast rules. If you are laminating over wood, the raw wood will soak up some resin, which is good, but you will use more resin on the first layer. Thin resin goes farther than thick resin.
Chopped strand mat:
The general rule for chopped stand mat is 1.5 to two times the weight in resin to the weight of mat.
For 1.5 ounce chopped strand mat you will need 3 to 4 ounces per SQUARE FOOT.
For 2.0 ounce chopped strand mat you will need 4 to 5 ounces per SQUARE FOOT.
There are about 150 ounces or resin by weight per gallon. Example: 10 square yards of chopped strand mat is 90 square feet. 90 x 4 = 360 oz. 360 oz of mat divided by 150 oz per gallon gives you 2.4 gallons.
Material to approximate gallons of resin used.
1.5 OZ MAT = 1 gallon covers 4.2 square yds
2.0 OZ MAT = 1 gallon covers 3.4 square yds
Here is a helpful table for cloth:
There are about 150 ounces per gallon by weight
1.5 ounce cloth (cloth not chopped mat)….1 gallon wets out 40 square yards
2.5 ounce cloth….1 gallon wets out 25 square yards
4 ounce cloth……1 gallon wets out 15 square yards
6 ounce cloth……1 gallon wets out 10 square yards
10 ounce cloth…..1 gallon wets out 6.5 square yards
18 ounce woven roving …1 gallon wets out 4.5 square yards
24 ounce woven roving …1 gallon wets out 3.5 square yards.
Biaxial mat 1708.………….. 1 gallon wets out 4 square yards

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Thanks for the info Rick. I think I'll stick with West system on this one and when I run out I'll get more. It's only money right!! Nice boat by the way, great deal you found. Here are some before pics of my project. I used styrofoam today to make templates of the main stringers, it went well and I should be on track to bed them in next weekend after I glass over the transom.

Yep that motor mount is a bit rotten

old transom

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Transome looks good! Be sure that you have 2" of total thickness and perfectly flat around the key hole so you don't have any leaks

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Thanks, I did measure around the key hole everywhere I could with the old transom and it was closer to 1 3/4" but maybe due to how soft the old transom was? Good thing you reminded me I may have overlooked it and left it as is which is 1 3/4" (1 1/2" ply and 1/4" hull). For sure though needs to be 2" thick. Should I put another full layer on the transom or just a partial piece in the middle to fit the inner transom plate on? It would be easier to make a smaller piece at this time rather than a full one seeing as how my template is bonded to the hull

 

[jigngrub]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

If you need more epoxy, check these folks out.

http://www.uscomposites.com/epoxy.html

It's where I get mine and they have great prices, service, and shipping.

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

I called US Composties (very friendly) and would be $550 + $250 shipping for 13 Gallon kit. Beats $720 for 5 gallons of West epoxy. I know there will some fees but for13 Gallons under $1000.00 then I'm happy. Now I need to see if I can return the 5 gallon kit of West epoxy. Might pay some restocking but would be worth it still and I've learned my leason for next time.

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Thanks, I did measure around the key hole everywhere I could with the old transom and it was closer to 1 3/4" but maybe due to how soft the old transom was? Good thing you reminded me I may have overlooked it and left it as is which is 1 3/4" (1 1/2" ply and 1/4" hull). For sure though needs to be 2" thick. Should I put another full layer on the transom or just a partial piece in the middle to fit the inner transom plate on? It would be easier to make a smaller piece at this time rather than a full one seeing as how my template is bonded to the hull

I like to stick with the original design... I have seen them done with a smaller center piece too.... What motor you running?

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

4 cyl. Mercruiser 140

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Question... The original main stringers were made from a solid piece of 2" thick (1.5" actual) lumber. I've made new ones with plywood and used two layers of 3/4" staggering the joints. I notice a lot of rebuilds using only 3/4's. Am I going overboard with 1.5" thick plywood stringers? Thanks

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Nahhh Most of us put back what was there. You'll be fine with what you made up. I think with the 4 cyl you could go with the transom design you were thinking....make it so your center peice fits between your stringers and you can tie it all together.

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Good to hear!! They let me return the gold flaked $150 per gallon resin so Im grabbing some poly resin instead. Was 15% restocking so cost me $110 for that mistake. I should be able stick with the budget now.

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Just put the last piece of 1/4" transom in. Thickness as of now is 1.95" and after glassing the inside should be between 2" and 2.125". I cut the bottom section 18.125" wide to fit between the stringers and the top section curves out to 24" in width. Next will be to cut these big stringers to shape. Should I use 1/4" thick styrofoam pieces to "float" them off the hull when I bed them in? Or maybe wooden dowels?

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Wooden dowels,popsicle sticks really doesn't matter....you'll be pulling them out after they're bed.

 

[Jimmy H.]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

Wouldnt they be fused in there with whatever I bed the stringers in with or do I just bust them out of there somehow?

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1986 Campion bowrider restoration

once the bedding compound starts to set just pull them out....what were you thinking of using? PL construction adhesive or peanut butter?