Removing cap from 1983 Dawson

[bullit1119]

So I am starting to replace the deck in my '83 Dawson bass boat and i have already got stuck before the cap is completely off. I drilled and punched all rivets began lifting the cap and noticed that it was not separating from the transom. Is there a trick to this that i am not aware of? This is the first cap removal I have attempted and do not want to just blow and go with this so that i know it is done right.




Starboard side of transom and splashwell. You can see a little separation in the bottom right. Is that where it is supposed to come apart?



Starbord side transom again. its a little hard to tell but right above the reward sticker there is a material that appears to be "tile grout" or concrete of some sort. not sure what this is.



The mystery "tile grout" travels the entire length of the transom.





Any and all help with this is very much appreciated.

 

[jbcurt00]

What you describe as concrete/tile grout is probably some sort of adhesive filler the factory used to ensure full mating of the transom fiberglass and the transom plywood, so that there would be no voids in between them.

It is NOT going to come apart as easy as the other 95% of the rubrail hidden, cap/hull joint that had rivets & screws.

I'd cut it as best you can similar to this, taking great care & using a 12" sawzall blade:

That ^^^ might get you enough give to pull them apart, or at least give you a little better access to further cut away the tabbing & resin filler holding the 2 halves together.

It can be done other ways as well.....

 

[bullit1119]

Thanks for the reply, I will give that a shot. It has almost drove me crazy since yesterday.

 

[bullit1119]

Well I got the cap off yesterday but didnt have time to do much else.














Tonights order of business is to get it all cleaned out removing the leaves, the old carpet that is left and any losse pieces of glass that has delaminated. im hoping to have the time to check out the stringers, transom and foam. Besides drilling holes to test for dry wood is there any other fool proof way of knowing there is no rot? If not what do i use to fill the holes if in fact there is dry wood in there?
Also, in the 3rd picture you can see that the rear livewell appears to be glassed to the hull. Is it not supposed to be with the cap or am i missing something?

 

[jbcurt00]

Did the splashwell & transom separate pretty cleanly after cutting it as I described?

IF (it's a big if, a really, really big if) the core samples produce light colored, dry shavings, you can fill the core holes w/ PB or 3M 4200/5200.

Depending on the manufacturing line your Dawson could have had multiple hull or cap configurations, and for yours the livewell was part of the hull rather then the cap. The livewell does look to have a lip along the top edge, but minimal sealing to keep the livewell/cap joint water tight..... Doesn't look like it suffered much if any damage when you pulled the cap off. The livewell will have to come off if the stringers need to be replaced, and probably be easier to deck it all then apply the livewell rather then trying to work around it if the stringers check out good.

 

[GT1000000]

Different manufacturers assembled their hulls different ways...the live well attached to the deck is normal...more than likely the remaining piece of decking it is attached to, is attached to the stringers below...if you can separate it from those, you should be able to salvage the well...
If your wood is dry, you can use some 3M 5200 to seal up the holes, if the sealant wants to drip out of the opening, just use a piece of tape on it until it cures...
Don't be surprised, though, if that is a steel/aluminum plate I see in the last picture that was used to "reinforce" the transom, you are likely looking at complete replacement of transom, stringer and deck...
Good luck with your restoration and I look forward to seeing your progress.
GT1M

 

[bullit1119]

Thanks GT1M, i have read through your Bassassin thread and I must say that you have done some good work. Very long, but very interesting read.

As for that plate, I'm not sure where it was originally because where you see it is where I found it yesterday, so God only knows.

 

[bullit1119]

JB,

Yes once I made those cuts it went smooth from then on. Honestly I was a little hesitant about cutting it (I have ZERO experience with fiberglass and even less than that at rebuilding a boat). At first I tried "chipping away" that filler but eventually got pissed off enough that I broke out the grinder and sawzall. Lol.

 

[GT1000000]

Thanks GT1M, i have read through your Bassassin thread and I must say that you have done some good work. Very long, but very interesting read.

Thanks bullit! Yeah, I do tend to get long winded when posting:blah:...glad to hear it has at least been interesting...

 

[bullit1119]

Long winded isn't necessarily a bad thing when you have good information to share. Im sure others like me (greenhorns in the boat building aspect of life) appreciate the lessons that were learned throughout the process. I need to get back over there and catch up on it as I havent read any from it in several months.

 

[bullit1119]

ok fellas (and ladies, if you happen to be reading this). I have discovered a dilemma with said restore. So as I am looking for the model of Dawson that I have here I look at the HIN on the title and it gives me the HIN for a 1983 Dawson but that is all I can find on it. So I go outside to verify the HIN from the back of the transom and it is a different number. Still a Dawson but it is one from 1975. What are the possible problems that could arise from this and/or solutions? :facepalm:

 

[bullit1119]

Well this resto has officially been put on hold for the foreseeable future. After contacting my local tag/title office I have discovered that the only way to get this boat titled to me is to apply for a lost title. However in the great state of Florida you have to be the last registered owner to apply for one. Seeing as how the boat has not been registered since May of 2002 that should be a daunting task. I asked if they can do a HIN search and give me the name a telephone number of the last registered owner but in this political correct world we now live in that violates privacy laws. (in hind sight its not that bad of a law to have, just makes things more aggravating on my part.) So now I have to go to the tag/title office and give them my contact information so that they can send a letter to the last registered owner requesting them to contact me. :frusty: I am not looking forward to this at all. It will be a painstaking wait process at best. And that is to say that the last guy is even still around.


So if a lesson can be learned from any of this that would be when you are purchasing a project or any other item for that matter, take the extra 5 seconds to verify the HIN on the title matches the one on the boat itself. :doh: FML!!!