15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

[tlakeharley]

Hello guys, Im new to this site and have a few questions, as I am about to embark on a journey into the unknown. This is my first rebuild. I aquired the boat mentioned in the title a little while back. The deck and stringers are rotten, so I will have to replace it all, (Deck, transom and stringers). I have been reading alot of posts and threads on this subject and am very impressed with everyones work. Q?... When I replace the deck itself with ext. ply. Do I need to put csm on the bottom and the top of the ply or can I get by with just putting resin on the bottom? I think i'm gonna go with durabak roll in bed liner in the entire inside of the boat when I finish up. How do you post pictures on this site? I would like to post photos of my project from beginning to end. :

 

[BobsGlasstream]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

tlakeharley,
First off, Welcome to Iboats.
To post pics, it is easier to start a free account with photo bucket. You can download your photo their and resize them to the forum standard size, which is 640 X 480.

As for the deck some folks just resin the bottom and Glass the top. Myself I plan to put at least on layer of CSM on all sides of the deck.
Again welcome to Iboats
Bob

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Thanks Bob, I think I'm gonna glass in the stringers and put a good coat of resin on the bottom and csm and resin on the top followed by Durabak bed liner. I'll try to take pics and post some soon as I have started the tear out process already. Has anyone ever used the Durabak bed liner on the top of the deck? Its waterproof and it seems like it would work well, being non slip and all.

 

[BobsGlasstream]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

tlakeharley,
I have heard several people talk about Durabak, I'm Sure it's the same material. friscoboater plans on putting it in his and a pretty good discussion in his thread on it. I would suggest you read his thread, and use the search function to look for other info on it.
Good luck, I'll be looking forward to seeing the pictures.
Bob

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Well, Lets get started on a long Journey.


hthttp://i779.photobucket.com/album...cket.com/albums/yy75/tlakeharley/101_2494.jpg

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Help????

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Can someone help me i dont have a clue as to how I upload photos to this site!!?????

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Well, I finally figured it out. LOL. Here are some photos ofthe start of the project. The motor and the cap came off real easy without any problems. But i'm sure i'll run into a plenty of problems in the weeks/months to come. Check out the photos and feel free to offer any tips that you may have. I have one question. What kind and what grit grinding disks should use to grind the hull?

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Good looking boat. Are you having fun yet? You've got a lot of work done already. As far as the deck goes, you should fiberglass it first then use the Durabak as a flooring on top of the fiberglass. Your deck will be stronger and last for many years to come. Good luck with your build.

 

[BobsGlasstream]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

tlakeharley,
Looks like your off to a good start. You'll be putting it back together before you know it.
Keep it rolling.
Bob

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

TallCanadian, Should I put the wax in the final coat of resin or should I just leave it raw, so that the durabak will adhere good?

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

I would say no to the wax. Here is friscoboater's videos on the durabak. I take it your using polyester resin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egpMeq0QE00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh_Oo7c8hGw&NR=1

These should help. If not try this,

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=358277&page=13

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

TallC, I haven't gotten that far yet, I'm still in the tear out phase, LOL, but was just asking to get ahead of the game. What's better, I guess I should ask what's cheaper, Poly or epoxy, cause i'm kinda runnin on a budjet.

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Polyester is a cheaper way to go. But it is really strong smelling so you will need lots of ventilation. You also have to work fast because it has a short pot life, meaning once mixed, it will harden quickly. Epoxy is 3 to 4 times more expensive, is somewhat stronger, has vertually no smell, although still toxic, and has a longer pot life. You can take more time to spread it out and such. If you use polyester resin make sure there is no wax in it. Otherwise you will have to sand between layers, and you don't want that. I used epoxy on my build but that was the most of my expense. Around here, epoxy runs about 115 dollars a gallon and the hardener another 40 bucks. As far as your transom goes, try to find some marine grade or exterior grade plywood. Same as your new deck. Not sure about your stringers, mine were 2X4's and the center was 2X6. I was lucky enough to find kiln dried spruce at no extra charge. Some stringers are made from plywood. Depends on the manufacturer. Hope this helps.

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Well, Hello all, I got most of the ply out today, still have a little left to get out and I can start grinding. As you can see in the photo, I vacuumed out the inside today so I could get some measurements. I'll start grinding as soon as I can get another day off. Anybody have suggestions as to howI can get the old transom out. It's kinda rotten in the middle and solid on the edges. I don't want to cut or bust a hole in the glass.

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Your going to have to remove the inner fiberglass skin, then the old wood. Don't touch the outside skin, of course. When you replace the wood you will also replace the inner skin thus making it new and stronger. Measure the thickness of the wood in the transom before you remove it and make your new one to that thickness. You will likely have to ply two pieces of plywood together for the proper thickness of your new transom. You can either use pl premium between the two, like I did, or use fiberglass mat and resine. PL premium would be a cheaper way to go. Then fiberglass the new wood to the outer skin, then cover the inside with mat and resin attaching it to the sides of the boat. Don't want to get to far ahead and confuse you. Your doing good. Just make sure you get all that old wood out, even those side pieces.

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Well, Im ready to start grinding, thanks to the trusty sawz all, and the car wash. The transom wasn't hard to get out because it was completely rotten. Could I use the grooves that the old fiberglass left as a guide as to where the stringers need to be placed?

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

I did with mine. I dug all the old stringers out and used the existing slots for the new stringers. I coat my stingers first with epoxy resin, poured resin in the slots installed my new stringers and glassed over everything. turned out nice.

After removing old stringers.

Placing new stringers in the existing slots.

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Does anyone have a photo or link for what grit/kind of grinding wheel i'll need. Also how long will it last. I tried a 7" 36 grit sanding disk and it lasted all of 10 seconds. Thanks guys!!

 

[tlakeharley]

Re: 15 Ft old Caravelle deck rebuild

Hello all, Well, The grinding has begun!! I learned a valuable lesson today the hardway. "DON'T GRIND W/O A TYVEK SUIT and GOGGLES"!!!!. I had a respirator on so I was good there. But, we live and we learn. I didn't have much time today but I did get 1/2 the transom done. Man, that 36 grit flap disk will eat it away quick. Calling for snow here in NC the next two days, so I won't get to work on it till it melts away, sometime next week. Will post again when I start back.