Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

[wesandlana]

I am currently doing a rebuild project. I got the cap off the hull and am redoing the stringers, replacing the floatation foam and transom on an 84 glassport. My question is this:

I am replacing everything with composite material. There will be no more wood.

Can I then glass the hull and cap together or must I still use the rivets? I think it would be easier to just glass them together.

Thanks

Wes

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

To be able to fiberglass the 2 together, you will have to mechanically fasten them together 1st anyway. How does the rubrail attach to the hull?

This '84 Glassport:
Stringers are rotten, does that mean the transom is too?

From budget rehab into a fishing boat to a composite ($$$) rebuild?

Details on replacement of the stringers & deck, and now that you are working on a rebuild plan, are you coring the transom to confirm it's condition. As before, a rotten deck & stringers usually necessitates a transom redo as well.

 

[wesandlana]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

Lol. Yep, that's the one. We have had the motor running and it sounds great! So we want to do it right. But where I live there are several "second hand" fiberglass places as we have 2 fiberglass factories within 10 minutes of my house. The transom material we bought at transomrepairkit.com. Much less expensive than the seacast. We will use 3/8 fiberglass sheeting to deck. The foam was absolutely waterlogged, so we have to replace that too. Upper third of the transom was basically leaves. It was horrible. We had it out on the lake at VERY slow speed and I praise the Lord we didn't sink her!

As to the hull, I was just curious if the there was a reason it was always riveted. It just seems like an awful lot of rivet holes in the boat. And also a lot of rivet holes to re-rivet. Thought the fiberglass might accomplish the same thing with the rub rail being poly'd on using marine sealant.

Thanks!

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

So what are the stringers made of?

 

[wesandlana]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

The stringers were plywood glassed in. We are going to replace with the same stuff the transom is made of.

JBCURT00, I didn't have to core. Previous owner had actually put two screws in for something just below the jack plate, then removed the screws. And didn't seal them up. I used that for a "core". It was horrible.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

That's quite an investment in time and money for a 30 year old boat. I assume you plan on keeping her in the family for a long time.

 

[73Chrysler105]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

Glassing on the cap happens all the time in the jetboat community more for looks than for anything else. So it is definitely doable, there are also some manufacturers that glassed them together inside from the factory. You will need something to hold the pieces together while it cures. Which means some rivets initially but not as many as original or you can attach the rub rail and use those rivets/screws to hold it all together while it cures.

 

[wesandlana]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

That's quite an investment in time and money for a 30 year old boat. I assume you plan on keeping her in the family for a long time.

My wife is also 30 years old. Plan on keeping her too! :lol:

Thanks so much for your help. If you think it can be done 73Chrysler105, that's prob what I'll do. It has about 1000 rivet holes in it already, so I'm trying not to add more to it!

 

[73Chrysler105]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

I would suggest still putting on a rub rail though.

 

[wesandlana]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

I will put the rub rail on then. Also, should I use the fiberglass with the fiberglass already mixed in, or should use the cloth and resin?

 

[73Chrysler105]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

It depends on the effect you want to accomplish if you are just wanting to secure the two together then the best way is from the inside with a strip of 1708 wetted out. If you want the smooth exterior look then you will have to fill the lip from the top cap with PB then a layer overlapping the top and bottom. Of course you will have to grind down the areas to be glassed prior to glassing.

Either way you may want to make a resin paste for between the top and bottom sections as well.

No matter what it is a lot of work and may be easier to just put back in all those reevits.

 

[wesandlana]

Re: Can I fiberglass the cap to the hull instead of using rivets?

Thank you so much for your help! I