It has begun!

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Just trying to keep this in the fore front. Any help here?

 

[redfury]

Re: It has begun!

Well, if you get airflow down in there first, that helps. You gotta give the moisture a place to go, and a reason to leave..those are the big things.

I think I saw on the rotdoctor.com site someone taking a shop vac and a bunch of hoses and drilling a bunch of holes in the transom and sucking out as much moisture as possible overnight with the shop vac, and then used a squeeze bottle and saturated the wood with as much acetone as possible to help dry it out and then used the rot doctors thinned epoxy to "seal" the wood and then plugged the holes and glassed over it. It's going to be work and time no matter what you do.

Regardless of what you try, you have to induce two things to that wood, airflow and something that will draw the moisture out of it. The problem with transoms is that they suck up the water over a long period of time, and it takes even longer for it to dry out of it. Most people opt for replacing the wood because the amount of effort to dry out the old wood and then make it whole again is about as much trouble as just doing a replacement, which really isn't as hard as you would think...it just appears to be a scary job. Looking back at it, I'd buy just about any boat that needed a transom replaced and do the work if I was up to the task at the time.

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Okay, so if I decide to replace the transom. what is the best course of action for removing the transom when it is still solid and not rotten even a little bit? I have seen videos where they cut the whole transom out. Glass and all. Not the way I want to go. Not even sure that is the right way at all.

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

In all my reading I have yet to see that any one has used vinylester resin. Why is this? Will Vinylester resin adhere to epoxy? Would it be better to use on stringers than poly? and how much stronger is it than poly?

 

[erikgreen]

Re: It has begun!

VE can stick to epoxy, but not as well as more epoxy. It is a better quality resin (stronger, more adhering) than poly. Ondarvr will chime in with more info, he's the expert.

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: It has begun!

Hello Low..

If your trans is not rotted..why replace it ?

No need for epoxy or vinylester ( which I use ONLY for underwater repairs ).

I personally dont see the need for a trans replacement at this time ( unless you are trying to sell it and some surveyer is writing up a moist trans )

Just because it is moist does not mean its not strong..

ARE living trees dry ? no... If they were we would all have to have 4x4s to manuver around snapped trees in the road .

There is a Big difference between moist stringers/trans and Rotted.

Its almost haulout season here..and Ill bet good money that I can take my moisture meter and read Moisture in a good 90% of most transoms .. or even stringers. If they were as worried about a little water in there boats as some here I would be Rich lol

YD.

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Okay now were getting somewhere

Thank you Yaht Dr.

I have been torturing myself over what to do about that damn transom. Now I know. I will fill in the exploratory holes and leave it.

I did have part of the starboard stringer that was rotten so I cut only that section out and then put CPES on thge rest of that stringer aswell as the port side stringer. My concern now is that the poly resin (which I gather from Yaht Dr. response will be strong enough for the stringers) will not adhere to the CPES that I have applied to the stringers.

Is CPES and epoxy resin the same thing? Will sanding the CPES with like 80 grit let the poly. adhere? And finally, can I sister a new section of stringer to the section left in using peanut butter and ply to sandwich the stringers? Then use wooden dowls instead of screws? What size of dowel would be appropriate?

Thank you.

 

[proshadetree]

Re: It has begun!

Not to disagree with anyone but the upper part of my transom was rock hard the lower part was rotted. I fooled myself into thinking it was good. I put the boat together and set it in only to have my son scream water. Pull the tub home and had to re remove the engine and drive. Cut it out and saw what I was up against. On my 88 baylinner the stringers were rock solid and dry. To remove the transom cut along the outside and the pry it out. I would just go ahead and fix it if I was there already.

 

[proshadetree]

Re: It has begun!

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=273016
Just looked up my thread see last page for transom to see what I found in mine. You can fix it and you will love it when its done. I get complements every time I set it in and I love it. I have lots more I want to do to her but I have been just boating for 2 years and shes great. Yours will be to

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Nice looking boat proshadetree. No doubt about it. I just love my cuddy. I drilled several exploratory holes in the transom and not a bit of it is rotten. I am not going to replace it at this time. I do not plan on keeping it forever just want a few more years out of it which i will easily get. If things change we will see about the transom then.

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

I will ask this here on my thread instead of highjacking someone elses.

What is the lowest outside temp that poly resin should be used in? Yaht Dr. answered in another thread with more questions. The answers to his questions are.

1) What does your can say? I havn't bought any yet due to not knowing if it can be used this winter.

2) Are you adding cureing agents? If there is an agent that would allow to work on this in the winter and it was affordable then I would use it.

3) What is the use for? The use would be for tabbing stringers and for glassing the deck both resin coat for top bottom and sides and also for glassing the top to the hull.

Any help on this is always appreciated.

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Bump on previous post.

Also, has anyone had any luck using kitty hair as an adhesive for stringers, deck to hull and the like? Also, what about kitty hair as a filletting material? would it be stronger than peanut butter?

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: It has begun!

I will ask this here on my thread instead of highjacking someone elses.

What is the lowest outside temp that poly resin should be used in? Yaht Dr. answered in another thread with more questions. The answers to his questions are.

1) What does your can say? I havn't bought any yet due to not knowing if it can be used this winter.

2) Are you adding cureing agents? If there is an agent that would allow to work on this in the winter and it was affordable then I would use it.

3) What is the use for? The use would be for tabbing stringers and for glassing the deck both resin coat for top bottom and sides and also for glassing the top to the hull.

Any help on this is always appreciated.

Hello Lowvlot..

1). The lowest temp Ive done glasswork would be about 50F. That was with heat lamps though. You could allways wet out a scrap of glass and see how long and if it cures correctly.

2). Patch Aid from US Composites is a good agent..but I would be shy to use it for stringers ( small non-structural repairs is fine ).

3). #2 answered that then

As far as using a Hard filler for your stringers to hull ( like hair ) .. not a good idea IMHO. you want something softer like fairing compound. Now for the fillet for your glass tabbings yes.. hair all the way. .. .. One trick is to brush resin on your fillet Before it sets up to kinda smooth it out before it kicks off.

Remember Rule #1 .. Make Sure You Have Everything READY Before You Start mixing Anything

YD.

 

[86 bayliner]

Re: It has begun!

if your still looking for cheap back to back seats the best place ive found so far was www.boatingseats.om you can buy bayliner seats for $249.99 with free shipping

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Thank you 86 bayliner.

I have decided to attempt to recover the back to backs i have. I have been slowly doing the vinyl work. Bothe rear seat backs and one rear seat base done and now i am working on one of the side panels. Although a mono color scheme it seems to be coming out great for someone who had no sewing experiance before this.

 

[BrandonHa]

Re: It has begun!

Is it raining as hard at your house as it is at mine?

Does it take a lot of time to learn to do the Vinyl work? Sounds like something that would be constructive on days like today.

Where would a guy like me start that wanted to do some Vinyl work?

Thank you 86 bayliner.

I have decided to attempt to recover the back to backs i have. I have been slowly doing the vinyl work. Bothe rear seat backs and one rear seat base done and now i am working on one of the side panels. Although a mono color scheme it seems to be coming out great for someone who had no sewing experiance before this.

 

[proshadetree]

Re: It has begun!

Any upholstery work can be done. First you need a machine capable of sewing multiple layers of vinyl.If looking at a used machine stay away from the clutch drives and stay with servo type motors. A servo controlled machine will have a variable pedal and the motor itself changes speeds. A clutch style you must slip the clutch to slow down the machine. What this amounts to is control. A industrial machine will sew up to 2000 stitches per minute. If it is hard to control the speed like in a clutch setup you will have more errors. Next buy some scrap and practice with it. Do not use expensive thread and cloth to try to learn to sew. Play with tension levels to see what it will do to the material. Learn to sew straight lines. I mean really straight. Then learn to make turns. I used scrap to first sew one way then turn panel to sew across your old stitches. Once you are comfortable. Plan your project. Hopefully you will have your old seats as patterns. You can eliminate piping if you want many manufacturers quit using it. You just do not have a wide error gap if you don't use it. If you don't have them mock some up from old sheets or scrap material if you can find it. Remember upholstery is not an exact science and many errors can be made up for if you do not need a show winner.

 

[BrandonHa]

Re: It has begun!

Any upholstery work can be done. First you need a machine capable of sewing multiple layers of vinyl.If looking at a used machine stay away from the clutch drives and stay with servo type motors. A servo controlled machine will have a variable pedal and the motor itself changes speeds. A clutch style you must slip the clutch to slow down the machine. What this amounts to is control. A industrial machine will sew up to 2000 stitches per minute. If it is hard to control the speed like in a clutch setup you will have more errors. Next buy some scrap and practice with it. Do not use expensive thread and cloth to try to learn to sew. Play with tension levels to see what it will do to the material. Learn to sew straight lines. I mean really straight. Then learn to make turns. I used scrap to first sew one way then turn panel to sew across your old stitches. Once you are comfortable. Plan your project. Hopefully you will have your old seats as patterns. You can eliminate piping if you want many manufacturers quit using it. You just do not have a wide error gap if you don't use it. If you don't have them mock some up from old sheets or scrap material if you can find it. Remember upholstery is not an exact science and many errors can be made up for if you do not need a show winner.

I just bought another boat and its pretty big, 30ft. I also have my center console that I am working on. Both of them are going to need upholstery. The center console wont need a lot, just a couple of cushions but the trawler is going to need a ton of upholstery work. Seems like something I should learn how to do.

Can you show some examples of machines that would be used? Maybe a good one vs a not so good one?

 

[lowvlot]

Re: It has begun!

Brandon,
What is happening?

When I decided to do my own vinyl work I first sat down with my wifes sewing machine and the book it came with and read that book front to back and played with the machine to get familiar with it. I then went on youtube and watched a bunch of videos on sewing. finally I asked my mother in law to come over and give me a crash course in sewing. After all that I bought a yard of Marine vinyl and removed the stitches from an exsisting seat traced it out cut it out and then went for it. It is not perfect but it is a whole lot better than what was in there, all torn and tattered. now it will be great to sit on and lay on.

Make sure to use a number 16 needle and heavy duty thread that is weather resistant and UV resistant.

 

[MAXXIE]

Re: It has begun!

Just went through you thread, I'm doing as much research as I can before starting my deck replacement winter project. I've been reading "OOPS's hull extention thread" as much as I can as well, lots of stuff to learn on that one. I'm thinking that I'll be heading down the same path that you are on with the transom, stringer & foam issues. Good luck with your project, I'll be checking in often, so I'll know what to expect before I even get there. Keep the updates coming & toss a few pictures in if you can. Thanks, this will be a huge help.