1973 Larson Shark 1700 140HP pre-alpha total resto

[Abbottfrank]

Newbie to the forums as a member, Looking forward to this project but need something to reference. I have the inards yanked out and began to remove the floor, The prior folks put new wood over rotten, it was a nice touch i must say, The stringers are a different beast and as the OEM floor and stringers are a total loss i cant get measurements to replace. I understand that the Larson Sharks did not have a conventional wood stringers but rather wood laid flat and only glassed in place. It looks as if the foam and glass in held it all together, add the floor, and you have a good boat. I however, feel that I may be able to keep the weight down and use a bit less of the value engineering that the manufacturer did. As this boat is almost the exact age as me, I feel like we have a bunch in common. So as I have done with my life, I plan to repurpose this old girl and make her better than new. Lots of questions, I know you all have lots of answers. Are there any forums on stringer designs or grid ideas here? Can I cut out the glass that runs the center of the boat and start over? Also any way to post a decent photo? I hate having to mod photos to post.

 

[CrazyFinn]

Welcome aboard! I can’t see why you can’t just build new stringers out of 3/4 ply like most of the rest of us have been doing, glass them in, and add the floor. Plenty of threads here to read on how others have done it. Would love to see more pics of the whole boat too - gives us a better idea of what you’re dealing with.

 

[Woodonglass]

Based on the pic I see, She looks to have typical substructure.

 

[kcassells]

Just clean out the hoopla and she's a regular boat stringer bulkhead system. No magic just alot of messy work.

 

[dezmond]

Yep. It’s hard when you don’t have something to reference from to build new. There is a YouTube video of a guy that uses string to get his measurements pretty close for his stringers and bulkheads. I am using this method for my templates and so far so good. It won’t be too hard. Good luck with the build. Would love to see some more pics as well

 

[kcassells]

Take lots of pics and measures of what is there now. It will help you out alot down the line when you start slapping it back in. :happy:

 

[Abbottfrank]

Tons of good Info there. The string idea is awesome. Here's some more photos of the clean out. I appreciate all the information folks. You guys have reassured me that it isn't rocket science. I gotta say the wiring and the reassembly of the motor and out drive have me a bit spooked. The motor did run before we yanked it. Never had the boat in the water though. Can you reinforce the hull from the inside? You can see the patchwork on the outside in the photos I can't see anything of substance on the inside though. Overkill is my nature but I dont want to hinder while reinforcing it.

 

[Abbottfrank]

[No message]

 

[Woodonglass]

Yes, I would for sure recommend more glass on the inside of that repair.

 

[dezmond]

Yup what ^^^^ said. What’s a pre alpha? Never heard of one? good luck with the build. I’ll be tagging along

 

[Abbottfrank]

Had some big projects to get completed at work a d haven't been working on the boat. I will have an update for you this weekend

 

[harringtondav]

Abbottfrank Here is a YouTube series on starting over with a bare hull. This guy is knowledgeable, and kinda funny. But you'll learn to fast forward thru his commentary to get into the important stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kopF4muvF0c