1981 Citation Marquis restoration...

[Luposian]

I’m going through AZ Fish & Game. I’ve researched online, til I’m blue in the knuckles, and found no other way to find the previous owner. They are the only route.

 

[Luposian]

Question... should you ever be able to see light through the hull? I don't mean like through a hole, I mean, as in the fiberglass is thin enough that light shining from the outside can be seen on the inside surface. At first I thought I was seeing things, but I moved my hand to the area where the light was, and I saw the shadow of my hand!

 

[chevymaher]

That happens. Fiberglass is opaque. Gel coat blocks more light but it is to. Yes seeing light is normal.

 

[Luposian]

Some pics of the flooring and engine stern fiberglass. I'm suspecting this Mercruiser 120 was NOT the original engine in this boat, as you'll notice a bit of cutting away of the fiberglass on the right side. Why'd they do that, except to fit this engine in for some reason?

And after picking away at various parts of the engine, I am finding tons of rust and corrosion everywhere. This engine is toast (I know, I know... "I told ya' so"). And I still can't get to the engine mount bolts. I see them, but I can't figure out how to get to them. When I think, "I'll just remove THIS part", part of THAT part can't be unbolted because I can't get a wrench or socket in there! ARRRGH! And the blasted gas tank (right side of pic) can't be removed (which would give me the room I need), because the only way to remove it is though the opening that the engine is taking up right now! Double ARRRRGH! :-D

And, as the one pic will show, the flooring plywood is rotted beyond... beyond... ick! :-D And there's another piece of plywood under part of the bow (where the driver/front passenger would be) that I don't understand the purpose of. I'm thinking it's supposed to make up the height difference of the subfloor or something. I measured and I'm pretty sure the floor and that other plywood are both 1/2". Question is, when all is said and done (after the boat and trailer are officially mine), and the stringers are all replaced, should I have one single piece (thickness) of plywood for the flooring or two? Or do I make the stringers taller, so I only need one thickness of plywood flooring? Should I make the stringers out of pressure treated lumber or special breed of wood (oak, cherry, etc.)? Most sites I've been to, say to replace the stringers with the same type of wood as original (how do you determine that, if it's all black rotted nastiness?).

There's some pink styrofoam-type material under the floor and a thick blackish blobby run of foam (expanding foam, I think) on one side. I'm going to cut all the fiberglass flooring out, remove the cap, and replace/reglass everything, but I'm up to the task/expense. When all is said and done, there won't be a drop of water able to get in this boat. I'll make everything so water-tight, H2O molecules will SCREAM, trying to squeeze in! :-D

 

[kcassells]

Yup, quite the mess theses boats can be. Raise the stringers so you need 1 floor plank. Have at it. If there is pink foam under the deck it was someone else's idea of a rehab.

 

[chevymaher]

LOL and get a cover for the boat. As in a roof. That makes such a difference keeping it dry it isnt funny.

In the beginning i had the cockpit and bow covers. Bare hull inside. Covered in fiberglass dust. Now nothing shows leaks like dust.

Now I got a full cover over those 2 and a roof over that. Now i panic if water is blowing on the cover LOL. My how things change

 

[Luposian]

Having a cover serves no purpose at this point. It's not (officially) my boat yet, so why invest money into it right now? I'm trying to assess the amount of work I'm going to have to do, once I can legally dig into it. Gain some understanding of various parts and their names and what they do. In looking where the floor was cut out, it looks like the stringer/bulkheads fiberglass was done quite poorly The wood is black and decaying. Once I've cut out the flooring, I'll be able to get a better idea of what the condition of the stringers and bulkheads are in. But I'm not holding out much hope. I'm thinking a total replacement will be necessary. If I can find someone, locally, who knows what they're doing, I'm hoping I can save some money, but doing it right is more important than saving money. So, if it takes months/years and thousands of dollars, so be it. I want to be proud of this boat, no matter how much time/money was pumped into it. Just like a rental house I have up in Cottonwood, AZ. I dumped just under $75K into it, but it's essentially a brand new house. And just got a renter for $900/mo. for a house that's under 700 sq. ft.

"Doing the right thing, may be neither cheap nor easy... but it IS the right thing. And it is it's own reward."
- Luposian

 

[Scott Danforth]

Most likely original motor. You under estimate how boats are slapped and hacked for original rigging

They are intended to live 15 years, then be replaced

 

[Luposian]

Can anyone tell me what some of this stuff on the boat is? The round thing with a central screw hole is on both the port and starboard side. However the white thing with a hole is only on the starboard side. You can see in the floor cutout, the two pink foam panels (the seller told me they go all the way to the bow) and the dark brown (rotted?) foam fill on the starboard side. The screws still stuck in the fiberglass and the piece of plywood are rusted to shame. Some mounting/anchoring brackets(?) on the port/starboard side are screwed in through the hull. What idiot thought THAT was a smart idea (and they figured covering up the screw heads with resin is going to keep water out)? Then the little piece of wood with a red rubber button (looks like a bumper of some type?) and metal fingers. And then the sliding nut in the long track (on both the port and starboard side). What was that supposed to be used for? And, lastly, the wood rack-like thing in the footwell on the passenger side. What's worth keeping and what can I get rid of?

 

[GA_Boater]

The last two pics are bimini tracks and a passenger foot rest or magazine rack.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Its all stuff to be removed and thrown away, then you start over

the metal "fingers" as you called it is a mic holder for the VHF radio. the bracket is on the dash.

the bimini track will be specific to the original bimini, if you do not have the original bimini frame, then I suggest you start over

the magazine rack is an oddity as well, could have held charts

the whole floor, stringers, foam, etc will be coming out anyway

expect $2500 for the hull restoration and about another $2500 for the interior and other interior bits

then you have your conversion to contend with.

 

[Luposian]

The padded side panels, I'll be having restored along with the wood strips. I'll be having the bow seats/cushions restored. I've gutted out all the wiring and the old/damaged instrumentation panel and thrown it away. The horn was under the steering wheel (area up under the dash) Why have it there? Shouldn’t it be out on the bow somewhere? And screws going through the side of the hull to anchor brackets and stuff (and covering the screw heads with resin) is a dumb thing, is it not? What do you use to fill those small holes before repainting?

One thing I know... I got me a project boat. And I “project” it will be a lot of work and money til it be finished... :-D

 

[Scott Danforth]

because the cheap horns they used were not meant to be out in the weather

even fully stainless horns only last a few years because they are not good stainless.

its a fiberglass hull, you will be glassing holes and stuff (including the screw holes you mention) long before you ever think of gel or paint to finish it.

 

[Luposian]

Think I found something that will work great for the smll screw holes and such:

https://www.solarez.com/product/solarez-all-purpose-3-5-oz-tube/

Anyone have their thoughts on or experience with this stuff?

 

[Scott Danforth]

do not waste your money.

you will be buying at least 15 gallons of resin, about 30+ yards of 1708, a few pounds of cabosil and a few pounds of chopped fibers.

your going to be mixing up PB anyway, which is what you will use to fill the holes

as stated, those holes are the least of your concerns.

 

[Luposian]

Are there resins/other additives that don't have noxious fumes? I can see myself doing this, but not if I can't breathe or need to wear special suiting/respirator (as I've seen in some videos), etc. As far as cutting the fiberglass, would a dust mask and goggles be sufficient?

As far as removing the flooring, do I use a small circular saw (the handheld kind) to cut along the edge of where it looks like the flooring fiberglass joins the fiberglass on the sides? I assume the rotted plywood goes that far.. Will I need to remove the cap, to get to all the stringers or only as far as where that top piece of plywood is just in front of the bow (refer to previous pics)?

Can this boat, minus engine/stern drive, be "hung" (lifted up in the air) by the line anchors (the things you wrap the ropes around, to tie/tether your boat to a dock or similar), or would the weight of just the hull and such rip them out of the cap fiberglass? Forgive any "idiot" questions I might ask... just curious and "learning as I go". :-D

 

[kcassells]

Are there resins/other additives that don't have noxious fumes? I can see myself doing this, but not if I can't breathe or need to wear special suiting/respirator (as I've seen in some videos), etc. As far as cutting the fiberglass, would a dust mask and goggles be sufficient?
__ EEEpppoooxxxyyy has no odors at all.
--PPE, You should read the stickies above. Most of these questions are answered.
https://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...at-information

As far as removing the flooring, do I use a small circular saw (the handheld kind) to cut along the edge of where it looks like the flooring fiberglass joins the fiberglass on the sides? I assume the rotted plywood goes that far.. Will I need to remove the cap, to get to all the stringers or only as far as where that top piece of plywood is just in front of the bow (refer to previous pics)?

-Stickys/videos, youtube
frisco boater

1961 Lonestar Flamingo - SPLASHED

...Kinda!!​

Fabricating Decks, Stringers, and Transoms
Paint Your Boat with Tractor Paint

...Say What!!!​

Can this boat, minus engine/stern drive, be "hung" (lifted up in the air) by the line anchors (the things you wrap the ropes around, to tie/tether your boat to a dock or similar), or would the weight of just the hull and such rip them out of the cap fiberglass? Forgive any "idiot" questions I might ask... just curious and "learning as I go". :-D

No not made for that. You would need to make some type of support brace.

 

[Luposian]

Some more detailed pics of the floor. I assume that the edge of the wood (what's left of it (rotted)) under the fiberglass, is where the screws are along the edge. So, is there any point cutting beyond that or should I cut out all flooring fiberglass right to the sides of the hull? There is a noticable sag in the fiberglass on both port/starboard side, but only just before the top piece of plywood (as shown). Any idea why? I notice there is a "platform" the gas tank sits on and a sunk in lower foundation the front engine mount sits on (seller told me I'd have to replace the wood under there as well). But it looks like the rear engine mounts are just fastened to a interior metal frame portion of the stern drive. When everything is gutted out and removed, I assume I have to keep the electric motor unit mounted at the same height as the original ICE, so it engages the stern drive properly. So, basically, once all stringers/bulkheads are replaced, I can "floor in" everything at the same height, except where the motor goes.

Question: do you generally want more or less air space (bilge?) under the floor? That will determine how tall I make my stringers/bulkheads. I estimate between the bottom floor and the top piece of plywood, I have about 1" of thickness. I assume 3/4" plywood is as thick as it gets, so I need 1/4" taller stringers than current. Or has rot shrunken the bottom plywood (and stringers/bulkheads?) and new plywood would be thicker?

 

[Luposian]

What do you make of this? It's a mess, I know (I tore out (not cut), with my bare hands, a bunch of fiberglass and wet, rotted plywood (i.e. mulch) to get to this point), but I'm trying to figure out if it's been heavily (but poorly) modified from its original design. Why is there a second level (thin, brittle fiberglass and more rotted plywood) under the main floor, down the middle? At least it doesn't go any further down. But I'm trying to figure out what I'm looking at. Is the main floor where it should be or is it higher than it should be? What looks like original stringers/bulkheads and which are not?

 

[kcassells]

Bring all your new stringers and bulkheads up to the underside of the existing floor for height. The rest is just like you said crappo mush.