Swap wood panel in upholstery

[Lpgc]

Definitely treat the wood once you have it shaped and the drainage/air holes drilled. You can mix up a wood sealer often referred to on this forum . . .

Old timers wood sealer (OTWS)

• 1/3 Polyurethane
• 1/3 Linseed oil
• 1/3 Mineral spirits

While you are at it, you might want to take a look at the rest of your seats to see if they need some attention/replacement as well.

Is that polyurethane varnish? Edible / raw / boiled linseed oil? Does it leave the wood soft enough to allow staples to go in easier than epoxied wood?

I cut the new plywood to shape and size today, placed the old wood on top of the new and traced around the less rotten side that still has the original shape, the rotten side has chunks rotted out so I spun it around and upside down to trace the original shape to the other side of the new wood. Cutting it out with the jigsaw was easier than I expected, didn't get it perfect but it should be good enough considering it'll be covered with foam and vinyl anyway. Rounded the edges and cleaned them up a bit with the sander. The position of the holes where the Tnuts were fitted in the old wood is vague due to the rot so I'll need to come up with a way to make sure I get the Tnuts in the correct position, the hinges were screwed into the boat fibreglass and I don't want to have to make new holes in the boat.

I'll check the other seats but I think they're fine. I think this trim has been kept wet much of the time because the boat trailer cover touches it, rain soaks through the cover where it touches, especially before I re-treated the cover with Fabsil.

Which reminds me, I need to get the trailer cover fixed or by another. The material around the edges that has the press-studs is separating from the rest of the canvas, seems the stitching has had too much sun and weather exposure in the past but I made it worse last year by putting it through the washing machine, wanted to wash it before spraying it with Fabsil. Wonder if any firm still makes a good fitting trailer cover for a '95 Four Winns Sundowner 205 and how much it'd cost. One of my customers said he repairs canvas covers, might ask him to fix mine. I also want to get a couple of spare wheel bearings for the 4 wheel trailer but I don't know the spec of the bearings yet, I might remove a hub and take it to a bearing company to see if they can identify and supply. I'd better remove the drive, check bellows, gimble bearing and alignment, regrease UJ's this year, didn't do it last year.

 

[MikeSchinlaub]

Is that polyurethane varnish? Edible / raw / boiled linseed oil? Does it leave the wood soft enough to allow staples to go in easier than epoxied wood?

Boiled. Boiling introduces oxygen, which helps it dry within hours instead for weeks. I learned that from Dirty Jobs
OTF will work more like a stain/water seal. A soft, thin layer that will saturate the outer layer of the wood, preventing water from absorbing. Epoxy will be a very hard layer that encapsulates the wood, creating an outer non-absorbant barrier around the wood.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Today's boats use starboard or PVC board

 

[tpenfield]

@Lpgc

It sounds like you did good . . .

Finding the fastener hole patterns and other critical dimensions from rotted pieces of wood can be challenge . . . the fastener hole pattern in the boat, or other dimensions from the boat, can be helpful.

Here are a couple of the more challenging jobs I've done recently . . . It took a while to figure out the hole patterns from the remains.

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This one was a case in marine forensics . . .

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To @Scott Danforth 's point . . . HDPE backing makes things a hole lot easier, but anything 1990's or older is going to be wood.

 

[redneck joe]

Get a harbor freight air stapler, thank us later.

 

[Lpgc]

I got the new piece of wood cut to close to the correct shape and did a bit of sanding to smooth out the edges.

I'm now making sure the new wood fits in position on the boat and fitting hinges. The thing is, I don't know how much clearance to leave around the wood for when the foam and vinyl is attached. Clearance doesn't matter at the rear of this panel because if it sticks rearward too far it'll just protrude slightly over the swim platform, but clearance does matter at the sides where the panel fits between vertical parts of the the boat and it matters at the front where it should fit snugly up to the backrest of rear seats, obviously if it's too wide or too far forward it won't fit at all and once the Tnuts are fitted I won't be able to reposition the hinges on the new wood. I don't want to make new holes in the boat so I'm trying to make the hinges fit back in the same position, it would have been easier to make this panel when the boat was new because the panel could have been made up then holes drilled in the boat in the correct position.

I can still see holes for the hinge at one side of the old piece of wood but one of those holes is an inch wide where the Tnut pulled through and the other hole is in even worse shape. Can't see holes for the hinge at the other side at all because that's where the wood completely fell to bits. I laid the new wood on top of the old and used a felt pen to mark up the centre of the inch wide hole, rotated the old wood 180degrees and turned it upside down and marked a position on the opposite side. Measured the distance between marks and it was slightly out compared to the distance between hinge holes on the boat. Attahced just one hinge with one small woodscrew to the new wood and attached that hinge to the boat. Not a bad fit but I think I should take some wood out of the sides to increase side clearance and move the wood slightly back on the hinge I've temporarily fitted with a little woodscrew to increase front clearance. At least the little hole I made with the small woodscrew to temporarily fit the hinge should be very close to the same position I'll need to make the wider hole when fitting the Tnut, so it seems I haven't made unnecessary holes in the new wood.

 

[Scott Danforth]

vinyl is about 1/16" thick. foam will compress to about 1/16" on edge of substrate. we normally left 3/8" gap on cushion substrates

 

[Lpgc]

vinyl is about 1/16" thick. foam will compress to about 1/16" on edge of substrate. we normally left 3/8" gap on cushion substrates

Great info thanks Scott.

The front end of this panel mates up to the rearside of the back seats which is also upholstered, the upholstery on the rear of the back seats should 'give' a bit too. It was a good fit before even with the rotten wood, just a bit of friction to push this hinged panel down or pull it up, which prevented it bouncing up by itself due to wind / waves / etc. I'm hoping to get a similar fit but I'll be happy as long as it'll fit and there are no big gaps around it lol.

 

[Lpgc]

Get a harbor freight air stapler, thank us later.

I would but my big air compressor broke years ago. I used to use it for a bit of spraying but mostly to run a small air drill and angle grinder. When it broke I no longer really needed it but my brother in law used to call round regular to inflate his car tyres instead of getting his slow puncture/s fixed. I didn't bother to fix it because I didn't need it and because it'd make my brother in law finally get his tyres fixed lol. I forgot if it it needs a new motor or compressor.

 

[MikeSchinlaub]

Mix in a thickening agent with the epoxy, like cabosil or aerosil (unless epoxy needs something different. Anyone know?) and fill in the old screw holes. Mount the new hinges as close as you can to the new wood and drill new holes in the boat. Countersink the holes to prevent gel cracking.

 

[Lou C]

Also depending on how F/W did it, if you have nuts and bolts to hold the hinges to the rear fiberglass, think about making a backing piece of plywood (1/2" is fine) to spread the load of the hinges out so as to not stress the fiberglass. My boat has the full size sun pad in that location and that big piece of 3/4" ply is HEAVY. Hope I don't have to do that again! If so might consider the composite options even though I probably have enough left over ply in the garage and shed...That old vinyl is probably like 30 years old it will need replacing soon...

 

[Grub54891]

I would but my big air compressor broke years ago. I used to use it for a bit of spraying but mostly to run a small air drill and angle grinder. When it broke I no longer really needed it but my brother in law used to call round regular to inflate his car tyres instead of getting his slow puncture/s fixed. I didn't bother to fix it because I didn't need it and because it'd make my brother in law finally get his tyres fixed lol. I forgot if it it needs a new motor or compressor.

An air stapler takes very little air. I use a small two gallon air compressor with my stapler and air rivet gun. You can do alot of stapling with a small compressor.
just don’t tell the brother in law you got another compressor.

 

[Lpgc]

Mix in a thickening agent with the epoxy, like cabosil or aerosil (unless epoxy needs something different. Anyone know?) and fill in the old screw holes. Mount the new hinges as close as you can to the new wood and drill new holes in the boat. Countersink the holes to prevent gel cracking.

Thanks but I managed to get the hinges in just the right position so I didn't need to make any new holes in the boat or the new wood

 

[Lpgc]

Also depending on how F/W did it, if you have nuts and bolts to hold the hinges to the rear fiberglass, think about making a backing piece of plywood (1/2" is fine) to spread the load of the hinges out so as to not stress the fiberglass. My boat has the full size sun pad in that location and that big piece of 3/4" ply is HEAVY. Hope I don't have to do that again! If so might consider the composite options even though I probably have enough left over ply in the garage and shed...That old vinyl is probably like 30 years old it will need replacing soon...View attachment 414201

I'll need to check but I believe the holes in the boat fibreglass already have some reinforcing wood beneath them, can tell due to the way the screws tighten. I didn't need to make new holes, managed to fit the hinges in the original holes.

 

[Lpgc]

Boiled. Boiling introduces oxygen, which helps it dry within hours instead for weeks. I learned that from Dirty Jobs
OTF will work more like a stain/water seal. A soft, thin layer that will saturate the outer layer of the wood, preventing water from absorbing. Epoxy will be a very hard layer that encapsulates the wood, creating an outer non-absorbant barrier around the wood.

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I searched the forum for more info on the old timers wood protector.
Can get the boiled linseed oil and mineral spirits no problem but I read it has to be oil/spirit based polyurethane varnish and I'm struggling to find that. It has to be oil/solvent based or won't mix with the linseed oil (or mineral spirits), I find a traditional spirit based varnish but it's not polyurethane, I find a polyurethane but it's water based...

 

[MikeSchinlaub]

Is it possible to swap the wood screws for machine screws with nuts and big washers? It would be more secure.

 

[Lpgc]

Is it possible to swap the wood screws for machine screws with nuts and big washers? It would be more secure.

The hinges are attached to the panel using Tnuts in the panel and taper head machine screws through the hinge to the Tnuts. The Tnuts are prevented from pushing through the panel (if, say, a bolt were partly unscrewed from the Tnut and the bolt pushed against the Tnut instead of pulling) because the Tnuts are clamped into the panel with a couple of pan head screws each.

A while ago I took one of these bolts to a local bolts shop (they're used in other places around the boat and I needed one to fix a loose trim panel near the helm), he measured it and told me it's not a metric or imperial thread, I think he said it's a number 2 thread, he didn't have any in stainless at all, especially not with tapered heads. But yes if I were going to replace the screws into the boat I could use a long stainless tapered headed bolt with a different thread as long as the diameter and tapererd head suited the hinge.

 

[tpenfield]

I know it can be hard to find the traditional oil-based paints, but this should work.

 

[Lpgc]

I know it can be hard to find the traditional oil-based paints, but this should work.


View attachment 414220

Thanks, I'm in the UK, I could probably buy some Minwax polyurethane but other brands are probably more available.

I'm confused about what exactly it needs to be. The Minwax stuff doesn't mention being a varnish, does it need to be a varnish or just paint etc?

Would this be suitable? https://tradesuppliesuk.co.uk/products/vintage-yacht-varnish?variant=55591366459717
They have said it is polyurethane and oil based.

 

[redneck joe]

I think im caught up so rather than poly, which is a surface coating that may Crack and then allowing water in and to be more trapped, I would choose to mix up the old timers formula that has been mentioned. It soaks in rather than a top coat. I am absolutely not the expert so take my statements at your peril...