1976 Tom Boy Boat, 1976 40 HP Johnson Outboard and who knows what Trailer

[gm280]

Okay a little update with some pictures as well. I finished CSM and poly'ing the rod and storage box covers and even the insides with the liquid pigment and CSM to finish with the water proofing. So here are a few pictures;

There are now CSM and poly'ed and need their hair cuts yet. But that is it for these covers until I finish them off with carpet.

Another view.

I even took a few shots of the home-made live well. While it is waterproofed with the CSM and poly, both inside and out, I want to apply one more coat of colored poly on the inside to make certain everything is sealed perfectly. All the holes for the LED lights and the bottom drain and even the over flow drain at the top edge along with the spray bar are drilled and waiting for the final coating. Then I will cut the CSM and install the parts and fittings.

I didn't install the live well in/on the boat yet because I knew it would only add to the flipping weight effort and therefore I chose to wait 'til the painting was finished. I used thin plywood with sheet foam in between to help keep the water cooler and the teeny tiny miniature fish (singular :facepalm: ) that I may accidently catch, live longer. We'll see.

You can see the little dimples in the bottom and side for the inlet/outlet fixtures.

And the cutouts for the I/Os from the service side.

A general look at the live well. I have the top lip section ready and even the cover wood. But I need to find the vinyl that matches the seats and make the cushioned cover for it yet. You can even see the recessed area for the passenger's plate to allow a USB charger port or even a cigarette lighter type switched outlet for whatever else we may need when out on the water. The reason for the two end sides is to allow me access to the plumbing to the stray bar and overflow fittings and LED lights if need be.

I did order one more gallon of poly resin and 4 more ozs of gray liquid pigment so if there is anything else I may need to finish, I have the material on hand.

Until next time, you all have a magnificent day... :thumb:

 

[bonz_d]

gm, I think you're getting way too fancy. Just kidding, looking great!

 

[gm280]

gm, I think you're getting way too fancy. Just kidding, looking great!

Ha thanks bonz_d, I really am worried now about how heavy it has gotten. It may not even float now. :facepalm: But if it sinks, the fish will enjoy it as their new home.

 

[Woodonglass]

Just remember Too much poly resin is almost as bad as not enough. Reason...With out the CSM fibers to hold it together it WILL crack. Once the fibers are saturated and partially dissolved additional resin has no binder. How long has it been since the last coat?

 

[sphelps]

I may need you to build my live wells for the Manatee ! The way you have thought all this through is outstanding !

 

[gm280]

Just remember Too much poly resin is almost as bad as not enough. Reason...With out the CSM fibers to hold it together it WILL crack. Once the fibers are saturated and partially dissolved additional resin has no binder. How long has it been since the last coat?

Makes sense WOG. I was just wanting to be sure there are no spots I've missing to allow leaks. Do you have another idea to do that without the poly/color coating in the live well. I'm all ears. :laugh: Well not really but you know what I'm saying. Interested.

Sam, this live well happened because while I was drilling the cooler for the over-flow fitting towards the top side, I was totally stupid and drill the last opening from the outside and when it started to cut through the inside, it split the inside pretty badly. I drilled all the other openings from the thinner inside out and therefore there were no splitting of any of the plastic material. The outside plastic material is of a thicker and different type material. Total heart breaker indeed. And rather then try and patch it or buy a new one, I elected to throw it away and built my own. So this live well is actually my own creation and who knows if it will work correctly. :noidea:
But then with the seemingly limited number of fish I catch, it doesn't have to hold much water to work for my needs. Did I tell you how great a fisherman I am? Well yes, I am the fantastic fisherman, however, catching fish is another story. I mean if I tell you a story about catching fish, that what it is. ound:

 

[Woodonglass]

Makes sense WOG. I was just wanting to be sure there are no spots I've missing to allow leaks. Do you have another idea to do that without the poly/color coating in the live well. I'm all ears. :laugh: Well not really but you know what I'm saying. Interested.

Go to Lowes or HD and get some of their CSM. It's about .75 oz and would be perfect for the final layer. Of course that's just and Old Dumb Okies opinion and you're free to do as you see fit.

 

[gm280]

Go to Lowes or HD and get some of their CSM. It's about .75 oz and would be perfect for the final layer. Of course that's just and Old Dumb Okies opinion and you're free to do as you see fit.

Okay, but I have to admit, with all the trips I've made to Lowes over the years (and I think I actually own at least half of a store by now), I didn't even know they sold CSM. I'll see what I can find. I am almost out of my CSM having just a couple square feet left now. I do have a pretty substantial supply yet of 1708 left, but not going that route at all. So I'll check on the light weight CSM. Thanks and it does make better sense thinking about it. :thumb:

 

[SkaterRace]

Would it not make sense to water test it for leaks instead of giving it another coating.

 

[gm280]

Would it not make sense to water test it for leaks instead of giving it another coating.

Well of course that would make too much sense. Just kidding.

I thought about doing that, but haven't tried it because if is does leak, how would I know unless it was a major leak. If it had a miniscule leak at any pin point place, it would take a considerable time for any evidence to show up. Maybe I am once again over thinking this, as usual, but I honestly want this to work first time every time. I actually looked over the CSM and poly gray colored initial coating and while it looks nice, there are also some little areas with CSM holes. Not that I can see wood, but just makes me wonder if they are actual holes thought eh CSM and poly or shadows looing like possible holes. If you look at anything done with CSM you will see what I am referring to and thinking. :noidea:

 

[Woodonglass]

Hey. Instead of another layer of glass. How about gel coating them

 

[gm280]

Hey. Instead of another layer of glass. How about gel coating them

Okay now WOG, now you have me really confused. My original concept was to mix poly with the gray liquid pigment and apply a coat over the inside of the live well. But you stated not to do that because it could crack with any flexing, which would be very hard to do in the live well. I actually tried to flex it and that isn't going to happen. So you suggested to use some 3/4oz CSM and colored poly and so that was my next idea. But now you are saying to just Gel Coat it. Isn't Gel Coat actually colored polyester? :noidea:

I am only interested in coating the inside of the live well. Not all the panels and lid/covers.

Need further advice! :help:

 

[Woodonglass]

Uhmmm not really. It is Polyester based, however it has other properties that allow it to "Stand Alone" as a coating. If you think about it if it WERE exactly like Poly resin, when the hull flexed it would crack very easily. As you know it doesn't or we'd see some nasty looking fiberglass hulls. Not sure why I didn't think of it before. Either method will work but...I think the Gelcoat would be the better of the two. You could even add a bit of Cabosil to it to allow for a thicker coating. It's 99.9% water proof and it would fill those pin holes nicely. It will probably need some sanding if you want a really NICE finish but...If you take care you can roll on a fairly smooth finish that wouldn't require much sanding in the end.

 

[sphelps]

Gell coat was my thought as well ..
Should seal things up nicely .just keep an eye out for cracks that may develop and treat as nessessary ..

 

[gm280]

Okay guys, I will work towards that end now. Thanks for taking the time to edumacating me....again. :facepalm:

 

[gm280]

One other question for you two, I have some tractor supply gray paint with the hardener, would that work to seal the inside or is that not a good idea either? I bought it a few months ago to use inside the rod and storage boxes and then decided to go the gray liquid pigment and poly route seeing how I needed to water-proof those areas and thought colored poly would work. And basically that did work and well too. But I never opened up that quart of paint and was THINKING again about it. Some times that isn't a good thing for me to do.

 

[Woodonglass]

Yup, it would, 2-3 coats of it would work very well. IMHO Gelcoat would work the best but the Paint IS very durable and would do the trick.

 

[gm280]

Yup, it would, 2-3 coats of it would work very well. IMHO Gelcoat would work the best but the Paint IS very durable and would do the trick.

Okay WOG, if Gel Coat is the best route, then Gel Coat it is. Thanks again for taking the time to reply. :joyous:

 

[gm280]

Well I did receive my latest order of 435 polyester resin and gray liquid pigment from US Composites in just two days. Those folks are get to work with if anybody is interested. However, thinking the Gel Coat route now, I noticed that they only sell one color Gel Coat. And that is white. So you have to buy the liquid pigment and mix the color you want. Wish I would have bought a quart when I placed this last order. :facepalm:

 

[Woodonglass]

Do you have any Local marinas or suppliers that might have Gelcoat?