1980 Terry bass boat restoration...it begins!

[BackyardKrazy]

Well I bought a project boat. I love a good challenge and here it is. Its a 1980 Jerry Bass Boat. I debated over buying and fixing up this one, or just going out and purchasing a turn key boat. But I just loved the size of this one...its only 16ft and I can push it off the trailer without floating it off. I need to do that in some of the lakes here because the water doesn't get deep enough soon enough.

I know i may get some strange looks, and i was just as hesitant but i like the Force 125 strapped to the back. Its got a crazy 2 second hole shot and will go 46 mph. The engine works well, i have been working out some bugs before i stripped it down. Just simple things like fuel pump diaphragm and spark plugs. gave her a Seafoam treatment as well. Lots of helpful tips from IBoats, one trick to repair the power trim alone saved me hundreds... Amazing bunch of people on here.

Here she is as I bought it:

The paint is coming off everywhere, been painted a few times and not sanded.... theres no seats really, and just a plywood floor. So this weekend i started tearing it apart. Literally....

As you can see, the old plywood floor had been removed that would have been on top of the foam and stringers.... yes we know whats next.

After an hour and 50 rivets or so shes apart.


Now Im just in the process of removing all the foam and stringers... Shes getting a frame off restoration LOL!

Sorry that ones blurry, but you get the idea.


I'm super pumped on the project, and thanks TallCanadian for the advice on where to get supplies here in Nova Scotia! I'm in Bridgewater by the way.

 

[tallcanadian]

Nice looking boat. She flies too. I left mine on my trailer too, just keep in mind that it's flimsy so you may have to make sure that it stays square and not twist when you start rebuilding. I tied a strap around mine just to help keep the sides straight.

 

[gm280]

Okay, I like the hull lines and would like to tag along with this refurbishing project too if that is okay with you. :thumb:

 

[jrttoday]

just put some milk crates in it and let's go fishing!! Nah, seriously, that's going to be one nice boat when you're done!

 

[DeepBlue2010]

Who give a hoot about the hull lines, I like the hotty in the poster behind you.

I will be joining as well.

 

[tallcanadian]

Who give a hoot about the hull lines, I like the hotty in the poster behind you.

I will be joining as well.

What kind of eyes do you have in your head? lol. How did you see that.?

 

[DeepBlue2010]

What kind of eyes do you have in your head? lol. How did you see that.?

The kind that never misses this kind of beauty my friend. :bowl::bowl:

 

[BackyardKrazy]

Ah my calendar girl..... I have another one to the right in photo of October. My wife buys me a "garage" calendar every year for xmas, and i can never part with them! :lol:

I got the rest of the stringers out tonight, as well as the transom wood. The transom wasn't rotten, but totally water logged. I bet my top speed will go up after removing 200 lbs of water logged foam and wood.... I am very serious when i say I'm glad I started with the worst part of this project.

Hopefully by tomorrow night ill have the inside all smoothed out. I'm going to rinse it out with the hose, its wet now anyways. I can put a fan on it and dry it out for a few days while i cut the new stringers and transom out of the plywood.

I ordered some cloth and resin from NAPA today, 33yd2 for $40, and $42 per gallon of poly resin. Its a start.

I think I will go with the construction foam instead of pour in, way more affordable. Do you think a little hardware low expansion spray in foam around the edges will hurt to fill in the gaps?

 

[DeepBlue2010]

What type of cloth you ordered?

 

[gm280]

Ah my calendar girl..... I have another one to the right in photo of October. My wife buys me a "garage" calendar every year for xmas, and i can never part with them! :lol:

I got the rest of the stringers out tonight, as well as the transom wood. The transom wasn't rotten, but totally water logged. I bet my top speed will go up after removing 200 lbs of water logged foam and wood.... I am very serious when i say I'm glad I started with the worst part of this project.

Hopefully by tomorrow night ill have the inside all smoothed out. I'm going to rinse it out with the hose, its wet now anyways. I can put a fan on it and dry it out for a few days while i cut the new stringers and transom out of the plywood.

I ordered some cloth and resin from NAPA today, 33yd2 for $40, and $42 per gallon of poly resin. Its a start.

I think I will go with the construction foam instead of pour in, way more affordable. Do you think a little hardware low expansion spray in foam around the edges will hurt to fill in the gaps?

BYK, DON'T use the spray can expanding foam. It is not closed cell and will soak up water like a sponge. Use mix and pour if you want closed cell floatation foam. And if you haven't already done so, you have to grind the old material down to quality pink glass before installing anything back in. Because the new polyester will not attach to the old stuff and cause problems otherwise. If you plan on buying polyester for the entire project, think 5 gallon bucket sizes instead of one gallon cans. The cost is a heck of a lot less in five gallon size buckets. And you need CSM (Chopped Strange Mat) and 1708 biaxial material and not fiberglass woven clothe. Regular fiberglass clothe will not work with polyester resin. CSM and 1708 will. JMHO!

 

[BackyardKrazy]

Thanks for the advise GM, thats what I was hoping for here. I was going to pick up some chopped matt as well.
Heres a pic of what i ordered for cloth:

I chose this because its very similar to what the factory used to attach the stringers down. I'm going to grind it all out tonight, down to nice clean roughed up glass. i cant justify the cost of pour in foam, Maybe I'm wrong but under perfect conditions 1 two gal kit makes 4 cubic feet? thats for 2lb foam. I'd need I'm guessing minimum 2 kits....at $150-200 a pop....not gonna happen. MAYBE, could I use a $40 sheet of construction foam as a filler, and pour one kit around the blocks to fill in the gaps?

TC, how much did you pay for a 5gal pail of resin in Dartmouth?

 

[gm280]

BYK, I bought everything for my project boat from U S Composites in Florida. And yes I did have to pay for shipping AND hazmat fees as well. But It still cost less then five one gallon purchases you listed. I think a five gallon size bucket cost me $180 dollars delivered. And you can buy the 1708 fiberglass and CSM from them in any size you need as well. So check them out and do some reading on these forums for how others did their boat refurbishing's. Lots to read and learn...and for free! The biaxial fiberglass is actually two materials sewn together. It is fiberglass woven one side with CSM sewn to it on the other side to make a really stout material to install stringers, transoms and flooring. CSM is used to waterproof the wood you use, of course with polyester resin. Most use the 435 laminate resin that they sell. JMHO!

 

[DeepBlue2010]

Foam isn?t just a filler m8, it is for floatation. If the boat starts to take water for whatever reason (you hit a submerged log or what have you), you are responsible for retrieving the boat from the bottom and pay all the fees for that plus the environmental cleaning fees. This is one large, fat bill makes the $400 look like a change


Foam ? calculated correctly - will keep the boat from submerging and will make bringing her back to shore much easier & cheaper. It is one of the cheapest insurance you can buy for your boat, I wouldn?t cut corners here, not on this one


I would return the fabric you ordered and get me some 1708 and use it for the whole build.

I personally use vinyl ester resin but laminating resin will work just fine

 

[tallcanadian]

A lot of great advise so far. I can't remember what I paid now for five gallon pails. I do believe around 150 each. The pour in foam was 180 for a one gallon kit of 4 lb. as far as any gaps in the new floor, stringers or transom you will need to mix up a batch of peanut butter for the gaps. It will harden like steel. How are you building your transom ? I had to use two pieces of marine grade plywood bonded together to get the right thickness.

 

[Woodonglass]

BYK, These two links might be of some help to get you started...
Living in Canada complicates things a bit, since obtaining fiberglassing materials is not quite as easy as it is for us here in the U.S. All the advice you've been getting is sound. Buying in bulk IS the best way to go and the materials mentioned are the best ones to use. Do a lot of searching on the forum for how to replace Decks, Stringers and Transoms and you'll find plenty of examples of how our members have done theirs and the techniques they've use to get excellent results.

We'll be here to answer any and all question you have during your restoration.


Fabricating Decks, Stringers, and Transoms

 

[BackyardKrazy]

Oh boy, you guys are really tapping into my interior and fancy gauges money... :nightmare:

So if I'm going to order some resin, matt and foam from either Florida or local, Id like to buy it just once so I'm not stuck in the middle on a weekend running out of materials...

The two center stringers are about 12ft long, the two outside ones approx 10ft and 48" apart filled with foam inside all of it. the deepest part of the boat center is approx 8" from the top of the stringers, and the shallowest 1". Obviously it tapers up the sides to basically nothing. So, how much 1709 should I buy? in sheets or strips? How much foam? I figure if I go with 2lb, which is 4ft2 per two gallon kit, I'll need three kits? Im confident i can achieve maximum expansion, I'll take it to work and do it in a controlled environment.

And what the heck is "peanut butter"???

No sandwich jokes please...


Thanks guys

 

[tallcanadian]

I sense information overload. Try not to get overwhelmed. Everyone has an opinion but remember, it's your boat. You can do it how you want to but one thing we all want is it to be safe. Remember, you have all winter to work on this. You don't have to go out and buy all your supplies at once. A little here, a little there. It won't seem to be so expensive. Do the transom one weekend, the stringers over a couple of weekends, etc. And besides, if you run out of supplies, I can run them down to you. lol. Don't worry about buying stuff in the U.S. There are too many fees now the make purchases very expensive. I use to buy all my stuff state side but not now.

I'm glad that Woodonglass has chimed in. He can explain peanut butter better than anyone. He gave me my recipe. And no, cookies are not included.

I would like to take a run down your way sometime. I'm tied up this weekend with my boat but maybe next week.

 

[BackyardKrazy]

Hey that sounds great! Thanks for the reassurance, it actually is overwhelming. I imagined more fun stuff like picking out seats rather than figuring out what type of fiberglass and foam to buy. And being too naive to know id be into the actual frame on this project. But, I will conquer it. I like the boat, its worth it. I have dabbled in fiberglass matting over the years, just never this seriously.

I have to work all weekend anyways, we are expanding our shop so I have to be there to let the contractor in.... oh well I'll tinker at my truck and probably do some paper work. It would be nice to meet you, drop in to the Busted Knuckle Garage and you can have a look at what I've gotten myself into!

I just worked a 11 hr day today, we are really behind at work, so I was just to tired to work at the boat tonight. The couch was way too appealing!

 

[Woodonglass]

Peanut Butter is the name we give the filler used to fill gaps and gouges and fillets on your boat. It's made by thickening the polyester resin using cabosil. You can also add chopped milled fibers to the mix to make it more structural. The formula I like to start with is 1000 cc of Resin, 1500 cc of cabosil and 500 cc of chopped fibers when you want to use them. Typically the fibers are used when gluing the transom to the boat, making fillets, and bedding the stringers to the hull and filling the gap between the deck and the sides of the hull. You want the PB to be about the consistency of mayonaise. Remember it's always easier to add more cabosil than it is to remove it so make it a little runny to begin with. Don't get carried away with the fibers. A little goes a long ways. Using a large teflon spoon makes it easy to make nice concave fillets. Dipping the spoon in Acetone will help make em nice and smooth. Neatness really counts. You don't want any nubs and stickups when it cures. It really needs to be smooth and flat. take your time and be precise.

Also check out this old post...http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...pair/392114-fiberglass-supplies-for-canadians

 

[geewilligers]

I can tell that having worked for the past 24 years as a NASBLA (National Association of Boating Law Administrators) certified boat accident investigator, the two-part spray in foam does VERY little in aiding in floatation once it is saturated. You would be surprised at how many boats we have to lift off the bottom of the lakes with lift bags that have this type of foam in them, and some of those boats are only a couple of years old. I have actually taken some of the foam from these boats and thrown it in the shallow part of the lake and watched it sink. I am not saying that I know a better product, but the spray in foam certainly doesnt seem to be the best. The foam blocks that are usually used in open jon boats does work well, even when the boat is uncovered and left out in the elements year after year, as long as the mice and rodents dont get to it.