1988 Bayliner Capri Deck Rebuild!!! Help

[capri09]

Hey everyone!

I've been on the site for about a week just checkin out how to work on my boat. But now ive decided to ask some questions. I have been workin for about 4 days and so far i got the most part of the floor out hoping that the dry rot was limited which it was...thank god....but all the foam is soaked! so i sadly need to remove the the entire deck. so my question is..how can i remove the two main seat bases without wrecking them so i can re-use them? FYI the transom and stringers are surprisingly fine, had a big smile when i saw that! this is my first boat and first boat project, i wouldnt be doin this but it was my grandfathers who passed away a couple years ago and left it to me so its got a persoal value! any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[lowkee]

Re: 1988 Bayliner Capri Deck Rebuild!!! Help

First things first, Welcome to iboats!

Okay, now for the reality check; You won't know if your stringers are good/bad until you get the deck out. How did you determine the transom was immune to all of this standing water (aka, soggy foam)? You will either need to drill core samples or remove the outdrive (which requires an alignment tool for reinstall). There really isn't another reliable method. You may get away with just removing the drain plug and poking around, as that is the lowest point and likely to rot first.

As for the seat bases, you can use a metal cut-off disc on a grinder to stay close to the base. You may lose about 1/4" when reinstalling, but you can always shim them back up or just use some extra bedding to life them a bit. You may find the seat bases are just as toast as the decking is, as they are sometimes glassed in at the same time as the deck (as the case with my '90 Capri), so water will transfer between the two and rot them both.

Just in case you can't reuse the seat bases, now would be a good time to grab some cardboard and make some templates using the existing seat bases. That way you have a working template ready if you need to cut new ones form 1/2" plywood. Making measurements ahead of time is VERY important, as once it is ripped apart, it barely resembles a boat, let alone what it looks like now. I've found myself looking at my hull and wondering what went where MANY times. Not a good thing

An important note for any project: Be sure the power plant is 100% before going through the restore. Without a powerplant, it is just a floating tub and not likely worth fixing, unless money is of little concern. I don't mean to sound like a Debby Downer, but the reality checks all of us restorers hit is one of "Wow, this is more than I thought". Most of us take it in stride, but sometimes the funds, time and patience don't allow it.

Here is a top 10 list I modified for my restore, which humorously seems to meet the same learning process of many restores on here:

The 10 steps of restoration denial:

1. That soft spot just needs a patch
2. The foam will dry out once I seal the deck
3. It's just the deck, the stringers are fine
4. i don't have to pull the engine; I can work around it
5. The transom feels solid
6. I won't have to remove the cap, plenty of room
7. i will just buy a couple of gallons of resin
8. $1,000 is plenty for a job like this
9. I should be on the water by the end of the month
10. I need a beer! Nothing is going as planned!

Welcome to the club! We're all in this boat together.

 

[capri09]

Re: 1988 Bayliner Capri Deck Rebuild!!! Help

Hey! Thanks for the reply, thats kind of what i was edging towards doin, making a template and cuttin it out the best i can! the transom is good, i drilled and took a sample, none of the bolts in the transom are lose or week, there is no leak of any kind, the sample seemed fine..all in all gonna inject some of the dry rot stuff into it just to be on the safe side but no reason to rip it apart if theres nothin to hint towards a problem ...i lost the deck cause the winter tarp went to hell and i didnt realize it till it was to late ....but all interior wood is junk but everything else is good...on to the stringers, i have the deck out all the way minus the seat bases so i can see all of the stringers, granted maybe 3 inches of one....got the new wood already and fiberglass ready....got the new carpet...just waitin on orderin some foam from us composites! do u suggest the 2LB or 4LB, the foam seems to have some kind of structural integrity so i was thinkin 4LB?

thanks again

 

[capri09]

Re: 1988 Bayliner Capri Deck Rebuild!!! Help

oh p.s whats the best way to remove the vinyl on the inside of the boat there doesnt seem to be any screws or anything to get them off that i can see anyways!

 

[lowkee]

Re: 1988 Bayliner Capri Deck Rebuild!!! Help

Rock on! Sounds like you did your reading and are quite far along! You did the right thing on the transom test and dodged a big bullet (although it isn't too bad replacing one). I'm not sure on which weight foam to use, as I'm going cold turkey on mine (no foam). There is at least one other 88 b'liner resto happening here, so you can likely check out their threads for confirmation.

As for the inside vinyl, look inthe seams between the color changes, as bayliner hid the mounting screws in there. There were a few screws on mine which were from the outside in, meaning I had to reach under the gunwhale to unscrew them. I found it easiest to find them by simply pulling in the part I wanted to remove and looking for a bend. That would indicate where a screw was. From there just remove it and repeat the process.