1993 Chaparral Gemini 190: Chronicles of a New Boat Owner (Deck Rebuild) [SPLASHED June 2018]

[bpounds1991]

I don’t know what’s worse out of it all: having the guy cap and fix my screw mistake, him telling me I should’ve just let him do it from the get go, or me now having paid more than it would’ve cost him to initially do it in 2 weeks

 

[oldrem]

You had an experience of a lifetime and memories you'll have forever. Stories to tell your kids and grandkids. Enjoy the boat now.

 

[tpenfield]

I don’t know what’s worse out of it all: having the guy cap and fix my screw mistake, him telling me I should’ve just let him do it from the get go, or me now having paid more than it would’ve cost him to initially do it in 2 weeks

Don't beat yourself up about the restoration. There is a certain amount of risk that one takes on when doing major work on a boat. I think the knowledge gained is the most valuable, yet most often the cost is less than you would have incurred using a restoration shop. I have seen some 'professional' restoration work, and often a DIY person can give the process more TLC.

You just had a couple of curve balls that came your way. Looking back at my restoration work, the tank installation was the most intense and nerve-racking part of it.

 

[ACon977]

I don’t know what’s worse out of it all: having the guy cap and fix my screw mistake, him telling me I should’ve just let him do it from the get go, or me now having paid more than it would’ve cost him to initially do it in 2 weeks

I would agree with Ted on this 100%. Sure maybe someone else who just does restorations could have done it faster... but not cheaper, and realistically, he would have cut corners that you didnt when you were doing it yourself. As people say on here, once you put the floor on you wont ever see it again, its scary to think what someone could say is "good enough" and then just cover it up.

A huge plus is now you know where all your fittings are, what are screws and what are rivets, where things are glued verses just wedged etc. You know the boat inside and out. Knowledge is much more valuable than anything else. In my opinion.

You nailed this project, Ive been following along wishing I could have made the same pace and outcome you have had. Cheers mate! you deserve it. :thumb::first:

 

[bpounds1991]

Thanks for the words guys, definitely needed a pick-me-up today when he told me the bill for redoing the hose, fitting the tank back in, adding cross members again and cleats, then PBing the floor back down was 1200$ I really just didn’t want to go home to my wife lol. Hopefully 2 bottles of wine I’m picking up might soften the blow to the wallet. Thanks again everyone for the help along the way, I really would’ve never started this excursion had I not had the support from all of you. It has been great at times but also horrible, like you guys have said the experience is priceless. My wife already has a monumental list of other projects to start on now that I’ve been promoted to “junior handyman” LOL

 

[kcassells]

Why don't you just bring it home and do all the work youself? Just wondering.

 

[bpounds1991]

It took them a forklift to get the fuel tank out, so I'm not sure what I could've done at home lol. But after the couple costly mistakes I just wanted them to finish it and get back out on the water. Only thing left for me to do is glass the seams where they laid the wood back in, reconnect the motor fuel line, and reinstall the 2 inspection hatches. Tomorrow we'll probably measure the SeaDek pieces to cut, then add 2 layers of gel coat (last layer with wax).

 

[tpenfield]

Thanks for the words guys, definitely needed a pick-me-up today when he told me the bill for redoing the hose, fitting the tank back in, adding cross members again and cleats, then PBing the floor back down was 1200$ I really just didn’t want to go home to my wife lol.

Amazing how much a misplaced screw can cost. Whenever I drill or screw hardware into a boat, I always think . . . " is this thing going to come out somewhere on the other side?" :noidea:

 

[bpounds1991]

Completely agree tpenfield lol, but it's now behind us and life is moving on (albeit a larger credit card payment LOL). Earlier this week we fit and cut the SeaDek to be put down after our 4th of July vacation to Myrtle Beach. Last Thursday when we got the boat back I laid down 1.5oz CSM over the areas where the deck had been PB'd back down just for a little bit of strength/continuity of the deck before we re-gel coat. We ended up taking the boat out yesterday but brought it back in due to some looming storms in the area. All went well but I've been noticing a couple head scratching things when going full out with the motor. 1) It tops out about 2-3 MPH lower than before the gut job, I'm assuming this is due to the added weight of the materials I used? With it being a 140 HP, I would hope it'd get more than 40 MPH but that's just me. 2) It appears to sit a tad lower in the water. 3) When I gun it with it completely trimmed down it lifts and then planes about 2 seconds after full throttle, and even after I trim it up as high as possible I don't get any bow raising, porpoising, or anything of the like. With as much foam as I put back in it I find it odd that the weight is an issue, but i'm at a loss.

 

[JASinIL2006]

Completely agree tpenfield l1) It tops out about 2-3 MPH lower than before the gut job, I'm assuming this is due to the added weight of the materials I used? With it being a 140 HP, I would hope it'd get more than 40 MPH but that's just me. 2) It appears to sit a tad lower in the water.

These would both be consistent with adding some weight due to your restoration.

3) When I gun it with it completely trimmed down it lifts and then planes about 2 seconds after full throttle, and even after I trim it up as high as possible I don't get any bow raising, porpoising, or anything of the like. With as much foam as I put back in it I find it odd that the weight is an issue, but i'm at a loss.

Not sure what you're saying here... what would foam have to do with the performance you're observing?

 

[ACon977]

I agree with JASinIL2006 about the extra weight. My assumption is that you glassed MUCH better than the factory and now you have a very solid, although slightly heavier, boat.

With as much foam as I put back in it I find it odd that the weight is an issue, but i'm at a loss.

From what I understand, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, foam is not going to help you float higher. The amount of float you get is based on the amount of water you displace. Its actually the weight of the water you displace that is the force upwards. So actually adding foam would add weight and bring you lower.

What foam is used for, is if you get a crack in the hull or submerge the boat. This water doesnt have that space to go within the boat due to the foam resisting the water getting into it. This creates pockets of air which are lighter than the water. so you wont sink, because that air is less dense than the water which fills the rest of your boat. It works the same as a life jacket, if that helps make more sense.

 

[bpounds1991]

Essentially to me it feels like the trim has less of an effect than it did pre-restoration. I could trim it 1/4 and feel it porpoising, drop it down a couple taps with the trim control and it would stop and you could definitely see a shift in the bow height. Now I can trim it to where the prop barely looks like it’s in the water and it appears to have little to no effect on bow height (except for raising RPMs up to 5000-5200 but dropping the speed from 40 to 35-36 MPH). I guess my thinking initially was that the 2LB floatation foam or having slightly less than the factory did might’ve had something to do with it, but like you guys said the added weight of the restoration could easily be the cause. We haven’t had more than 3 people on it yet so it should be interesting to see what happens fully weighed down. We have a busy week ahead so no boat work until after the 4th. Heading to Knoxville to see my niece dance, then to Atlanta this evening for a work conference tomorrow, then back to Greenville to stay at my parents house tomorrow evening before we head to Myrtle Beach for the week. Busy busy lol

 

[Timr71]

Greeneville, TN? or some other Greenville?

 

[bpounds1991]

Greenville, SC

 

[oldrem]

As others are basically saying, foam does not add displacement, it adds weight and is only there to aid if you are sinking.

 

[kcassells]

lol

 

[bpounds1991]

Just wanted to give a little quick update since I've been on vacation. We re-gel coated the entire deck with 2 layers, then applied the SeaDek over the entire thing. With the seat bases and a few different angles, we ended up cutting about 7 different pieces. Overall it turned out pretty well but the wife wants to add just a little more. Today we took the boat out with a total of 5 people...tubing, wake boarding, it handled great no problem. Cruising speed was 35-36 on slightly choppy waters with all 5 people, easily handled 30mph tubing/wake boarding. Only water on board was from wet life jackets

 

[oldrem]

Glad to hear good news! Sit back, have a cold one and enjoy!

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Nice, congratulations!!

 

[ACon977]

great to hear! could you post pics of the SeaDek? any lessons learned? I like your strategy, I'm planning on doing the same gelcoat and SeaDek in my boat