Another floor replacement question

[dskel1122]

First off this forum is amazing and the people here are fantastic for helping others........

Restoring a lil 16 footer (not sure of make) with 55HP Johnson and this one needed the whole works; transom, stringers, floor and redesigned front casting deck. Having a blast doing it and spen around 2-3 hours nightly on here reading and trying to take in all the info.

I have searched all over but cant seem to get answer
1.) could I lay the floor in while the poly resin is still wet (underside) on top of the stringers or should I let if cure up and then just lay in with PL adhesive?

2.) Once transom is in place and I drill out the holes for the transom plate I am guessing that I seal with more poly resin (inside holes) but was curious that if there is any movement on the bolts would that crack resin on edges of wood so should I apply any other sealant (dont want to do all this work only to have bolt movement ruin seal.)

Thanks in advance for the help/info.....

 

[danond]

Re: Another floor replacement question

Either of your floor ideas works fine. I'd lay it down wet, personally, with plenty of thickened epoxy between. I love that stuff. I look for reasons to use it.

As far as the holes from the transom plate - coat with resin, when installing the bolts, use 3M 5200 sealant all over. You'll be fine.

 

[drewpster]

Re: Another floor replacement question

I plan to use epoxy to bond the underside of my deck to the tops of the stringers. I am still not completely sold on using PL premium as a fiberglass glue. I did a little test by gluing two pieces of fiberglass together. I let it set over night. I was able to pull the pieces apart. I did however find that the PL remained flexible after curing so I will use it as a bedding compound. To be fair the pieces I glued together were just lying around. I only wiped them clean. It may bond better to properly cleaned glass.

The bolt holes in your transom should be sealed using 3M 5200 or a comparable marine grade sealant. Drill the holes slightly over sized, seal them with resin as you normally would, then use 5200 to finish the seal off as you install the bolts. The thin coat of 5200 on the bolt should protect the hole and give a water tight seal.

 

[pbenoit]

Re: Another floor replacement question

Plexus adhesive or a Methacrylate adhesive works great for bonding glass to glass, expensive, but when its down its down for good if done properly. Wet glass will also be good providing your floor hits all the stringers evenly. I`ve seen thickened epoxy crack and let go due to flexing. 5200 or sikaflex would also do a good job. I would do 1 of the first 2 suggestions personally. As for the transom, if it is wood, coat the holes with epoxy and use a good sealant.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Another floor replacement question

Poly resin, by itself, doesn't do anything. You need epoxy or 5200 for sealing the holes.

I kind of half-assed read this forum before doing some work on my boat 2 years ago and I "sealed" a piece of plywood for my outer transom plate with just poly resin. No glass or anything. After one season it had pretty well delaminated.

 

[special_kaye]

Re: Another floor replacement question

The bolt holes in your transom should be sealed using 3M 5200 or a comparable marine grade sealant. Drill the holes slightly over sized, seal them with resin as you normally would, then use 5200 to finish the seal off as you install the bolts. The thin coat of 5200 on the bolt should protect the hole and give a water tight seal.

This sounds perfect. Though, you could probably get away with something a little easier on the bond than the 5200.

 

[F14CRAZY]

Re: Another floor replacement question

I'd use peanut butter between the stringers and where the deck meets the hull, along with screws using the predrill/fill/countersink procedure, AND with peanut butter fillets where the deck meets the hull.