"Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

[Huron Angler]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I have not seen where anyone answered the question "are the stringers important to the integrity of the hull?"

YES they are(transfer stress from the transom to the hull, support the deck and tie the hull in together), and rather than sugarcoat it for you...you are probably looking at a complete deck and stringer rebuild. It is not something that you have to pay someone to do, but it will not be easy either.

Have you checked out the transom? The boat is 20 years old so the faded seats are the least of your concerns.

The exterior hull and engine look great so I think you will be very happy with the rig in the end. I love that era of Wellcrafts, the boats look like they want to jump up on plane and cruise

Good luck to ya with the project!

 

[Friscoboater]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

The problem with a rotten boat is...

1. The engine could get out of alignment due to sagging, rotten mounts. (Mine is)
2. The stringers provide stiffness and tie the transom to the hull
3. Having rotten stringers and deck can cause the boat to flex and possibly crack the hull.
4. The stringers are like studs in a house... or your skeleton. You could run around on a broken leg, but would you want too?

Decks rot from the inside out, and a soft spot means it is wet under the deck. Water was just sitting between the foam and the stringers in my boat. You could even see where water had frozen and split the stringers.

Don't worry man, it is all fixable. It seems you might be in the first stage of boat restoration.

Denial.

I think I am somewhere in the acceptance/action phase. Does anyone have the full list handy?

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I've been on a boat twice in my life, and I know almost nothing about them. I was hoping to get some time on the water before I had to worry about a major repair like this. If I tear into it and it looks bad, I might just sell it and get back into muscle cars. we'll see.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I have not seen where anyone answered the question "are the stringers important to the integrity of the hull?"

YES they are(transfer stress from the transom to the hull, support the deck and tie the hull in together), and rather than sugarcoat it for you...you are probably looking at a complete deck and stringer rebuild. It is not something that you have to pay someone to do, but it will not be easy either.

Have you checked out the transom? The boat is 20 years old so the faded seats are the least of your concerns.

The exterior hull and engine look great so I think you will be very happy with the rig in the end. I love that era of Wellcrafts, the boats look like they want to jump up on plane and cruise

Good luck to ya with the project!

Tell me if this was a good transom check:

With the drive lowered, I stood on it and hopped up and down, to see if the transom was flexing. It was rock solid. I also knocked on it with my fist in several places. It was hard and making a uniform "thud" throughout.

I am afraid that I will need to do a total rebuild, but based on the integrity of the rest of the boat, I'm still going to proceed as if I only have to do a patch, until I find out otherwise.

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

That sounds like a pretty reasonable check on the transom. Other than that there are devices out there that marinas/surveyors use that can detect moisture. I'm not sure how to get access to one other than paying a marine surveyor though. They are probably expensive.

You could get lucky and this might be a bad spot. As mentioned it's tough to tell without tearing into it.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I got curious today so I enlisted the help of my high school aged neighbor to help me hack into the deck. We used a circular saw to cut away pieces of the deck. I cut an 18" square around the affected area I found yesterday, and just kept going until I found dry, high quality wood. This is the entire area I ended up hacking out.

There was more damage than I would have liked, but less than I expected. The part that worries me is that the stringer that connects to the transom in the top center of this picture is the worst of all of the damage. that wood directly underneath the steering ram is basically potting soil at this point.

here is a close up of the potting soil stringer. The beams that the engine are mounted to are rock solid, but this piece outboard of them is trashed.

This is forward of the engine, where the stringers stop being terrible and start to keep thier structural integrity.

Up near the front, everything seemed to be in near perfect condition. I figured out that if the wood was in good shape, the saw would spit out light colored sawdust. If the wood was rotted, it would spit out used chewing tobacco looking sawdust.

 

[archbuilder]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

Sorry to see your rot...I try to be optimistic, but I suspect the other are right about needing a floor / stringer replacement...and maybe the transom. It isn't all that complicated, just takes some elbow grease and perseverance. The best part is most of the repair doesn't need to look good, just be structurally sound.

As for the gelcoat, 3M makes some great rubbing compounds that will have her looking like new. You will probably want to start with the superduty, and work you way to something finer.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

Here are my questions about these repairs:

1) what type of wood should I use for the deck?
2) what type of wood should I use for the stringers?
3) what type of glue should I use to glue the stringers to the hull?
4) Can I use a fiberglass kit that find at LOWES to cover all this stuff, or should I buy a dedicated marine kit?
5) why is that foam stuff soo hard to get out?
6) What type of saw should I use to get the super rotted stringer away from the transom without damaging the transom?
7) anyone got any other useful hints/tips/tricks?

 

[R Socey]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

My wellcraft 1983, 248 ( 24'8" ) fisherman had a spongy floor. The stringers were rotten, but the transom was fine. I would suggest that you tare out as little as possible, and use
it. The more you tare into it; the more you see, and a struct-
ual redo is for boat lovers only!

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

That is my plan. I didn't buy this boat to tear it apart. I bought it to rage around on the atlantic. I'm going replace the mushy stringers, fiberglass them all up, then patch up the deck, paint it, and call it good.

 

[wellcraft-classic210]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I bought my boat 88 wellcraft last spring on craigs list and have been restoring it also. Had a similar problem behind the passenger seat that leed to a repair and am now doing the divers rear floor section and 1 of the stringers after gaining confidence with that.

These were very well made durable boats with nice lines.

Please some answers to your questions in the next thread that will hopefully be of some help


Good luck.

 

[wellcraft-classic210]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

[1)what type of wood should I use for the deck?
---Marine plywwod is best / MDO is a plywood used for signs thats fair /some use CDX , or pressure treated from a local build supply store. Cdx will degrade quicker tahn other if the moisture returns & pressure trated is hard to keep flat.
( personally I am using MDO)
2) what type of wood should I use for the stringers?
---If its 3/4 wide like my wellcraft classic 210 that it was most likely poplar / consider plywood or poplar as a replacement.
3) what type of glue should I use to glue the stringers to the hull?
---Are you planning to strip the foam and existing fiberglass out around the old stringers? I ask because I have had some luck in digging out rotted parts and slipping in pre-cut ones at a signiicant cost and time savings.
---In either case most would agree that the strigers and new floor are best coated and bedded in epoxy.
---Check out us composites or west systems epoxy on the www.

----West is more expensive but generlly perceived to to be a top end product. ( check out the free instruction guides for west epoxy if your looking for a very good detailed tutorial on epoxy usage)

4) Can I use a fiberglass kit that find at LOWES to cover all this stuff, or should I buy a dedicated marine kit?
--- ( see above - I use US composites epoxy )
5) why is that foam stuff soo hard to get out?
--- Its poured in place and adheres to all the surfaces--( Try a hack saw blad with tape on one end for a handle or carefully use a sawzall ) -- Save what you can its costly
6) What type of saw should I use to get the super rotted stringer away from the transom without damaging the transom?
---- ( I uses a sabre saw , die grinder, chisels etc. / some like to use the roto zip multi master
7) anyone got any other useful hints/tips/tricks?

----I bought my boat 88 wellcraft last spring on Craigs list and have been restoring it also. I had a similar problem behind the passenger seat that lead to a repair and I am now doing the divers rear floor section and 1 of the stringers after gaining confidence with that.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

---Are you planning to strip the foam and existing fiberglass out around the old stringers? I ask because I have had some luck in digging out rotted parts and slipping in pre-cut ones at a signiicant cost and time savings.
---In either case most would agree that the strigers and new floor are best coated and bedded in epoxy

I do plan on hacking out all the old foam, and putting in new plywood stringers. I'll coat them in epoxy, and glue them to the inside of the hull with epoxy.

 

[1983rinker]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

http://www.hurrikain.com/vertglas_gel_coat_info.htm

Try this to bring life in the paint.

 

[wellcraft-classic210]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

One thought
You may want to be sure any seems in the plywood deck are reinforced with a board underneath and properly glued and screwed as these areas will tend to get cracks and allow water to enter over time if not reinforced. I have used short stranded tiger hair ( known as kitty hair ) with good success to fill any gaps. Some use epoxy with fillers & refer to ist as peanut butter for its consistency.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I spent most of the weekend working on the boat. I dug out all the foam that was exposed, and dug out the wet stringers. They still had impressive structural integrity, they were just soaked with water. It was easier to chip them out with a crowbar than it was to saw them out, so thats what I did.

I bought some 3/4" thick poplar planks, and cut them to shape as replacement stringers. The two that are adjacent to the transom turned out to have a terrible fit, so I need to redo them. I should have the rest of the stringers done next weekend, and then I'll fiberglass everything into place.

The more I dig into this boat, the more moist spots I find here and there. Honestly, if I had the time, I would hack it all to pieces for a complete resto. I barely have enough time to do this repair though, and overall the structural integrity seems strong, so I'm gonna enjoy the boat this season before I think about tearing it apart.

 

[Friscoboater]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I feel your pain. The bad thing is that the moisture will spread to your repair and you will have made.

 

[jumpjets]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I feel your pain. The bad thing is that the moisture will spread to your repair and you will have made.

I know that it will. Here is my thought process:

Compared to all the picutes I've seen on this website regarding stringer and deck build style, this wellcraft is put together like an M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank. It's got redundant reinforcement EVERYWHERE. Even though I'm seeing some moisture here and there, I think that this boat with wet stringers is still more sturdy than most boats with new fresh dry stringers.

I'm new to boating. I've never actually driven a boat before. My wife was really going out on a limb letting me buy this thing. She is looking forward to riding in it. If I spend alot of time and money on it now, it's gonna discourage her, and she's gonna want to sell it.

By only repairing the worst of it right now, I'm giving myself a good quality low dollar learning boat. If, after this summer, the wife and I decide that we like boating enough to stick with it, then I'll pull this wellcraft apart and do a full, hi quality resto. I don't mind if the moisture spreads to the $27 worth of wood I have in it right now. It'll get replaced once I commit to a full resto.

 

[fat fanny]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

As Frisco said which I agree and didn't want to comment because of the fact I have never done this task yet! knock wood but if you do not remove all the infected water intruded wood you are wasting your time,money and effort. That rig has allot of potential and why waste your time when you have the opportunity to do it complete and right the 1st time instead of a band aid

 

[wellcraft-classic210]

Re: "Freshening" up a 1990 wellcraft eclipe 216

I remember feeling the same way my fiirst season as I to spend $ for purchasing , $ for repairs & debug, $ for fuel & water toys (tube & skis etc) and lots of labor as I made repairs and learned so many things as a die hard do it yourselfer.
My wife had actually suggested I make a boat purchuse and I was eager to fullfill her dreams with a used but basicly solid boat. She became less supportive as the size and cost of the project became apparent over the first few months. The boat was in good shape overall but needed lots of TLC on the trailer and misc boat items. Luckily we are into winter here in Vermont which is giving us a break and most ( but not all ) of the repairs have been done.

If you can get through the first season things should get easier after that. Or at least thats what I have been telling myself and still beleive as I look forward to season 2.

While this is perhaps not the perfect repair --If you can epoxy coat your repairs and keep your deck sealed you should be able to do it in sections. I personally dont feel that it is essential to have avery bit of rotten wood out of the boat at all times. Engine stringers and transom should obviously get reaired asap. The others will be their when you get to them.

As you said above these boats were very well constructed. The hulls are very heavy and I doubt a weak stringer will ever be noticed if the plywood is solid on top.

Its also a good idea to get some run time on the boat to allow for setting any priorities on repairs & maintenance and allowing for sime time to learn the finer points of operation. Hopefully having some fun in the process.

Good luck