Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

[WacoV156]

Hello iboats!

I have been reading posts for about a year to build up the courage to tackle my current project. No, not the kitchen remodel that I told my wife 2-4 weeks tops (5 months ago) but a 1973 Glastron V-156. Lucky for me there is a lot of great info already posted for this boat and small fiberglass boats in general so I haven't had to ask any new questions but now that I am buried knee-deep in rotting transom and fiberglass dust some issues have popped up. Here is what I have done so far:

1. Removed motor and interior. The motor currently sits on an engine stand in the garage.

2. The deck has been separated from the hull and completely removed.

3. The floor has been completely removed but I still have some grinding to do on the edges.

4. Today I ground off the fiberglass mat and scooped out the transom (most of it).

Here is my issue (at least the only one I am going to talk about today).

I scraped all the rotted wood off of the transom area. I am a little confused on how far I scrape to. Right now there is a very thin layer of wood that does not chip off without chipping the glass off underneath it. Here is where it get's more confusing. Under this wood/glass layer there is woven roving and it is dry (no evidence of resin). The rest of the hull uses the same roving but it is completely cured with resin. I started chipping at the wood/glass layer along some cracks which turn out to be due to issues on the outer side of the transom. The gelcoat is cracked and indented around one of the motor mount bolts.

This is getting long so I will cut to the chase.

1. Do I scrape the wood/glass/woven roving off down to the gel coat or do I want to leave a layer of fiberglass?

2. If I am supposed to leave that last layer of glass but it is not cured correctly (my dry mat issue) where does that leave me in terms of options?

Here is a current slideshow link that hopefully shows the details :
http://s812.photobucket.com/albums/zz41/wacov156/?albumview=slideshow

Thanks!

 

[oops!]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

ok.....

it looks like you are doing good so far....ya gotta love the itch !
(dont wash your clothes in your wifes machine or every body in your house will itch....incuding the sheets !)

the transom needs to go down to the fiberglass.....just like the sides of the hull.

that piece of roving confuses me

but basically.....if it isnt resined into place.....you can just pull it off. remember....its just cloth. and if its loose in there it is useless by now.

if you cant pull it off....then grind down to it...

use a rubber backing pad on the grinder with a 24 grit disc and you will be done in minits.

use 2 layers of csm over the roving and apply the resin liberally...

 

[oops!]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

by the way.....welcome to i boats !

 

[WacoV156]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

Thanks oops!

I will keep posting my progress as I move forward. On my one issue with the transom where the outer gel coat layer is cracked from the engine mounting bolt should I just cut the damaged area out and then fix with filler after I have replaced the transom?

I am going to have to read the photobucket directions again. I can't get the pic to embed but it is on the slideshow in my first post.

 

[jcsercsa]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

Welcome there WacoV156, Great ride !! love mine !! On the transom there was a bedding stuff that was harder then steel , it was a pain to grind, but you got to get it flat ! thats what it looks like in the pic ooops posted !!

On the transom , I wouldn't cut it out , you should glass it with a couple layers of glass before you put in the transom !! you will have to fix the gel coat on the out side , but thats down the road !!

second are you going to put drainage in from the front to the back ?

Ok keep us posted on how its going !! John

 

[WacoV156]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

Thanks for the Transom advice John. I am planning on adding drainage all the way through. It blew my mind to pull the floor off and find that there was no drains from the hull into the bilge area. No wonder everything rots with time (besides the fact that it is wood and wood rots with time). I have been on your photobucket album before. If I remember correctly you added some sort of pvc drain. I will look at it again before I get too far along.

thanks,
Jason

 

[jcsercsa]

Re: Glastron V-156 floor and transom replacement

yep I cut 2 in pvc pipe in half and just glassed it to the center stringer!! John

PS yea they sure didnt build them very good . did they !!