Re: quick stringer questions??
I used ACX for my entire rebuild. How long it will last, I couldn't tell you, but I sleep at night knowing that the original wood wasn't as good as the ACX was and it lasted 33 years. I did make sure every bit of that wood was well soaked with resin and glassed in, there is not a single bit of exposed dry wood in my boat, except my head when I forget a hat. <br /><br />The key is how you care for the boat after you do the repairs. Keep it covered, make sure all through-hull fittings and hardware are well sealed, and just do everything you can to prevent water from getting in. I find myself obsessively checking my bilge, and of course it is always bone dry despite the fact I keep it in the water.<br /><br />You can use pressure treated but it needs to be dry. Marine grade ply is a good bet too, but the regular ACX if treated properly should last as long as you need it to. You can marry the new wood to the old wood, it is done all the time, just make sure the old section you are marrying up to is sound, well sanded, and clean. Do not use 5200 to try to bong the stringer to the hull, it isn't necessary. Make sure the stringer fits as good as you can, and whip up a thickened batch of resin, the consistancy of peanut butter. There are fillers available. Use that under the stringer, it will fill any small voids and provide a minimal bond. The actual glassing the stringer in is the main bond you will get. Make sure you glass all the way to the top of the stringer, it is stronger that way and protects the wood from water better. My stringers were only glassed about 6 inches up, its no wonder the wood rotted away to mulch. Make sure you glass the entire exposed surface of the floor, using a good strip of roving to join it to the sides and transome, and a layer of mat or cloth for the rest. The roving should extend at least 6 inches up and out. You could glass the underside of the floor, but I feel that just soaking it liberally with resin is enough. Try to provide passive ventilation for the non-foamed portions of the bilge, air flow will cut down on condensation, which is what ends up rotting the floor from underneath.<br /><br />Resin is resin. Doesn't matter what name is on the can. What does matter is the type of resin. Polyester works fine, its what I used, its what the boat is originally built with, but it is not as tolerant to poorly prepped surfaces and it stinks so bad you need a respirator. Epoxy is a better way to go, it is stronger, a little more tolerant to poorly prepped surface, but you should still have it as sanded and clean as humanly possible. It has very little odor. It is quite spendy though, which is why I used Polyester resin. Hope this helps a little, good luck...
. Just wondering if anyone has had any problems "after the fact"?<br /><br />4) Last one !! I bought evercoat resin but now I am wondering if I should return it for West System ?<br /><br />Thanks for your time guys!!<br /><br /> Boat Pics