Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Rick I knew what you ment as it kinda falls under common sense. I just wasn't sure if the glass was in good condition if I could keep it, or if it all had to get removed. I ground it smooth and tapered. It was only one layer so my thinking is it can't be too bad. Well I'm off to a 16 hour day at work. I'll catch u guys on the flip. I won't be able to work on the boat this weekend as my 22 year old cousin was killed in afganistan last friday, and his services are Tom and sat. It's really a tragedy.


Thanks for all your input guys.
 

Woodonglass

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Rellik,

KNOW THS!!! MY ENTIRE FAMILY WILL BE PRAYING FOR ALL OF YOUR FAMILY DURING THIS TIME OF SORROW!!!!
WE ARE ETERNALLY GRATEFUL FOR THIS YOUNG MANS SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY AND HIS SACRIFICE! PLEASE RELAY OUR GRATITUDE AND CONDOLENCES TO EVERYONE! GOD BLESS ALL AND GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

My deepest condolences to you and your family on the loss of one of Americas true heroes. His loss is felt by many.
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Thanks guys... i dont support the war at all, but i have always supported our troops. he was a good kid, so young. i dont think its really hit me yet. i normally take deaths well...kinda just am in peace with the fact that they are gone. but its just so sad, he barely just begun his life. He will be missed dearly. apparently the streets were lined with people in every single town for the entire 2 hour drive from the airport to my aunts house when they transported his body by people saluting, waving flags and covering they hearts with their hands...my mom took a video of it as she was in one of the cars following. its comforting to know he died appreciated and in honor.

RIP Ian Muller you will always be with us in spirit
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

finally got back into the boat yesterday. ground out the back of the gunwhales where ill need to glass in the transom. my wood is nice and dry. i have all my supplies. because i got the original transom out in one piece i can use it as a template which is great now there will be no need for guess work. i finished all the grinding on the port side and half of the starboard side. 3 more hours and ill be done grinding for the demo work!!!!! im finally starting to get excited. schools been real busy lately tho so i think i will only be able to spend saturday day in the boat. Ive been keep up with jays videos and think i have decided to use the mat with resin to adhere my 2 pieces...the PL seams much easier to do. but i need to hone in my glass skills and feel that this flat easy surface provides the ideal opportunity to give it a try before i start doing stringers and the transom inner skin.
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

When you work with the csm keep it wet and try not to push the fibers around too much....It's more floating the resin over the mat and letting it saturate well. You'll get the hang of it and be glassin like a pro! :D
 

Woodonglass

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Yup whut he ^^^^^ said.
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

thanks for the tip guys. enough of this grinding crap...on to the good stuff
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

hey guys so i got lucky at my local home depot...for some reason they had the 1/10 lb marine 5200 caulk gun style adhesive. they had 3 left but had no box and for some reason it wasnt in there system when i went to buy sheet foam (templates) and pressure treated lumber and stainless steel fasteners. the guy just hooked me up and said dont worry about it.

So heres my question. i just read a response on Jay (fiscoboater) threat where someone said PL isnt ment for water submersion because its not 100% water proof. i was gonna use PL. but i have these free tubes of 5200.... and i was gonna use them to fill screw holes and such. i have way more than i need. can i use the 5200 to bond the plywood transom pieces together? or should i just stick with poly and csm mat. my original transom was adhered with some sort of adhesive as there is no glass or resin in between the sheets.

is 5200 better than pl...but because its more expensive people us PL instead? if anyone has used 5200 to adhere their transom pieces together let me know!!!!!

thanks guys
 

Woodonglass

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Rellik,

Dude, Think about it. WATER SUBMERSION. You are NOT building a submarine. At least I HOPE you are NOT! Your Transom will be exposed to MINIMAL water intrusion. At least it BETTER BE. PL IS 100% water proof WHEN IT CURES. It is a Polyurethane based product. As to your question.... You can use the 5200, PL, or the Poly and Mat. What ever you want and they will all WORK. Now... If you are asking me what I would use.... Then the answer is....Thickened Poly and 1.5 oz mat. Proven over the years to work without failure. But like you said the 5200 is FREE so.... Do what you want. It WILL work. Just make sure you understand the CURE rate on the 5200. I have heard that it can take up to a week for the Regular 3M 5200 to cure totally.
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

and pressure treated lumber and stainless steel fasteners.


I'm not a big fan of that.....it will have to dry out for weeks..... CDX on the other hand needs less dry time.... JMO
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

its pressure treated 1x12's for my 2 main stringers....should i just use regular dimensional lumber?
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

MHO pressure treated lumber with it's chemicals to resist moisture and rot may not let the resin adhere well....this is not a proven fact tested by myself but just my thought on it.... Why the 2x lumber and not 3/4 ply? or was the boat made with 2x12? If you need 1 1/2" you could always sandwich 2 pieces of 3/4 ply.....
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

the stringers that run the length of the boat from the begining of the engine bulk to the bow are just 1x8 x9' everything else was ply. so i was just gonna use 1x8 to do it.
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Sorry I missed the 1x.... I was thinking 2x lumber for some reason.....

Isn't there a bulk at the fuel tank? Or is that where it's 9' to the bow? You could lap the ply and make longer stringers use 2 pieces of 1/2" ply and your stringers would be 1" thick It would be much stronger than 1x lumber :)
 

Woodonglass

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

Yep Rick is Right on, use the Ply for your stringers.
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

how would you properly lap or butt the pieces together? say i do the 1/2 ply have one side of the 1" sandwhich have a gap at 3 feet. then the other side at 6 feet. that way the but ends are 3' apart for stength purposes? and how should i attach the 2 layers of ply together? just PL or 5200 or thickened resin just like the transom? or do u just screw them together? i dont have a problem using ply i just figured it would be easier to use 1X as i wouldnt have to make any joints. i suppose i could just use 3/4" ply as that is the original thickness of the stringers. but i kind of like the 2 1/2" to make an 1" it would be easier to round the tops and lay glass over.

can i just run 2 8' sections of 1/2" ply then notch in the last 1'? i wouldnt think this would be as strong as the first method i wrote about.

thanks for the helps guys

the official rebuild starts today!!!!!!
 

Rellik546

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

cut out my transom pieces after tracing the original. drill 2 holes the key hole and used some 2x4x8' and allthread with washers and nuts on both sides to clamp them down and used a wood clamp by the drain hole and a couple screws on the upper part of the transom. i actually used bolts on the 2x4 that extended past the edges of the transom and tightened those down, then tightened the middle bolts then the wood clamp then the screws in the top after cleaning both surfaces and applying PL construction adhesive. this allowed me to clamp the outer sides of the transom without needing to drill any unnecessary holes in the transom itself. ill post pictures later. off to hang out with the lady
 

Woodonglass

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

3' x 6' overlap method is the way to go. You COULD use PL but... I personally would recommend you use 1.5 oz mat and poly resin to glue em up. Coat the ply with resin first then a layer of mat between the layers. They'll be dry and ready to install in less than an hour. As for your transom, It takes 48 hours minimum for the PL to cure so DO NOT get in a hurry to remove those clamps!!!!
 

rickryder

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Re: Restoration: 1988 Wellcraft 170 Classic 3.0l Mercruiser Alpha 1 gen 1

^^^^ Yup that would be the way to go! Every thing I glued together on the boat had csm and resin between it...I haven't used any PL on mine. :D
 
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