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A restoration tale (with pics)

dnme

I have been posting on here and getting amazing help from fergal and others. I thought I might make a thread outlining my attempt at a boat restoration. The boat is a 16' fibreglass day cabin. It is in horrendous condition but I think the fibreglass itself is pretty good.

Shopping for a while and looking at various boats. Big, small, cabin cruisers, fishing boats etc. What I really want is a boat that will fit me and my dog and that I can sleep on and maybe run up and down the Erne waterway. This caught my eye on donedeal

I made the call and arranged to go and view it. At the viewing, I bought it for €530 (asking price on dd was €1200). On Saturday 19th March 2011, myself and a friend towed it home (from Birr to Co. Sligo).

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TristanPeter

dnme wrote: »

3. Can anyone tell me what this is for, is it a bilge pump outlet? (There was never a bilge pump on her as far as I can tell)

Is that not the outlet from the sink you removed?

dnme

TristanPeter wrote: »

Is that not the outlet from the sink you removed?

No, sink is on other starboard side. This outlet is on port side at the helm which is why I wonder what it is. Here is a picture of the other side of the fitting. As Fergal says, perhaps it was an external bilge pump outlet.

...and speaking of mystery hardware, can anyone tell me what this is? It's located on the lower transom so I wonder is it a motor tilt support?

dnme

Hi Fergal,

I phoned MarineParts today and spoke to someone there about finishes. He recommends a toplac coat painted on to the existing sanded surface.

What do you think of this?
WRT the exterior, could I apply a resin coat as you suggest first and then toplac on top of that?

(With the interior, I intend to apply a new coat of resin and a layer of new glass cloth.)

fergal.b

With the hair line cracks you have I would paint with brightside primer first and then the toplac, all holes and marks must be filled first as the paint won't fill them it will just show them up.You could paint the boat with resin it will be a lot more work and money and I am not 100% if your boat needs it, you could just go over the boat with some resin and a small bit of filler and a plastic spreader to fill any big cracks . Best thing to do is try a small inconspicuous spot with primer and paint and see what it comes out like. Preparation is the most important part of this job so the more time you spend getting the surface right the better the finish will be.

dnme

Here's a shopping list I am thinking atm.

1. A kg of West System resin to start on the interior
2. White Pigment. There are a few areas where the fibreglass is exposed through the getcoat from sanding. I would like to cover these well with resin, so I am thinking use pigment to colour a bit of resin and cover these areas, sand and cover again. The pigment allows me to see / check that I have indeed covered the bare fibreglass.
3. Toplac
4. Primer or Pre-Kote before toplac
5. Marine filler for holes

How am I doing? Anything I can remove or anything I should add?

DOTHEDOG

lovely job indeed

fergal.b

You will be surprised at how much resin you will go through especially when you are wetting out cloth so it might be worth thinking about getting a bigger tin.I get the 5kg cans of 105 and 1 kg of 205 and a set of pumps from marineparts also mixing resin with the filler will do the same job as the plastic padding so you should save enough to buy the bigger can.:)

dnme

fergal.b wrote: »

You will be surprised at how much resin you will go through especially when you are wetting out cloth so it might be worth thinking about getting a bigger tin.I get the 5kg cans of 105 and 1 kg of 205 and a set of pumps from marineparts also mixing resin with the filler will do the same job as the plastic padding so you should save enough to buy the bigger can.:)

Forgive all the questions, but is this a suitable epoxy filler? Their website doesn't really do much by way of resin fillers afaict.

fergal.b

Yep that will do, I use 407 as it's a low density filler but you should be ok with that.

dnme

Reading around the web, I see that Toplac is not recommended for below the waterline. Dammit, I thought I had a perfect neat easy and cheap solution there. Back to square one. What would you folks paint on the underside of this boat?

fergal.b

If you are not leaving the boat in the water it's ok thats what I have on mine. But if the boat will be in the water for a long time it will have to be antifouled.
You can see the water line on your transom where it was antifouled before so try and follow that line around the boat if you can and mask it off when you are painting, most boats are like this and have two different colours with maybe a white stripe in between.

dnme

Antifouling ???
I had come across this term but assumed it was the process of cleaning the underneath of a hull.

By antifouling, do you mean painting something on to the underside?

EDIT: Ok, I think I get it, anti-fouling is a coat of special paint to stop organic growth and activity on the underside. I have jest read that anti-fouling paint is not necessarily a water proof barrier so therefore, would I be as well to paint the entire hull with toplac including the underneath, and then put an anti-fouling coat over that on the underneath?

fergal.b

You will be fine with just the antifouling paint even fiberglass is not waterproof thats why they say to wax the gelcoat to help keep the water out.
If you are using the boat in fresh water get a biocides paint like international navigator.

Ps. I think your boat is a 1960's callumcraft or a norman here is one that may give you an idea of what it will look like.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CALLUMCRAFT-17-CANAL-BOAT-RIVER-BOAT-PLEASURE-CRUISER-/290548027122?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item43a6030ef2#ht_790wt_1028

fergal.b

dnme wrote: »

No, sink is on other starboard side. This outlet is on port side at the helm which is why I wonder what it is. Here is a picture of the other side of the fitting. As Fergal says, perhaps it was an external bilge pump outlet.

...and speaking of mystery hardware, can anyone tell me what this is? It's located on the lower transom so I wonder is it a motor tilt support?

It's hard to tell from that photo is there a tube coming up out of it and going inside the boat, if so I think it's the pickup for the speedometer. They work by the water pushing the air inside the tube.

dnme

fergal.b wrote: »

It's hard to tell from that photo is there a tube coming up out of it and going inside the boat, if so I think it's the pickup for the speedometer. They work by the water pushing the air inside the tube.

No tube, not sure if there ever was, the hanging thingy-ma-bob swivels freely up and down. Your previous post about the callumcraft or a norman is fascinating. That callumcraft is pretty close to mine alright. Amazing!

fergal.b

The hole may have been filled, it moves up and down so it won't snap off if you hit something. you can get rid of it and buy a new plastic one for a few € if you want a speedo.
I was close with the callumcraft but after a bit more digging I think I will go with a Norman 17.:D

1st%20brochure%204.jpg

dnme

That's as close as be dammed, there are still one or two differences but it's gotta be a version of this for sure. Where did you get the b/w photos?

EDIT: Ah, I found them on Norman's site.

fergal.b

You were saying you wanted a window that opens how about one that the roof opens, I think this was made for you.:D

dnme

Day 7

The rain is threatening all the time since yesterday. I foolishly stayed indoors the past two days fearing that as soon as I set foot outside it would come down. Today I bit the bullet and went back to sanding. I managed to get the starboard side done so I'm delighted with that.

I had ordered a cheap tarp (careful now) from the web last week. As of yesterday it has not arrived so yesterday evening I went out to the shed, got a load of turf bags and proceeded to tape together a kinda plastic quilt to cover the boat. I managed to cover all the bits that need covering. That's committment to the job for ya. It's a mashup but it works. Meanwhile the courier tells me that tarp will be with me in the morning.

I managed to get that old speedo assembly off the transom tonight, guess what - it's solid brass again! boy they knew how to build em.

So anyway, I'm in now for the night, it's just dark and just about ready to rain. Me.... I'm ready for another antifouling shower:p.

1. A plastic quilt. It's a mashup but it works. This took me ages to make:D

2. Some of the exposed fibreglass that I need to address.

3. Old seating on the deck, will I get rid or keep it?

fergal.b

Your a man of many talents, lovely bit of patchwork.:)
I would keep the seat it only needs two bits of plywood and a garden furniture cushion. The structure of the seat may also be working to strengthen the hull.

dnme

Thanks to Fergal for the investigative help, I have found a great forum for other Norman boat owners. I have registered there and hopefully might get some help with stuff like door, windows and who knows what etc.

http://www.normanboats.co.uk/default.asp

fergal.b

I am sure they will be delighted to see you giving this old girl a new life and a great source of info for you.

dnme

Does anyone here have any tips for getting paint off of fibreglass? I am trying to get old paint off the boat cabin interior and it is back breaking and often with no progress. I have tried a wire brush, scrapers, plastic sponge abrasive disk on a drill etc.

Here's an idea of the battle I face

fergal.b

You might get away with household paint stripper again try it on a small bit first, if you are worried about the fiberglass interlux do one called interstrip.
You can also try a heat gun the fiberglass can take a bit of heat but as soon as you see the paint go remove the gun and use a paint scraper.

12 element

Great thread dnme, I'll be keeping an eye on it. Best of luck with it. What are your plans for the engine?

dnme

12 element wrote: »

What are your plans for the engine?

Theft :rolleyes:
I have no clue, right now I have no spare money, I am hoping to have this boat ready next year but if it were launchable this year I'd be happy. Engine will have to be secondhand, cheap and well maintained. I will get a mech to give whatever I select a good going over.

dnme

So while the weather remains dam awful, I have the boat wrapped under a tarp (proper one this time) and I am doing a lot of thinking and online window shopping.

1. I have an option on one ot two of these for 50quid each. What do you think? How would one of these be mounted? I am guessing I would build up a wooden platform in fibreglass to bolt this through? Would it work?

2. Regarding the aft deck seating, Fergal has advised me to leave the starboard seat in place. But what about the port side seat (on right in this pic)? As you can see it's badly damaged, a lot of the front wall missing etc. Will I get rid? (looking for any excuse to use a new reciprocating saw:D)

dnme

All quiet atm due to the continuous awful weather. In the meantime I have been looking at ways to treat the boat surface and pricing various solutions.

I have now found a supplier who does the appropriate rubber seal strip and bead for the window seals. I have also found a Plastics Fabricators in Ballina who may be able to do the thermaformed windows for me. I might go and see them in the morning and bring them the old front window and windscreen.

I have also put together an ebay order list for all the hardware to be replaced. All the stainless steel stuff etc. So I am crawling forward, I just need some reasonable weather to get back at the boat.

Slig

Weather looks good for tomorrow, and today. I'm stuck inside working though

dnme

Good weather is back, at least for a couple of days. I spent the day sanding, grinding, scraping etc. I am now wire brushing the deck interior and the seating. I am taking out old paint by the bucket load.

As I sweep up and star to get the boat clean, I'm a little worried about what I uncover. Today I noticed the side keel supports and some delaminating around them. I guess I will treat this as any grp repair. I will have to grind out the loose material and lay up new cloth and epoxy.