1987 2001 rebuild

the old man was a leader, all high end cars, he was the best around...not much on personality though. sanding gel is like sanding a diamond.

eric lavine wrote: yes, gelling is an art just like leading a car body, it takes skill or the end result is alot of wet sanding. i truly will "spot in" boats with bc/cc and at the edge will melt the paint in with a melting agent

I don't remember the last time I got hot silver shoes while spraying anything. I haven't played with lead in about 15 yrs.

I've been told spraying gel is like spraying nasty high build primer. You know the type. Hard as hell to sand, one spot looks like glass, other spot looks like the surface of the moon.

Hows it coming Zach? Any snow down there in Birmingham?

yes, gelling is an art just like leading a car body, it takes skill or the end result is alot of wet sanding. i truly will "spot in" boats with bc/cc and at the edge will melt the paint in with a melting agent

Here are some good links to a lot of the questions you will have. These are all links recommended to me by other members to read up on

Bill's Boatworks
Here are some big hitters on stringer/floor jobs. My apologies to anyone I forgot. In no particular order:

Buffalo's '88 Barefoot Nautique

Skibum's '87 Ski Nautique rebuild (and his website)

aka's '83 SN

Wakeslayer's '68 Stang

Joe in NY's all composite 60mph Nautique rebuild

The Grinch's '79 BFN

UK79's '78SN

Also search for the Pumpkin Patch. Lots of good reading there too. The Warrior is probably an hour at least from Bham. Maybe more, I was young so who knows. There was plenty of butter water, and hard core old schoolers that would do stupid stuff like start off on skis off the top of the boat house. That was back in 1985-1989.

The main thing is keep reading!

I read to do 2 layers each of 2, 4, and 8 inch tape for bonding to the hull so you need to grind out about 4 inches from either side of the stringer. Then cover it all in biax.

Guy's

Before I started, i read the threads and have since found out the one's that presented them are correct.

If you leave the existing fiberglass edges whatever height, you really have no way to see or fill the small gaps with filler. It is very hard to duplicate 100% the bottom shape of the stringer to match the hull.

I would also think that the mat strips you bed under the stringers would create more air gaps further reducing the strength you are trying to achieve.

As many guys have said and I know for a fact with a 4" grinder and some aggressive sanding disks the old can be removed.

I think the only thing saved is some very dirty dusty work.

I am 100% glad I removed all the old. When you get through the real dirty part you start feeling real good about your rebuild.

Dennis

zachjeepyj wrote: i left the old glass just cut the top off it seemed easier for a beginner.

FYI, this is a very questionable practice! That old glass wont give any strength to your stringers and you'll never bond it to the wood as good as you could with new glass. I would highly recommend cutting those channels down to 1/4" or less (or completely removing them). You should get rid of all the gel anywhere the new glass will go to allow it to bond glass to glass (much stronger).

Another vote for re-gel here. Its thicker and will last longer and be more durable than paint. Several first-timers here have tackled it with amazing results. I will be doing the same on the deck of my '67. Just do your research and take it slow.

some sound advice, Gelling a boat is for keeping the boat original but at times is very labor intensive and expensive to do and not for first timers, you will end up going broke if not done correctly, Pete, yes is an advocate for re-gelling.   Eric is not, if it was a matter of the boat being worth 10k more because you re-gelled, then gel it
but as a first timer Acrylic urethane (Imron) is a great second choice if you prefer not to gel. I have painted complete boats 10 or 15 years ago with AU and they still hold well and are one helluva lot easier to buff 10 years later.
im just providing information and in no way trying to sway whichever way you decide to do it. i respect pete's opinion to the fullest, but its your boat and you know what your capable of. your local paint store can mix acrylic urethanes and they have the same formulas as the marine paint, half the cost and if you do decide to AU, talk to a rep about application, on the last coat you mix 50/50 paint and a good UV clear and you will see your face in the side of the boat.
Gelling has a tendency to go on thicker and will orange peel if not applied correctly, and that means you will spend about 100 hours of wet sanding it flat. again, just passing info

Looking good there. You are ahead of me. I used to live in Vestavia Hills in Birmingham. My first Correct Craft experiences were on the Warrior River. Learned to waterski there. Wakeboard now though.

]This is the boss!

Thanks for all the info this site sure helps.This is my first time doing any fiberglass,I actually install granite countertops for a living so i am familiar with resins and epoxies use them daily.What is the best method for laying the mat?From what ive read i need about 3 to 4 layers over my stringers ,i left the old glass just cut the top off it seemed easier for a beginner.On another post i read they used 2,4 and 8" strips.It took me forever to get my stinger to fit on the bottom probaly took it out 10 times to trim.Man you guys who get them out whole are lucky mine was nothing but mush. Definitly decided to go with the gel coat that way i want have to worry about the paint for a while not looking forward to all that sanding though.That seems like what most people prefer.The guys at usc sent me some stuff to thicken the epoxy to fill the spider cracks. Im planning to do bedliner on the floor. In a light color of course is this a good idea seems like it would seal everything off.Im going to take some pics soon of the progress.Thanks

82nautique1 Does u.s. composites sell the cpes that is where im ordering from.How many layers of glass on top of your plywood.Is your method strong enough to hold the plywood down for the next twenty years with no screws.Not doubting u just dont wont it to come up Thanks

Zach,

I am currently rebuilding a 1988.

I dry fit the 3/4" then used CPES liberally
Next I placed resin and 1 lift om mat on the bottom side.
After it cured out, I placed a layer of resin weted mat over all the wood stringer/supports that the 3/4" comes in contact with.

Attach the plywood with the strip mats still wet.

I then foamed around the edges of the plywood to the edge of the hull, sanded the foam, then you are ready to glass the top of the plywood.

This information may help you.. This method is above and beyond what the factory did

Dennis

Zack,
Glad you have some one who can help out with the spraying. Gel is a heavy viscosity so the guns fluid tip and air tip need to be the properly sized. People have tried to use cheap guns but to get the gel through them it needs to be reduced (thinned) so much that you don't get the build (thickness) needed. Some have been able to use gravity feed guns but the gel needs a fair amount of reduction with them too. I feel pressure feed is the way to go but do talk to your friend. I have a 2 quart pressure feed but it's a PITA to clean.

For the recommended viscosity, talk to the supplier of the gel.