Stringer Rebuild-Introduction

Wait a minute you have two in college a 5yr old a 1-1/2 yr old and one in the hopper!!!!
DUDE YOU NEED TO WRAP THAT RASCLE!!!   

We commute to lake max about 3-4 times a week. I have a 5 and 3 year olds and ask all the time to be at the lake. Yes, they already know how to water ski, the board at least, which is an awesome feeling since I did not learn till I was 20. Will be there around 1 tomorrow, if you have no plans, come on by and look for the blue 84.

FF24 wrote: Pretty close to you actually. I live about 2 miles from Bass Lake. Just outside of Knox. That's where we do most of our boating.

That's a nice place, I looked there but was told its a shallow lake. I have a slip at Culver Marina, Lake Max. We should meet up one day. Have a good one

OldSchoolBlue84 wrote: FF24 wrote: I live in Northwest Indiana Where abouts? I live in Valpo. If you like, I don't mind stopping by and check it out. Also, where do you boat at? Have a good one.

Pretty close to you actually. I live about 2 miles from Bass Lake. Just outside of Knox. That's where we do most of our boating.

FF24 wrote: Is premium #2 Douglas fir good enough for this application? Surprisingly they have that at a local Home depot here. its non treated and kiln dried. A 2x12 by 16Ft. is only $19.93. Also is that size wide enough? Thanks!

You had better check real close since I doubt it's Doug Fir. I'd say it's Hemlock Fir. If it's marled SPF, then it's NOT Doug.

Never heard of anyone being happy with the workmanship when contracting out. There must have been someone but have not heard from them

A full floor and stringer job will be 4-5k .

lewy2001 wrote: The 87 SN2001 always seems to be the worst year for gel coat cracking. I feel it is caused by the floor separation from the hull sides that leads to flexing and subsequent cracking of the gelcoat.

I didn't know that. Will the cracking affect anything. OR is it purely cosmetic?

I posted on here beginning of the week asking about adjusting the rudder. Seems I have bigger problems.

First a little history: My Dad bought this 1987 Ski Nautique new, when I was 13.Had a lot of fun with it, did a lot of skiing. Unfortunately my dad died in 1995, but my mom kept the boat. Last year she finally decided to move away from the lake. So I took the opportunity to buy the boat from her. The boat only has 496 hours. It was always stored inside during the winter, but over the summer it was on a lift with a cover.



As you can see the boat still looks pretty good, and it runs great. But I had no idea about stringers or issues with them. I new the floor behind the drivers seat had a soft spot but hadn't thought much of it until I started reading about the stringers on here. I was hoping to get another couple years out of it before I would have to attempt the stringer repair.

Well we took the boat out for a quick ride last night, right before we were heading in, I hit a couple big waves. And it just didn't feel, sound right. So I found a couple loose spots in the carpet and this is what I found.

Crack in the floor, you cant see it well but the floor actually has a small hump in it.


Floor starting to separate from sidewall.


Also have cracks in the gelcoat.



So it looks like I have to do a stringer repair. I have already looked at some of the stringer repair posts on here and it looks pretty complicated and expensive. I might have to let the boat sit for a while until I can get it done. I have a new business starting and we are having another baby due in September, and just don't have the funds right now or time for such a big project. And honestly I am not looking forward to figuring out how to work with fiberglass and epoxies!

Can somebody give me a cost estimate? It seems to vary a lot, and is there anywhere that they do this repair in case I don't want to tackle it? I would still strip the boat, just might want someone else to replace the stringers. And would need someone to fix the gelcoat.

Also, I have read some about the debates on how to repair. Foam vs, no foam etc. I like the thought of the foam for sound deadening etc, but I don't want to have to replace stringers again. Are there other options, is there a better foam that won't hold the water?

Sorry about the long post!