Re: [bolger] Bobcat Restoration Project
Chris:
There is not. That said, it is not as hard as you may fear. It involves a
few simple steps which will probably take a lot of time: Cut out all the bad
wood; Make new pieces to fit; Coat everything with epoxy; Stitch or tack the
new pieces in place; fill the gaps with epoxy putty; Sand everything smooth;
Cover both sides of all joints with fiberglass set in epoxy; Finish. It is
one of those jobs that seems huge, but if you take it one step at a time,
you will be fine.
Of course, this is a rather large group, and I am sure some others will
chime in with their own ideas.
Chuck Leinweber
Hi,
My name is Chris; I live in Flower Mound Texas.
My Father built a Bobcat in his garage over the course of a few
years. Upon completion she was BEAUTIFUL, both in her appearance as
well as handling out on the water.
Now that I have inherited this boat...It is my task, and duty to
restore it to its original condition.
The boat unfortunately sat on the trailer with fresh water in her for
an extended period of time.
Dad's construction was A+, and the resulting damage was not wide
spread.
Overall it is my own inexperience with these types of repairs that
brings me to this discussion group.
There are two visible signs of Rotting.
One is where the trailer roller, combined with the water load,
fractured the starboard hull plank.
This fracture lead to water penetration, and Rot (appears to be
localized).
The second is the bottom portion of the transom, and trailing edge of
stern hull planking (up to the seam of hull & transom) also has been
compromised by water and shows signs of rotting.
It appears that the cockpit "seat" framework may have allowed water
to penetrate the transom plate where they are mounted. This is where
the rot was most noticeable.
all together. You could easily opoke a finger through in places...
The rest of the boat is in fair condition, considering the length of
time she sat holding fresh water.
Nothing a sailors love can't fix.
I have the book and plans that my Pop used to build her with, and I
know a thing or two about fiberglass & resin. (Grew up in the back
bays of Ventnor NJ)
I'm very familiar with this boat, sailed her from 94-98 on lake
Grapevine here in Texas. And she is a sweet little witch!
Could you please direct me as to the repair method of these problems?
I surfed the web until my head swam, found several different methods
ranging from treating and reinforcing effected wood with chemical
wonders, to just down right replacement of effected areas.
On one hand I fear that if I just seal and reinforce the effected
areas, that in time the problem will reappear. (Like when I'm out on
the lake with my daughters, look girls this is how daddy sinks the
boat!)
On the other hand I'm a bit intimidated by the prospect of replacing
the entire transom...There is just too much boat tied into this one
component.
Any help would be of great value to me, and my sailing future.
Thanks,
Chris Bezanis
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>From your post, I gather that you know what the answer is, but are hopingthat there may be some easier alternative to replacing the rotten wood.
There is not. That said, it is not as hard as you may fear. It involves a
few simple steps which will probably take a lot of time: Cut out all the bad
wood; Make new pieces to fit; Coat everything with epoxy; Stitch or tack the
new pieces in place; fill the gaps with epoxy putty; Sand everything smooth;
Cover both sides of all joints with fiberglass set in epoxy; Finish. It is
one of those jobs that seems huge, but if you take it one step at a time,
you will be fine.
Of course, this is a rather large group, and I am sure some others will
chime in with their own ideas.
Chuck Leinweber
Hi,
My name is Chris; I live in Flower Mound Texas.
My Father built a Bobcat in his garage over the course of a few
years. Upon completion she was BEAUTIFUL, both in her appearance as
well as handling out on the water.
Now that I have inherited this boat...It is my task, and duty to
restore it to its original condition.
The boat unfortunately sat on the trailer with fresh water in her for
an extended period of time.
Dad's construction was A+, and the resulting damage was not wide
spread.
Overall it is my own inexperience with these types of repairs that
brings me to this discussion group.
There are two visible signs of Rotting.
One is where the trailer roller, combined with the water load,
fractured the starboard hull plank.
This fracture lead to water penetration, and Rot (appears to be
localized).
The second is the bottom portion of the transom, and trailing edge of
stern hull planking (up to the seam of hull & transom) also has been
compromised by water and shows signs of rotting.
It appears that the cockpit "seat" framework may have allowed water
to penetrate the transom plate where they are mounted. This is where
the rot was most noticeable.
>From the surface the transom looks good, until you apply pressure,and then you realize its just resin, paint & fiberglass holding it
all together. You could easily opoke a finger through in places...
The rest of the boat is in fair condition, considering the length of
time she sat holding fresh water.
Nothing a sailors love can't fix.
I have the book and plans that my Pop used to build her with, and I
know a thing or two about fiberglass & resin. (Grew up in the back
bays of Ventnor NJ)
I'm very familiar with this boat, sailed her from 94-98 on lake
Grapevine here in Texas. And she is a sweet little witch!
Could you please direct me as to the repair method of these problems?
I surfed the web until my head swam, found several different methods
ranging from treating and reinforcing effected wood with chemical
wonders, to just down right replacement of effected areas.
On one hand I fear that if I just seal and reinforce the effected
areas, that in time the problem will reappear. (Like when I'm out on
the lake with my daughters, look girls this is how daddy sinks the
boat!)
On the other hand I'm a bit intimidated by the prospect of replacing
the entire transom...There is just too much boat tied into this one
component.
Any help would be of great value to me, and my sailing future.
Thanks,
Chris Bezanis
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Free yourself!
Get 1month of FREE* Internet access from MSN!
http://click.egroups.com/1/6322/13/_/3457/_/962956167/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bolger rules!!!
- no cursing
- stay on topic
- use punctuation
- add your comments at the TOP and SIGN your posts
- add some content: send "thanks!" and "ditto!" posts off-list.