My first project Boat!

[Strats43]

Well not only is this my first project boat, this is the first boat Ive owned. Now Im worried that Ive gotten in over my head. Now for my experience Ive helped friends of mine for a good 15 years helping them with general maint. on there boats ( both power and sail) and Ive done some building and gen household repairs. As far as confidence with the reading ive done i feel pretty confident i cna do some of this with some help from some fellow owners. As far as how much I have invested at this point thats the good news, shes a 1978 30' which i paid $2000 for the cabin is pretty good a good amount of water got in through the rub rail damage anyway i have a website for any and all advice here is the website to see the damage http://www.geocities.com/strats40/ My78Ericson30.html

 

[Sean Engle]

Wow -

Yeah, I would say you have a good project on your hands, alright. The pictures on your webpage look like the deck/hull joint has been totally blown out in that area - so I would think that would be the first initial concern (structural stability of the hull/deck).

Do you have a good yard somewhere to do the work in? It may be worth your while to see if you can locate a farm or someplace cheap/free you can keep her while you try and overhaul her (a barn with a concrete floor would be ideal).

What's the rest of the boat look like (inside)? I would imagine the interior is pretty much trashed as well...

//sse

 

[Fencer21]

Wow

I wouldn't even know how or where to begin to repair something that extensive. The cockpit appears to be in good shape plus you've got spaces to install instruments, that's kinda cool.

I'd like to see some pictures of the repair process and watch the transformation...good luck w/that.

 

[JORGE]

My project one-step

I'm rebuilding an E32-2 1971, A-Z; Exterior, interior, engine, steering, mechanical, plumbing, electrical--most of it getting refurbed. I started by making a plan list( Book) a mile long. Then set up priorities, with a goal of launchin her by next spring '05. I'm doing this in order of importance to meet the goal. Creature comforts are after. It's overwhelming, yes, so I am planning on one-stepping, concentrating on one significant area at a time. I'm outsourcing some of the work, due to my timeline, and energy.

keep the faith

 

[Strats43]

ericson 30 project boat

Actully the only problem in the cabin a little bit to the galley area where the hull cme in and bumped the cabinet where the stove is very fixable other than that 10 foot section the rest of the hull and deck are great. I figure if i reinforce that are with wood and epoxy/fiberglass its should be stronger than before. but i guess I may way off base. any hints?

 

[Sean Engle]

Actually the only problem in the cabin a little bit to the galley area where the hull cme in and bumped the cabinet where the stove is very fixable other than that 10 foot section the rest of the hull and deck are great. I figure if i reinforce that are with wood and epoxy/fiberglass its should be stronger than before. but i guess I may way off base. any hints?

Well - IF it can be done at all - I would think you're going to need full access to the hull/deck joint in that area - and possibly all the way around - which means you're basically going to need to pull the boat apart inside. Since the deck/hull joint in those ten feet has been destroyed - there are REAL issues involving the structural integrity (as the strength of entire system - loading the rig - relating to the loss of stiffness in the hull in that area), as well as the remaining joint(s), and what that means to viability of the boat as a whole).

I would start by talking to a yard about doing it - someone good who knows structural issues relating to this sort of thing - and get a sense of whether or not you're wasting your time or if it can be done within reason. You've spent $2000 on it, sure - but if it's going to run $8,000 to fix it, it may not be worth it.

If you get a green light there (that it can be fixed for a reasonable amount of money) - then find yourself a cheap place to put the boat (ideally covered), pull the stick and have the boat transported there (again, farms are great for this - a nice big barn and CHEAP rent). I suggest this as this is probably going to take awhile, and staying in a conventional yard will probably cost you a fortune. I suggest covered because you're going to be dealing with lots of glass and resin, etc. The other ideal would be your backyard, where you could build a shed around her.

Again - what does the inside look like? What about the bulkheads and chain plates/grid? How about the hull/keel joint - what shape is that in?

//sse

 

[Strats43]

bulkheads and chain plates/grid hull keel joint

hey thanks for writing back as for the inside its in good shape except for a little damage to the galley area ( which i have already removed to get access to the hull. Many of the boaters and mechanics have said the the hull is sound, keel is in great shape, chain paltes and bulkheads are fine the only real damage is on that side.

Ive been researching how to make molds from say the other side of the boat and fit that into place aftercleaning up and cuting out the damaged area got a couple of books coming on that but any info would be helpfull.

Next week is the annapolis sailboat show figured i would pick some brains while Im there

Ben

 

[Sean Engle]

Yeah - you're going to want to research how that joint was laid up and then over-engineer it to make it rock solid. I believe that the 30s had a chemical bond and some of the stanchions - but not bolted. If I were doing what you were doing, I would rebuild the deck in that area - overglass it - and then run bolts over the entire joint all the way around.

And I would still take the boat apart to ensure that everything is as you believe it to be...

//sse

 

[JORGE]

Get the tools out

Do your research too, plenty of fbg repair info in books. Why not have the boat surveyed by an experienced marine surveyor. (try Spinsheet.com, accreditmarine survveyors) but the main thing is to make contact and get some good input to your project. As Sean stated. I think it can be fixed.

It might be a good idea to wrap a strong web sling around the hull, in a few positions to support everything, hold the shape. There may be water penetration into the core , weakened fbg tabbing, realignment of bulkheads, etc, if you ask me. After slinging the hull together, I would peel apart everything on that side on the interior to throughly understand what you might need to do. Get the tools out. 100 hours plus.

 

[Strats43]

Getting the experts opinions!

Hey all!

thats funny went to the boat today and guess who just happened to be there a surveyer and the boat yards fiberglass techs, after some persuasion I got the surveyer to take a look and the fiberglass guy gave some great ideas and let me know that everything seems to be okay. the galley area and all wood headliners are off that side of the boat have been for awhile. anyway just thought it was funny that it happened today

Ben

 

[Sean Engle]

So what's the latest on your boat??

//sse

 

[chrism]

*bump*

I'm interested, too.

 

[Strats43]

Update

Well all is well with Lady Hanna! about to do the fiberglass work this week if the weather holds took apart the galley, inspected all bulk heads found one wall detached, just one fiberglassed tab holding it in place. As far as the major work we decided to use 1/8 th inch marine board on the inside of the hull to act as a mold for the outside, ( a little plug for Mas epoxies and diy they have been the biggest help in this project) once thats done then we will fiberglass the inside over the marine board for stability. ( alot of people say this is overkill as the epoxie will be stronger than the rest of the boat but it wont hurt) Im going to redo the galley with an oven and fridge unit looking ointo that now

picture to follow

Strats