Soft Bow Deck

[littlebookworm]

I'm restoring my 1986 SunRunner 220SB and noticed that the bow deck seems soft in spots. I had read that the decks have a wood core that can rot and needs to be replaced. My understanding is that the job requires removing the headlining; cutting out the inner fiberglass shell; removing all the rotted core and replacing it with plywood; glassing back the inner shell; and finally, replacing the headlining. My questions are: How do you know how much to cut out of the inner shell? I don't want to cut too much and give myself extra work, and I don't want to cut too little, requiring furthur cuts and a weakened inner shell. What kind of plywood should I use, marine or exterior? How thick should it be? How is it glued/glassed in? How is the inner shell glued/glassed in? Any books or videos you can recommend on the job? I'm not afraid of tackling it; I just don't want to screw it up. Thanks for your help. Hy

 

[Wombat]

This is a large subject and I am by no means an expert.

You may want to pick up a copy of “The Fiberglass Boat Repair Manual”. It should answer a lot of your questions (it did for me). It’s old but many of the concepts still apply.

I would recommend against plywood for the bow. Marine plywood is very heavy and it does not bend. Look into coring (balsa or foam) instead. You can get it scribed so it is bendable. The thickness depends on what is there now and if you plan on adding more fiberglass to what you have already.

One area I disagree with the book is in the use of Ploy-based resin instead of Epoxy based. Epoxy is more expensive but it adheres better and is more water resistant. The last thing you want is to go though all that work and have a bonding problem. But it's your decision.

Boatfix has alot of the materials you are going to need at a good savings.

Rob

 

[littlebookworm]

Thanks, Rob. I'll get the book and look into getting the supplies at Boatfix. Safe boating. Hy

 

[wvorris]

Sounds like a lot of work --- I had the same problem on my old Trojan. I drilled some carefully placed 3/8 inch holes and injected a thickened epoxy mixture (2 Westsystem caulk tubes that I filled with the stuff) in each hole. I waited 1 day for each hole - to prevent thermal runaway. I was amazed at how well it worked (and how much time it saved).

 

[littlebookworm]

I hope to go out to the marina to do some work on the boat tomorrow. At that time, I'm going to use the tapping test to try to mark out the extent of the soft deck problem. If it's just a small area, I may try the "fill with epoxy" method. If it's a large area, I'm going to just have to open it up and fix it. Thanks all, Hy.