87 Sun Sport Overhaul

[87SunSportMikeyD]

Neil - Please promise me you'll never delete this thread!!!

[mapleleaf]

I'd say if the interior turns out good, you're in the right ballpark. I've wanted to ask about stringer material for a while and since this is a rebuild thread.......
I totally agree with Okie and the Doug fir, but I visited a couple boat builder's this past summer ( primarily sail boats) who swore by White Oak. Apparently, its very resistant to rot, and super strong. Given lumber prices up here the difference wouldn't be much more for the Oak. Just wondering if there are any opinion's on this??
I'll be diving into some stringer and bilge repair after New Year's, that may very well turn into an entire rebuild.....

[Salty87]

go for it leaf!...i've said it before but a dry boat is a wonderful thing.

don't forget to discuss the pro's and con's of lumber vs plywood (sounds like an exam lol).

put me in the marine plywood group. the main reason being that i wanted to use plywood and wanted the laminates glued with waterproof glue (there's probably a more technical term than waterproof). i've had a section of 1/2" marine ply laying around my backyard, outside, since my rebuild around 2 years ago. it hasn't delaminated. i wanted plywood for structural strength reasons...alternating directions of grain.

i'm also in the ploy resin camp. in hindsight, i'm not quite as sure why. i wasn't skimping on materials but decided the floor didn't need to be made out of stronger resin than the hull. rlutdke would make a great resin salesman...where do i sign? lol

i think more important than the materials you chose is the design changes you can make. there was no drainage of 'sealed' compartments before. and, foam was poured in without regard for the long term effects....trapped water. you can't defeat water over the long-term, you have to plan to deal with it effectively.

[mapleleaf]

Yeah, Salty, here I go on a thread jack ( sorry Neil!), have studied your drainage upgrades and won't go w/out them. Hit a rock this fall and jacked everything up, strut backing plate and poss. rudder backing..... Needless to say the rear end of my stringers are on their way, so it's becoming self explanatory.......I'd feel a whole lot better if I was rebuilding a slightly bigger boat!!!! At least I get to put my new interior back in!!!!!!

[NeilMcg]

Thanks Mike for your confidence!

As for the stringers, I'm seriously considering using Seacast. I figure that will save an lot of time by not having to do all the shaping and sanding to get it just right. If I don't go that route, I will use dimensional lumber and I've also heard about the good properties of White Oak. Truth is that my boat never really takes that much of a pounding and I have a hard time believing that solid wood wouldn't be prefectly adequate to perform just fine. FYI, I'm going to the Miami boat show, because nearly every manufacturer will be there. If anyone else is planning on it, let me know.
More Pics to come!

[Okie Boarder]

I've seen a lot of discussion of several forums about what to use to do the rebuilds. White Oak is a decent choice if Doug Fir isn't available, from what I've read. I think it's only disadvantage is the weight. I've seen several discussions about plywood and also LVL. I'd say it kind of boils down to what you can get in your area and opinion on what you think would be your own best solution. My opinion is no matter which way you go, most of the rebuilds are done a little better than the original anyway and most of those have already lasted 20+ years, so you really can't go too wrong.

[Salty87]

i researched seacast too. it's ridiculously expensive. you also have to get all of the wood out of your old stringers while leaving the fiberglass skins in tact. unless your stringers have completely disintegrated you'll come across areas of good wood that won't come out easily.

in the end i don't think it will be easier, won't be cheaper, and if not done right the results could be bad.

[sybrmike]

Regarding the Seacast - I considered something similar, but the stringers (esp outer ones) are pretty skinny & not much room to get all the old wood out. Plus mine only had cross braces laid flat across the top of the stringers & no easy way to duplicate that with Seacast and I really wanted true bulkead type cross supports.

I used laminated sections of exterior grade plywood. Easy to work with & not too expensive to redo if you fudge something up (I did). The stringers in my Saltare curved inward at the bow & laminated plywood made duplicating the curve easier, pluse easy to scarf pieces together to run the full length.

Agree with Okie, lots of evidence when I tore mine apart that there's plenty of room in the original for improvement. Any halfway decent attempt to do it right (even by an amature like me) with modern materials is gonna last at least as long as the original.

[NeilMcg]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing...how to hollow all that stuff out. The biggest concern is getting the dimensions of the stringers just right, especially the height so I can keep the floor height the original and, more importantly, level...that seems like it would be a nightmare (I'm the furthest thing from a carpender you can get). Anyway, the floor is coming out in a few weeks and I'll be posting pics once I start that. Considering the cost of good marine wood plus the cloth and resin, Seacast at $210/5gal, may actually be comparable; I have to further check on that. I'm also taking the measurements from the floor and having a mill custom cut them so I don't have to deal with that either.

[NeilMcg]

Mike,
As you saw on my rudder problem, do you think It's possible to have the vertical shaft straightend out..or should I just go with a whole new system?