Bertram 25 conversion to an outboard powered CC

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Apr 13th, '21, 07:50

Yannis,

I agree - there will be a hatch in the back area which gets closed off.

Forward I am thinking of using that space for storage too for stuff like throwable life ring and life jackets but that area would be open

here's my un-original idea I got from my buddy who bought my Hiliner from me .He added stand-off pieces from the side of the hull and curved boards to match the hull's profile.

my boat - here's a crude drawing of the idea.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/gfM93KUqRvNUeBPfA
I haven't thought it out completely as I don't want to make anything a person could trip on and would like some bling and would like the cross board(s) to be wood finished bright. My thoughts would be to make the pieces out of Mahogany and what I haven't figured out is the stand-off pieces and how to attach them to the boat. I am assuming even thin 3/8" mahogany boards would still have some spring back so the stand-offs would need to be fairly robust.

Yannis · Post by **Yannis** » Apr 13th, '21, 15:27

My son has taken over the computer watching Chelsea, so I’m stuck with the i pad, all this to say that there is an old thread where I explain how I did mine, with vertical teak supports, attached to the hull with glassed T’s from aluminum, inlaid in the back of the wood. The rest is too simple, just teak strips screwed onto the verticals. The bottom one some 3cm from the deck so that all debris can be rinsed out and (in your case) your toes can go under. No vertical separations along the length so that I can fit spearguns, brooms and the like.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Apr 20th, '21, 09:21

Christmas in April

some boxes showed up last night, (2) B&G 12" Vulcan displays, Halo 20+ radar, Active imaging Transducer.

I want to get going building a base to raise up the radar @1-2" so I can put a low profile forward facing light bar on the Doghouse top.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Apr 20th, '21, 19:07

70 degrees out after work so I did some glassing, I got a few layers of 1708 on the underside of the gunnel patches I put in. Glassing up-side-down is no fun.... I had to rush in and take a quick shower to get the resin which dripped on the side of my head.

I went out after dinner and put a tarp over the gunnels and a heater under so the area would stay nice and warm overnight.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » May 19th, '21, 07:43

I haven't posted in a while - it was upper 50s and low 60s for a couple weeks, never any good windows for glass work, towards the end of last week, we got some days in the low 70s and this week we are hitting 80s - let the work begin in earnest.

I had been doing some work when I could, I made a decision and the curve in the area in front was too much to make storage areas out of the gunnel supports so I did basic under gunnel supports to make the area as clean as possible, I was able to fabricate the gunnel supports from my old fuel tank hatch and get them glassed in and cut the panel which will enclose a section of the gunnels around where the fuel fill goes under the deck.

The last couple of days I glassed in the front panel and radiused the corners and put mat over the radius

under gunnel supports
https://photos.app.goo.gl/h8nbsKNX55qmGXLZ9

prepping to bond in the covering panel
https://photos.app.goo.gl/15Mr49sAV3RQk3JF8

I glassed the top and bottom of the panel first, came back radiused the corners and glassed the corners 2nd, the additional mat on the top edge was because the panel didn't come out flush with the top cap
https://photos.app.goo.gl/urXf9gzAngfHyNnf6

One of the front supports - covered with mat after the front corner radius
https://photos.app.goo.gl/QGfMJtSESLfi9mrQ7

The first casualties of the Bertram project - The mother Robin make her nest on the trailer winch, I think she got spooked by me working on the boat and hasn't been tending to her eggs.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/kyxoPnPiPsZhVS3K6

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » May 23rd, '21, 21:11

Since I have no idea when I will end up getting a motor I also started working on finishing off my cabin. For folks who haven't read through the whole project, I cut down the cabin 22" and made the cockpit larger, as a part of that there were some cubbie holes for storage which would not work any more so I needed to patch in the holes, I also wanted to patch in the holes where previous owners had a head which was plumbed to go overboard.

A while back I made a panel of 3 layers of 1708, Friday night I cut strips of the panel to go on top and bottom of the hole to act as a backer piece for the actual filler chunk, then cut out filler pieces. I mixed up some vinlyester resin with some cabosil and microballons and put a blob of resin on the support strips and then pre-drilled holes and screwed in some temp screws. Once the filler strips were installed I put some more blobs of goop and put in the filler strips. I had the resin a little too much catalyst and by the time I had it all together it was starting to kick and the last bit of gap filling didn't look great.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Z9cjGupq8SiMQscB9

Saturday I removed the temporary screws and hit it with the grinder and it cleaned up fine
https://photos.app.goo.gl/NtFCU8UDX8fyQQPs5

I ground off the gelcoat where the floor would glass in so I could get a good bond
https://photos.app.goo.gl/GBwMagJ6BY4z5Xrp7

My Hull ID - 25-455 - 6/20/1963 - this will be covered up and no longer visible
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KS2Bao2XrX75T84k8

Floor in and 2 layers of 1708 over the edges, 1 large piece covering the whole patch and then 1.5oz mat over the whole floor. Towards the end it was pretty hot out and even at minimum catalyst it was kicking too fast. I will need to do a bit of sanding to flatten out a couple places.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/TDV2u24ipSZjqNAd6

Rawleigh · Post by **Rawleigh** » May 25th, '21, 10:56

I have missed looking at this thread for a while. My friend just heard that his motors may be in this week. He ordered them 1st of October.

BillVT · Post by **BillVT** » May 25th, '21, 12:02

Looking at your hull number, it's amazing how many of the 25s they made in such a short time. Mine is hull #359, made in February 1963.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/rC5fE7yENrJP9sVB7

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » May 25th, '21, 12:41

Bill,
I am wondering if they were churning them out fast or if there were gaps in the numbers? It is also interesting the gelcoat color on the stringer grid

Rawleigh,
My calls to the Marina have been somewhat fuzzy - they still are saying mid July but are saying it in a way that I have ZERO confidence that it will actually happen. Getting frustrated - I went and bought a Hobie Compass pedal powered kayak so I could at least do some in close fishing.

I have one last glassing job left which is to bond down the livewell/leaning post combo. From there it will be finishing off the fairing and gel coating the interior cockpit.

Hopefully I can get the interior of the cockpit gel coated by the end of june and if signs aren't good for getting a motor I will start to work on sanding the outside of the hull and give it a paint job.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » May 25th, '21, 20:15

I sanded out the glass in the cabin floor as well as the panels I did in the side of the cockpit and did a first pass with some filler.

Let's just say, Fiberglass itch + a sunburn from this weekend is not a fun combination

no pics tonight

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 1st, '21, 08:27

No Work done over the weekend, I took friday off and went fishing with a buddy, Lots of folks were talking about limiting out on Black sea bass in Buzzards bay so we tried our luck but the wind was 20+ kts and we only came home with a couple of BSB for the table. I did catch one small Striper bouncing a lead-head off the bottom near the entrance to the Canal.

It was really nice to be on the water, I can't wait to get my project done.

Rawleigh · Post by **Rawleigh** » Jun 1st, '21, 10:16

I got my wife one of those Hobie pedal kayaks. Pretty neat rig! at least you will be in shape when the motors arrive!!! My buddy's are getting hung Thursday.

beachbum · Post by **beachbum** » Jun 1st, '21, 14:58

This might be of interest - a series of videos of 2 Tasmanian guys doing up a 1980 B25

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j0obE2VJV4

There are 6-7 videos, quite entertaining if nothing else!

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 2nd, '21, 20:39

I watched a couple of those videos and another video popped up in youtube from an Aussie guy who redid his boat with a pair of 300hp suzukis. Sweet looking boat.

On my project, I got jammed at work and didn't get out to work on the boat until 6pm. I sanded the fairing compound for a while but was slowed down due to the Diablo 6" disks not sticking to the DA. I wasted a few disks before I got one which stuck for more than 5 min and I sanded until 8pm. It was a little too dark to do another pass of filler so I will wait until tomorrow for that.

If anyone has a suggestion on how to get the disks to stick better I am all ears.

CamB25 · Post by **CamB25** » Jun 3rd, '21, 13:16

I've had problems with those Diablo disks as well. No issues with my 3M or Festool gear, but these are no peel and stick, but velcro type.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 3rd, '21, 22:27

No Pics again today - sanded the deck where the livewell/leaning post would end up on the boat, then sanded the bottom of the livewell tank to provide a good bonding spot then mixed up a batch of epoxy / cabosil / high density filler and bonded the live well tank to the deck.

Been watching some more of the Aussie Bertram and episode had the guys running the B25 and doing some testing on the water, it looked like it was running pretty good. episode 5 - shows some of the fun from my past, trim pumps not working well, pulling outdrives, pulling motors. Yeah I'm glad I won't be doing that anymore.

Snipe · Post by **Snipe** » Jun 4th, '21, 04:32

I second what Cam said I use 3m hook and loop style on all my sanders I bought 3m pads and can get the paper at the local auto store. They also had a 3m sanding block that takes the pads as well. If they clog at all I blow them out wit air compressor and keep on going. https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/d/b40066020/

beachbum · Post by **beachbum** » Jun 5th, '21, 15:31

ktm_2000 wrote: ↑Jun 3rd, '21, 22:27 Been watching some more of the Aussie Bertram and episode had the guys running the B25 and doing some testing on the water, it looked like it was running pretty good. episode 5 - shows some of the fun from my past, trim pumps not working well, pulling outdrives, pulling motors. Yeah I'm glad I won't be doing that anymore.

It hit 40 knots with the twin 200hp Yamahas on the back. It's a 1980 hull made by International (?) - I don't know much about the Aus version but is it a bit lighter?

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 7th, '21, 08:31

I haven't got that far in the videos - Cam's B25 with a single 300hp is right near a 40kt boat so I'm wondering what the extra 100hp is getting you. I would think a CC would be a lot less wind drag so more efficient than a sportfish and that could be a pretty good chunk of it.

Saturday was a fairing day.... I've mentioned in the past I can do the work but am not efficient and need way more passes and sanding than most folks so I did some outsourcing. I got my Buddy George to come over who was a plasterer early on in his life until he hurt his back and got into IT.

Lets just say even though George has been out of the line of work for well over a decade, he still has a considerable skillset and it is MANY times greater than mine. He identified a bunch of areas which would cause issues and I then suited up and knocked them down with the 6" DA then we started by mixing up a small batch of the polyfair so he could get an idea of how the material worked. The first batch not great but it flatened out one of the bulkheads pretty good. The 2nd and 3rd batch we learned that the fast @15min cure to hard enough times made it advantageous to do one coat building up in the corners of an area then let that kick, use the trowel to knock down the "snots" then come back with another coat to fill in the field area.

It was stupid hot out and we setup a tarp going from the sunny side gunnels to the top support for the shrinkwrap, creating a bit of shade made quite a bit of difference in being able to work through the heat of the day.

I worked as his laborer, getting drinks, mixing up the polyfair, cleaning trowels etc. it worked pretty good, many times faster than what I could do on my own. Even with his help we only got the front 1/2 of the boat as the closed in portion of the gunnels took quite a bit of time and many passes to get right. I'll need to do some sanding tonight and fully expect another round of passes but the next set should only be filling pinholes.

I'm going to try to get the back 1/2 of the boat prepped and try to figure out a way to compensate George to come back and help finish the back. I envision doing a few CNC projects for him for starters.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 10th, '21, 07:36

Monday was crazy hot, tuesday rained, wed I sanded to take high spots and ridges off all the fairing compound from 5:30-8pm. While the compound went on smooth there were a bunch of air bubbles and I will need a coat to fill any bubble left.

Work has been really busy so not a lot of time for lunchtime 1/2hr mini projects

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 14th, '21, 08:00

I haven' t been posting with pics so I thought I would add a few...

I was wrong about mother robin and her eggs, she must have gotten really good about getting out of the nest anytime I came around the corner and could see her. The 3 robins seem to have survived and 2 days after this pic was taken must have fledged and left the nest.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/xJqKbCKmBbG7RcYB7

I now to the project, I had bonded the livewell to the deck a little while back and I came back and glassed the inside and outside edges of the leaning post to the deck. Inside I did 2 layers of 1708, outside I didn't want to build up too much so I only did one layer.

View inside - not a lot of room to glass
https://photos.app.goo.gl/dHYezWC3okbzGaDu7
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KvzXPQqkBRs4zbEeA

outside - I tried to keep the glass to a minimum to minimize fairing.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/NEB7ViFaq2biLndS7

Front Gunnel Supports - Here's an area I screwed up and had to re-do.... When I glassed in the supports with 2 layers of 1708 on either side I made the supports fat in some areas due to the glass, I also needed to enclose the front face so I thought I'd use some 1.5oz mat and wrap the front face and use more mat to make the whole panel consistent.

Well that didn't work out so well for me, even though I did round the corners the mat would not lie flush and kept getting air bubbles, in frustration I pulled all of it off before it set to minimize grinding it all off to start again.

To get it right I built up a radius of a few layers of fairing compound and then sculpted it into a 180 degree radius and then Saturday afternoon I glassed it with a couple of layers of 1.5oz mat and made the rest of the panel the same thickness as originally planned.

you can see the build up of the pink fairing compound on the front face of the support in this pic
https://photos.app.goo.gl/VYkgN8J5Wekz1ZpQ8

Sunday - my buddy took me Haddock fishing 10 miles east of Graves light which is on the east part of Boston Harbor. We messed around and tried some Bass fishing too but there were none to be found. That messing around for Stripers cost us some time and we only caught a few Haddock, which would be enough for a few dinners. I had a really good stuffed Haddock dinner last night

Here's a pic of Graves lighthouse on the way in
https://photos.app.goo.gl/kvDcEnB4msF2VcYF6

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 16th, '21, 07:46

I worked on the front gunnel supports and the leaning post last night. I sanded the high spots and seams on both and then did a pass of fairing compound on both areas.

I also worked on the hull to deck joint and am trying to figure out a path to fair that joint. When my Buddy came over his thought was to create a template of the outside of the lowercase h shaped joint then cut it out of melamine and use the melamine piece to create the same profile.

I tried the template in a small area and it didn't work as I would have expected as the fairing compound didn't really fill the curved section in the middle
https://photos.app.goo.gl/EeooX2EY8C1qLBhy5

My current thoughts are to get the base part flat as well as the upper part flat and then come back with the curve profile and apply filler just to the curved center portion. Last night I went around the base of the deck and faired the 2 flat portions.

no pics

CamB25 · Post by **CamB25** » Jun 16th, '21, 09:43

that's a tough spot. I used a set of small sanding blocks like this: https://www.rockler.com/rockler-contour ... XMQAvD_BwE

for the concave areas. They helped to get it into rough shape, but the final pass was all by hand. In flat areas I used my short 3M air block sander (VERY useful tool). Convex curves were all done by hand. I bought a few packs of those tight fitting gripper gloves. They saved my fingertips from alot of wear and tear.

Get it close and then start spraying primer and sanding with the guide coat to isolate the trouble spots. Spray the first coats of primer pretty thick. You'll need to find and fill all the pin holes and hopefully have enough primer left on the surface to fair without exposing everything again. It's going to look ugly during the first couple of rounds of the primer phase.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 16th, '21, 19:40

while sanding out the fairing I put on the leaning post yesterday I thought that I didn't want to get much further without finishing off sealing in the nidacore around where I cut an opening to make storage in the top of the leaning post.

here's a pic from last year of where I left off, I didn't seal the edges along the top.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/5gQveSFmUQgzEks57

this whole process didn't go as well as expected, I had hoped to wet out some 1.5oz mat and apply to the edges but it wouldn't stick, so I added microballons and cabosil to the resin I had mixed up and filled in the exposed area of the core, I then made some more resin and added the glass which then did stay in place. I waited 1/2hr and then used a razor blade to cut away the excess.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 17th, '21, 19:04

I guess I didn't do such a great job with razor last night cutting off the excess glass from sealing in the opening edge core on the leaning post, I needed to do some cleanup
before
https://photos.app.goo.gl/iP6cy38tGv4bLq56A
after
https://photos.app.goo.gl/WVuMn3X6A3GZLUjY7

I also worked on the lid for the leaning post done today, over lunch I did one of the sides and after work I did the other side, this time I went straight to mixing up some resin, then mixed some filler, filled the exposed core and came back over with 2 layers of 1.5oz mat.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/pgBWDLiPHBbffPs87

I'm getting closer on the hull to deck joint - I have the flat areas done pretty good. I will need another 5 gallon bucket of fairing compound and will wait to do the rounded portion when I am in a fresh bucket.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/6qJpVvngYqipUv83A

I used up the last of my current bucket of fairing working on the leaning post
https://photos.app.goo.gl/LM4pyDWgs2apuE5Y9

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 18th, '21, 13:16

Not my day today

I was hoping to spend all of tomorrow fairing - Nope - the small shop I buy my fairing compound took the day off, at least I called before driving the 1hr out their to pick it up.

Next - yesterday I got a text message from Fedex that my boat windows are going to arrive today, I check the tracking, nope, still in CT.

So as a result, I've got to hang around at home tomorrow to wait for the windows yet can't do much on the boat without fairing compound.

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 21st, '21, 08:38

after a bunch of calls to fedex they were supposed to just deliver today, so went to the cape for the weekend, came home sunday to 2 delivery slips on the door for sat and sunday - I have to tip my hat for their customer service.

All ended up well, nice solid wooden box weighing 100# arrived this morning. I'm jammed with meetings 8am-5pm straight so I won't be able to cut out to open it and see how they look just yet.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 24th, '21, 07:18

nothing interesting to take pics of, It rained tuesday so I went to Merton's to get more fairing compound and gelcoat. They had a system 3 product which is advertised to seal up epoxy based repairs and allow you to go over them with gelcoat. I bought some and hope to use that to re-gelcoat my transom.

Wed I did some more fairing of the leaning post.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 25th, '21, 11:45

My "Luck" continues -- I took the day off to fair, raining lightly so no fairing to be done.

I decide to switch to installing the doghouse windows - opened up the crate and started taking the trim rings off so I could put them on the boat and then cut out the right place.

More luck - instead of a matching set, they made me 2 of the same side windows

I called them up and they will make me a new one but will take probably a month to get to me.

I realized shortly after taking this pic, that the trim ring for the port side was backwards
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9weXpznoQL2xNefKA

These Windows are going to look fantastic when installed (after I get a replacement window) I'm going to cut the holes and mount the port side inside out for now.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 26th, '21, 18:58

Yesterday I got the window openings cut out and temporarily installed the windows with the port side window installed backwards since it was made as a starboard side window.

I really like how the windows look and they seem to be constructed really well.

from the helm
https://photos.app.goo.gl/WEzwsa3Ri3Q36uYRA

a view a few feet back
https://photos.app.goo.gl/znneW5zbUuY3MoyX8

I'm not worried about the doghouse falling apart as there is plenty of glass holding this together.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/fSzUnz5zrqH5x4qq8

If I did get a motor before the replacement window comes in, it won't be the end of the world, here's a pic of the window installed backwards.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/r8LDdX9QNJamXtGU7

Plenty of visibility and not too many blind spots
https://photos.app.goo.gl/evNWErjrLWTAf7E77

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 29th, '21, 21:09

In sanding out the transom yesterday I decided that I didn't like the look of the transom notch as it didn't match the curves of the motor-well so I decided to fix it.

Here's how it looked a while back - I didn't know how to finish it so I left more of the transom and the inside curve was glassed to the extra lip.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/kPeBEz7cNCu79Dmp6

I ground down the extra lip and made it flush with the motor-well. The area where it joined the transom now no longer had support from the front and I was concerned that if I put filler over it, the joint may fail in the future and show a crack.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Re5zrhU4ZpRuTBkN6

After work I ground a good radius on the transom glass and took off some of the gelcoat to allow a single layer of 10oz cloth. I will sand it flush and fill the weave later on.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Czm1v9U1z2Cyh2dNA

Closeup shot
https://photos.app.goo.gl/DaYveSvPRdHB79DK7

Of course my "luck" came into play with a pop-up thunderstorm coming through and I had to rush to get all the tools put away and the boat covered up.10 min after I got done laying up the glass.

CamB25 · Post by **CamB25** » Jun 30th, '21, 07:09

Looks good!

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jun 30th, '21, 20:47

I had another post out asking about what level of sanding to avoid the spider cracking of the gelcoat - answer - take it all off

https://photos.app.goo.gl/y7avJC7cVbv8xSzV7

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jul 19th, '21, 08:19

I took the week after July 4th off and of course any time I take vacation it rains most of the time, the sad part is the faucet has been left turned on and it has rained every day since I've been back. I haven't got a thing done since June.

It looks like it isn't going to rain tomorrow, maybe I'll get something done?

the forecast for the rest of the week is rain

CamB25 · Post by **CamB25** » Jul 19th, '21, 12:39

Matt - pouring down rain here in NC today if that is any consolation!

Just a note about props as I'm testing a few options. My RX4- 16 is a bit too low in pitch and vibrates like crazy. It also does not respond to trim or jackplate height changes in any measurable way. Friday I tried 2 different props - PowerTech OFX4-17, and a Mirage 19p, 3 blade. The Power tech was worse than the Evinrude in terms of vibration...horrible. The Mirage was a huge improvement...minor vibration, boat rode well, responded to trim and height as expected. Slower hole shot, but it's more than a fair trade for the smooth operation and boat trim. Seems like a winner, but I can only get 5200 rpm out of it. Tweaking the trim I can hit 5300 and 42 mph. I'm looking for a 17p to try.

I think there is something about how the water leaves the boat that the 4 blades do not like.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Jul 22nd, '21, 07:35

tuesday and wednesday I got a little over 2hrs work in each night on the transom and have it faired out. After so many days of rain the mosquitoes were out of control and it limited me working into dusk.

before
https://photos.app.goo.gl/pZjox4vZ4KmbF5TL8
after
https://photos.app.goo.gl/3U2LdQd2w6cbzpM67

I still need some final hand sanding around the bump out and may need another small batch to pinhole fill. Tonight I will coat the flat part of the transom which had all been done with epoxy with the system 3 resin which is supposed to act as a tie coat so you can go over it in gelcoat.

I think I am in good shape to gelcoat the transom on saturday.

CamB25 · Post by **CamB25** » Jul 22nd, '21, 10:55

One other prop note....forget reverse. With the offset engine I think the props are just pushing water against the transom. No measurable difference between 3 or 4 blade props, or trim or height adjustments. Makes it tricky to back into my slip!

Transom looks good. I don't understand why you want to go to all the trouble of spray gelcoat and then sanding, but I'm sure it will come out great!

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 3rd, '21, 12:28

some updates on the project

I got 4 coats of gelcoat on the transom and have sanded it out to 400 grit paper. There are some dimples around the perimeter of the bump out where I may put another coat or 2 on to fill. sorry for the bad pics as the lighting is tough to show what it looks like
https://photos.app.goo.gl/uU4PvaxVgCf72WXY8
after sanding
https://photos.app.goo.gl/7SEb2cPt2EMUpRbU9

I also faired out under the gunnels in the stern of the boat and put 4 coats of gelcoat on there too. This one had some woes where the 2nd coat roller decided to shed fuzzy crap and I had to shave it off before the 3rd coat, then the final coat roller decided to disintegrate the internal portion and would not stay on the roller, thus needing to scramble to find another roller before the gelcoat kicked.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/MUwyygGhnz7avrf3A

the last day or so I've been working on the front 1/2 of the boat getting the hull to deck joint nice and neat and am finally getting a more efficient way to deal with the filler. Essentially I do really small mixes, spread the stuff out until the material doesn't want to be worked and then cleanup my tools, if I wait 5 min after that I can go after the material I put down with coarse sandpaper and the material works easily and the stuff removed rolls up into little tiny rolls of filler.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/PY5MpLsWy55nuVnj9

I plan on a final pass of fixing any issues and doing a final sand in the front corners of the cockpit tonight and will be gelcoating the next 2 nights after work if the weather cooperates.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9QxxdfAt4hfMRpBN9

beachbum · Post by **beachbum** » Aug 4th, '21, 05:49

Looks good!

You're giving me loads of motivation for mine in the Autumn.

Oh and is that a sort of dry stone BBQ grill you've got in the garden too?!

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 4th, '21, 07:53

below the driveway there is a rubble stone retaining wall 3 feet tall and built into it is a barbecue probably built some time in the 1950s. What you can see is the chimney portion which sticks up above the retaining wall. The fire area is not very large and the chimney doesn't draw smoke very well so we have used it maybe 2-3 times in the 15+ years we've owned the house. I'd like to get rid of it but it is built with mortar and I am worried about how I could make whatever is not removed look decent when I am done. Thus leaving it alone is the best option.

Our true firepit is in the background, our clothes washer was 10+ years old and starting having parts break down, the front seal was leaking and then another part broke, would have cost $400 to fix and a new one was $700 so we replaced it. My wife saw something on facecrap about using the drum for a firepit so I took the stainless steel drum out. My wife obviously didn't read any of the captions about the effort required to take a machine apart and it took me 2.5hrs to do so with a lot of effort.

End game it is a fabulous firepit, all the holes in the side let air in nicely and when a fire gets going good it has minimal smoke all of which goes out the top. Even with the stupid amount of effort to get the drum out, I would recommend doing so if you can get your hands on an old stainless steel drum front loading washer.

not my video but has the same drum as what I have

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 5th, '21, 07:13

I got the front starboard side under the gunnels gelcoated last night, there was a rain front coming up the coast and I was lucky enough it stayed to the east of me until after I was able to complete and get the boat covered up.

fairing
https://photos.app.goo.gl/QRzaZ98Tu85vwDUa9

overall view
https://photos.app.goo.gl/YQUZWdgyTeva16cy9

closer view of the integration with the side console and top cap
https://photos.app.goo.gl/uHnSgwxcBEsj5TAp9

Front quarter - I probably could have done a better job fairing the top edge of the deck liner
https://photos.app.goo.gl/izG6wwhGb3iPWSHc6

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 12th, '21, 07:27

I was able to get the port side front quarter of under the gunnels gelcoated last night.

This pic is after the first of 4 coats
https://photos.app.goo.gl/3GZzEGgCoMnRWK9k9

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 17th, '21, 13:46

Last thursday I sanded out the gunnels where I patched in to cover up holes where I had previously had the Radar arch. I also sanded out the front where I had cut down the helm area and made the gunnels longer. Most of those repairs had been done with epoxy and I had hoped to get a sealing coat of system 3 epoxy which allows bonding of gelcoat over the top but as it got close to 7:30pm a thunder cell came through and doused everything
https://photos.app.goo.gl/xfYompXFa3H992q49

a while back I did a test sand of the gelcoat I did on the doghouse to sand the orange peel off and get a shiny surface and determined that the 3 coats I had on it were not enough, I wanted to get a shiny surface so the thought was to put a few more coats of gelcoat on the surface. Since I didn't get the epoxy sealer coat on thursday and I had Friday off to do work I decided to work on the doghouse and started off in the morning sanding the surface smooth with 80 grit exposing some areas to fairing underneath and put down 4 more coats of gelcoat.

Friday was in the mid 90s and I sweat my a$$ off with the reflection of the sun off the areas where I had gelcoated and having to wear protective gear from the sanding dust. My big mistake was drinking my kids sugary lemonade. I probably drank 1 gallon of it and another gallon of water over the day. Most of the water was coming out of me via perspiration and I got my system out of whack. It did't help that I had a few beers later on that night and I've been a bit messed up since.

Been drinking only water and taking it easy the last couple of days and hopefully I can start getting back on track and getting things done hopefully putting the epoxy sealer coat on the gunnels tonight and getting a couple coats of gelcoat over that tomorrow night.

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 17th, '21, 22:29

Here's some photos after a bit more sanding and then coating with the system 3 epoxy to poly resin tie coat.

starboard side showing the reduced cabin and the patch I put into the gunnels to make the cockpit larger.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/px5BT86vozRa2SX86

The port side had a lot more gelcoat cracks so I sanded the gelcoat off first
https://photos.app.goo.gl/1HSdnddPGUYtUSt68

Gunnel patches where I had once notched the gunnels to attach the radar arch that I had. The patches are the lighter color. The red filler is from my previous project where I filled in the vent holes on the side of the boat. The hole further forward is where my mid-ship pop-up cleats install.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/4ck4v1o7epV1dtcG7

Snipe · Post by **Snipe** » Aug 18th, '21, 06:05

Looking Good your making progress. I am looking at the gemlux pop up cleats what did you go with?

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 18th, '21, 07:06

Snipe,

I added them soon after I bought my boat, I think that they are accon marine pop ups

https://www.acconmarine.com/collections ... -up-cleats

PeterPalmieri · Post by **PeterPalmieri** » Aug 18th, '21, 13:36

I put gemlux on my 31 and love them. I had the ones with the spring and button on another boat and they always stuck and needed to be cleaned up

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 18th, '21, 20:29

I made up my mind on my stern rod-holders and they showed up today

lees - HD - zero degree swivels - these suckers are beefy

https://photos.app.goo.gl/CrPSLV2w2qaQUyip8

ktm_2000 · Post by **ktm_2000** » Aug 18th, '21, 20:39

after work I did a quick sand of the system 3 tie coat and did a 2 coats of gelcoat to cover up all the repairs which I did with epoxy.

This is not the final coat as I got frustrated using epoxy for fairing, I'd mix it up and add cabosil and micro-balloons to get to a peanut butter consistency, spread and let cure for a few hours. Even though it worked it is amazingly slow versus the 15min a mix that I've been doing with the poly based filler. At this point the epoxy is sealed from UV and I will sand and finish fairing as I do the rest of the top cap.

cabin top
https://photos.app.goo.gl/YFTZxZcgFjvxBsPk9
gunnels
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Y4tRh23ZEwxwoB5y9
https://photos.app.goo.gl/znU9yX3wPuyp5M64A

beachbum · Post by **beachbum** » Aug 19th, '21, 14:14

Really looks like it's starting to come together, ktm, nice work