Bit off more than I can chew

[DLW]

I posted a few weeks ago about how to remove residue peel away..well the frustration is continuing..

I am new to wooden boats and I have a Luder 24..I wanted to strip down the bottom paint on the port side because of the on going cracking and patch work needed as well as finding a few soft spots in the glass/wood at the beginning of the season. Well 4 months later and little to no progress made I have reached my limits. I would very much like the boat to go in the water next year and in order for this to happen I need some expert/experianced advice. The peel away has done more than its job in some places breaking down the fiberglass which is now peeling off. The once stripping the bottom paint job has now turned into a full on fiberglass job of basically, the entire port side bottom. I need advice and/or a name of someone in the Long Island, NY area that would be able to come and look at the boat and either work on it and/or tell me what the hell I need to do. I am doubting that I can do this job right and I certainly do not want to come back and have to do it again because of my lack of knowledge and inexperiance.

TIA

[ 09-30-2005, 11:12 AM: Message edited by: DLW ]

[chucksw]

There was an extensive article about Luders and those boats a several months back in Wooden Boat. There is a shop that was mentioned that specializes in repairing them. The Luders hulls were laminated from thin veneers in a mold and glued and heated, if I recall from the article. Very interesting, like plywood construction. You need to get a evaluation if the frames are good and plys are delaminated. If it's delaminated, you are looking at replacing hull panels which would be much more involved.

Stripping back the old ratty glass and doing a new epoxy bottom are straightforward and anyone can do it whith the right tools and attention to details. The basic steps are in the West System manual.

Chuck

[DLW]

I am certain that the hull panels are fine it was just some localized stuff very small, the boat has been very well taken care of. I am just a bit nervous to do such a large job as I have never glassed that large of an area before.

[Don Z.]

DLW...

Sent you a PM.

Are you sure the glass is original? That may be why it's coming off in sheets. The good news is, you won't have to replace it!

Z

[Adamant]

I have a 28' boat with a layer of glass to strip and I'm going to try a heat gun. My attack will be to work a small (6") patch at a time. Tedious work ahead for me. Try to focus on a small bit at a time. Good luck.

[DLW]

yea that is the plan unfortunatly i seem to be running out of warm days in a hurry, this may have t wait until the spring

[Dale R. Hamilton]

DLW- calm down, all can be set right. Nothing is so formidible that the WBF can't tell you how to fix it. First, this movement business- where is it coming from? Are the frames and longitidinal members in good shape?- if not, thats your first priority. If thats ok, and its just a FG problem- all you need do is strip off the laminations that will come easily- fair thing up with a body grinder or DA with 36 grit. BE SURE TO WEAR EYE PROTECTION AND A DECENT RESPIRATOR. This was the hard part. Now you just replace the laminations with new epoxy. You will probably need to replace some FG with cloth- probably 9 ounce should do. Make sure the bottom is really clean. Roll on at least 2 good coats of epoxy- I like System Three. You can mix in a pigment if you wish. When its dry, cover the parts that need new cloth- set it wet epoxy, roll out, fill the weave. Next mix some fairing compound and use this goop to fill low spots. The more you work here, the better your job will be. After drying, roll on at least 2 more coats clear epoxy- maybe with pigment. Let dry, wet sand with 220, then maybe 400, and paint. I like Imron. And your done!! See, simple.

[Wild Wassa]

DLW, Hi Mate.

Following on from others, I'm able to send you a series of photographs of a resurfacing of a glass pocket cruiser, if it interests you. This job came about because of osmosis and has gone very well, especially for the owner.

Hopefully the dozen photographs in the series, will show that it is no real big deal and no one really bites off more than we can chew. It is just a fair amount of work that needs addressing that's all and this is somewhat similar to your problemo.

Let me know if you might like them and I'll email them to you. The photographs are self explanatory.

Warren.

[ 10-05-2005, 06:05 PM: Message edited by: Wild Wassa ]

[DLW]

thanks for the help guys, just for clarification there is no movement and panels are in good shape. There are only a few localized area of some wet spots/rot which can easily be fixed (i have done this before on the rudder). Thanks for the encouragement hopefully I will be able to tackle this next week

[Thad]

In case anyone wants to join DLW in his exercise (with sailing to follow), there is a Luders 16 siting at Nahant, MA that needs a new home and the same sort of work.

[Don Z.]

Thad,
You have a PM.
Thanks,
Z

[Wild Wassa]

DLW, info sent, any dramas please let me know.

Warren.