1101........ Scorpian's rebuild

Hi Kingy.
Good to see another mossie getting the TLC treatment. I hope the job goes in a reasonably smooth manner for you.

I'm sure you'll keep us all informed on the progress'
Dave. 1724.

you aint seen nothing yet

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Lets hope so. the more inspirational work the better.

foredecks.... main decks ... & rear decks are covered in this 'matting', what's odd is that the painted surface under it is in quite good nick so obviously at some stage the slipper deck syndrome was an issue, what's thrown me is why do ALL the deck in the stuff ???

doesn't take too long to find the potential problems

and of course the multiple shift that fitting game that leaves even more screw holes to filled with multiple products but its usually what's layin around in the bottom draw, I've encountered everything from silicone, resin, araldite, cotton buds, matches, flush-cut screws, chewing gum, candle wax, and just about everything in between
<img src="<>/eek.gif" alt="eek" title="eek" height="15" width="15" />

there are a few areas where the matting has long since lifted and floated away, luckily the damage seems minimal around these spots

As I usually do.... the bore-scope takes a trip up the guts and as usual there's that unseen 'how did that get broken' <img src="<>/crazy.gif" alt="crazy" title="crazy" height="15" width="15" />

true craftsman cut breather holes <img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" />
& whats with the different foams ??? white ... green white green
<img src="<>/frown.gif" alt="frown" title="frown" height="15" width="15" />

and its nice to see some areas that look in great nick <img src="<>/smile.gif" alt="smile" title="smile" height="15" width="15" />
(note the dribbles of the various fillers along the inwhale <img src="<>/mad.gif" alt="mad" title="mad" height="15" width="15" /> )

looking forward from around the case slot, more green white green white foams are visible in the forward area and even
more quality cut breather holes
<img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" />

and so it begins......

I started off by peeling back the matting stuff and then ran the angle grinder over the remaining 'paint', this was to find the nail heads so they could be pulled prior to hitting the deck with the router.... but I found something rather odd underneath it ....
The section from the front shroud mount forward has no nails
<img src="<>/confused.gif" alt="confused" title="confused" height="15" width="15" />

weird huh....

and what are the 2 dark lines around an inch from the edge that run back toward the front beam ???

mmmmmmmm <img src="<>/confused.gif" alt="confused" title="confused" height="15" width="15" />

time for some open heart surgery <img src="<>/smirk.gif" alt="smirk" title="smirk" height="15" width="15" />

<img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" />

oooooooooh <img src="<>/cry.gif" alt="cry" title="cry" height="15" width="15" /> <img src="<>/mad.gif" alt="mad" title="mad" height="15" width="15" /> <img src="<>/eek.gif" alt="eek" title="eek" height="15" width="15" /> <img src="<>/shocked.gif" alt="shocked" title="shocked" height="15" width="15" /> <img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" /> shiiiiiiiiiiT

this is without doubt some of the worst workmanship I've seen on a boat..... & I haven't even ripped the entire deck off yet
<img src="<>/eek.gif" alt="eek" title="eek" height="15" width="15" />

is it too late to back out now ????

<img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />

found the missing nailheads in the front nose area, they've been cut off and painted over.... one less good router bit now
<img src="<>/mad.gif" alt="mad" title="mad" height="15" width="15" />

Those stringers look messy at the moment . Do you think that they are sound or will you need to do some remedial work.

How do the bridal wire plates look.

deck on the port hull removed.....

now we can see what's been going on and why we have such a mess on our hands
The foams have collapsed at some stage and rather than removing the deck properly they've opted to run a jigsaw down the inside edge of the gunwhales, resin up the broken foam, add 2 strips of ply to the gunwhales to bulk them out and then resin back in the original deck ply.

full replacement, not worth the effort of saving anything in there .... not even the foams <img src="<>/grin.gif" alt="grin" title="grin" height="15" width="15" />

the plates themselves are ok, the method of attatchment however <img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" />
again it been one of those now what have I got in the bottom drawer that might work tricks !!!

I was a bit taken aback to hear Phill say

are they mechano plates

.... I thought he was joking....

WRONG
<img src="<>/eek.gif" alt="eek" title="eek" height="15" width="15" />

I like rear decks.....
small area
minimal work
easy to do

so again the flap dick uncovers the nails and then the nails get pulled before I wreck another router bit

<img src="<>/cool.gif" alt="cool" title="cool" height="15" width="15" />

note:
the dust generated from the high-speed 'sanding' from the flap disc is usually bad enough, but the matting stuff is chokingly bad, its incredible as to the vast volumes of dust its creating

uncovered <img src="<>/smile.gif" alt="smile" title="smile" height="15" width="15" />

nice idea for an under deck support by placing the small triangle plates in there even if they are in a totally useless place....
why would you ever put them so close to a major part of the frame, would it not make more sense to locate them to support the middle area as best as possible ???

If these had of been midway between the beam support and the transom, I'd probably have been inclined to leave them there....
Oh well, next time maybe

take a deep breath.....

time to hit the starboard foredeck....

and yet again there's that oh-no feeling <img src="<>/frown.gif" alt="frown" title="frown" height="15" width="15" />

[insert head bashing against the brick-wall emoticon here]

something you don't see every day....

and the mains follow suit.... (offcuts layin on the shed floor)

Rippin the main is easy work, takes me about the same time to rip the 2 main as it does to rip one foredeck, circular saw versus router and the winner is ....
pass me the saw any day
<img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />

and the uglies are soon exposed.....

yep that's car bog that's been used to

fix

the foam
<img src="<>/sick.gif" alt="sick" title="sick" height="15" width="15" />

And lets not forget the Lake Bolac Easter Regatta damage....
from the inside with 1 foam removed for a better look

4 bits of foam from the shroud plate to the bow..... overkill

the first job is to delete them and the gallon of glue that was holding them in place, one foam will be put back in when the time comes
<img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />
I spy with my little eye ........ mechano <img src="<>/laugh.gif" alt="laugh" title="laugh" height="15" width="15" />

at this stage the wheelie-bin (in shot @ the bow) is almost full of unwanted rubbish we've dug out of the hulls and includes all the remains of the fore and rear deck be it as shavings or small bits of ply. The remains of the mains are still laying on the shed floor and will take a trip to landfill~land next bin run
<img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />

Stringers are out and the foams are about to follow

every now and them I get a bit bored with the repetition of some of the destruction and I tend to re-focus on a specific area until I'm happy with what I'm seeing. <img src="<>/smile.gif" alt="smile" title="smile" height="15" width="15" />

One of the several areas that need extra attention has been worrying me a bit, the Bolac Hole.... so for a spell I worked on it just to satisfy my concerns.
With the damaged bits cut away it doesn't look so bad but there's another issue that's beginning to rear its ugly head and this problem is throughout the boat and undoutably will cause me grief in the not to distant future......

The hulls are damp, and there's bits I can actually squeeze and draw moisture from, drying this old girl out is going to be hard but its got to happen somehow.... resin and wet plywood don't stick together well
<img src="<>/frown.gif" alt="frown" title="frown" height="15" width="15" />

Great stuff Kingy!

I reckon you are going to start a revolution ... of people finding the courage to have a go at fixing up old boats.

I hope so!
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front beam plates.....
a layer of ply on either side of the foam, so one layer of ply makes the bin

and then the foam is removed too.....
as is the ply hull doubler and the 16x16 meranti stiffener <img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />
slowly clearing out all the unwanted weight

Car bog is used to glue foams in some cases and make a curve so you can glass over a smooth corner as tight corners glass won't stick, and we all know that some resigns do melt the foam

if nothing else it will help people realise that it IS possible to do this stuff and that its far easier than you'd think.

The 'mantra' with Scorpian is to get the weight out, everything that's over-built is going and wont be put back in, we'll be replacing out-dated build designs with better ones and with lighter materials and yet not only maintain the strength but add it in ONLY where it's needed.

Biggest problem with car bog is it's ability to soak up and hold water - not really a great thing on the inside of a boat !!!
That moistness is often against the raw ply for long periods, remember Twice Shy's holes ? , they were from moist bog that was used to glue in the foams.
sure it an easy way of building a boat but the long term damage will cause problems eventualy

I guess it comes down to what people think the 'life expectancy' of a mozzie should be.... 10 years, 20 years, 40 years ???? and how long will the full carbon fibre boats hold up in comparision ?
I have carbon bits here that are less than 5 years old and are here for repair from sun damage, will a full carbon boat last 5 years let alone 40 years ???

With the repairs and mods I'm doing I think these old ply girls will outlive their more modern carbon copies by a long way

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