1980 HydroStream Vamp resto-mod

Yep, still figuring out what weight foam I want to use here. Thinking of going with 4lb, its still pretty light and still strong. Lots of people go with 2lb, but 2lb crumbles if you look at it wrong.

 

Pods all glassed in with the exception of the bottom edge and the horizontal edge. Both those spots will be cut out for the support beams so no reason to waste fiberglass when its just getting removed.

There are 4 layers of 1.5oz chop mat here, so its pretty damn thick.

 

Alright, now is the time to figure out what to do with these voids. The factory had them filled with foam, I'm not against filling them with foam again, but also I want to make sure they are 100% sealed. These spots are not accessible when the caps are on, and the hull is sealed from the back side there so water shouldnt get in, but it might.

So I am thinking of putting a fiberglass cap on them, this will add a secondary barrier to water getting in there.

The other idea is to drill a 1 inch hole in the transom from the inside and put rubber plugs in the hole. These holes will allow me to every once in awhile open them up, put a tube down there to check for water and to blow fresh air in to dry any water that might be in it.

 

I've been wondering how you were going to handle them.

Is there a way to spray resin in there for an extra layer of sealing?

I like the idea of capping them.
If you created a sealed void would temperature changes cause the it to "work" and eventually open a way for air to get in eventually causing condensation to build up - or am I over thinking it?

100% foam filled with a fiberglass cap seems like the best idea to me.

 

Condensation inside is a possibility, and a sealed fiberglass box unfortunately doesnt stay sealed forever.

One of the suggestions I got on facebook was to drill a hole at the bottom (inside the hull) and put a tube in there that leads out to the deck. Then put a bigger hole at the top to allow airflow.

The hole at the bottom would drain standing water out, and the top would allow me to put a air hose in to force dry the areas.

There is a spray resin, its just gelcoat, but the wood is sealed already back there with a few layers of resin.

 

A sealed but vented box sounds like an even better idea - only have to worry about bees then.

Some stainless steel wool in the openings with a dab of silicone would protect from that.

 

Funny you say that about bees. My friends boat sat in texas for a couple years, when he got it the bilge hose was plugged from mud wasps. He didnt know until he noticed that water was filling up and the bilge was doing nothing.

 

Got the left side cap all prepped and ready to bond, Will seal up the rear voids tonight and bond the cap on at the same time.
Since I dont have any finishing resin, I will have to get a little creative with the last layer of glass. Laminating resin that I have stays tacky even after its cured so it will gum up sand paper really fast. I can cover the repair with plastic wrap or wax paper and it will seal the surface so it can cure just like finishing resin does.

 

One layer of 1.5oz chop mat followed by a layer of 1808 (18oz weave with a chop mat backer). The 1808 is structural and very very strong stuff. I will let this cure, then start on the backside. There I will be grinding about 6 inches in either side and laying down 2 layers of 1808. Last I will grind the top flat and put a layer of fiberglass reinforced filler there. I can block sand that stuff nice and smooth.

 

Started cutting out the fiberglass that will go on the underside, I wont be putting it on until I glass the other cap back on and get the underside for that one cut too. I also did some minor grinding on the left side to see how smooth its going to end up. Looks like I dont have to take much off here to get it level.
The middle picture shows the glass that will be going on the underside. I used the top side to make the template since its the same as the under side, just had to make sure I oriented the glass chop side up so that it lays correctly on the underside. The mat should always contact the surface your bonding, the weave goes on the outside, this allows the chop to conform to imperfections in the surface and the weave will lay nice and flat.

So, tomorrow I will bond the other cap, but I do have a slight issue with it. Seems when they bonded the top to the bottom, they didnt line up the right side when they clamped it. Its pushed about 1/8 inch inward and its causing the fiberglass to flex. I can fix it, but its going to take a extra day of work. I will have to finish removing the rub rail (have to do that anyways) then with my saw I need to cut the top and bottom hulls apart until I get to a point where the sides are aligned right. It might just be a few feet, it might be the full length of the hull. I will find out tomorrow though when I remove the rub rail from that side of the boat.
I would rather get that side straight as it will make getting this corner cap on a little easier as I wont have to put tension on the cap just to fit the body lines.

 

Alright, I got the bump rail cut off, looks like the alignment issue was only for about 10 inches. So thats all fixed, just need to glass it down and reseal the side for that couple inches.

 

Finally you got a good break on this job!

 

For sure, I was not looking forward to cutting the whole side apart, then having to rebond it. Rebonding a few inches is no problem, a few feet is a hassle.

 

Alight, other cap getting bonded to the edges of the hull first, then I will glass the cut line. Once the topside of that one is all set, I will need to clean the floor, vacuum out all the dust thats in there so I can lay down and glass the underside.

I also need to go in and clean up the floor around the back of the boat, lots of used gloves, brushes and mixing buckets there.

 

Got the heaters working overtime today! There is a small heater under the patch to heat the fiberglass from the bottom, then a giant 1500 watt heater blowing over the whole surface.
I need to do a fair amount of grinding on the center cap to get the thing to line up flush, one side it perfect, the other side needs some grinding. But also I need to grind extra off all of the surfaces to get a good smooth bond.

 

Looking more and more like a boat in the back again

Thinking I am going to pick up a 360 laser level to make the splash well cuts, they dont have to be 100% perfect, but the more I can do to make them straight, the better it will fit.

 

Cleaned and vacuumed out the hull, then started cutting the forward support beams some more. I had only taken out the back 6 feet or so, I still had another 4 feet going forward that I needed to remove. Ive got 95% of the beam out now, Just have a little bit left up under the dashboard, its blocked by foam right now so I need to grind out that foam so I can get in with the saw to cut it free.
Also, this is the PPE that I have to wear when cutting those rails out, all the fiberglass, wood, and foam just rains down on my face.

 

Also, thought this was a cool picture to show the before and after.

 

Now that is some high quality fitment...

 

So it looks like the original wood didn't tie into the float boxes and the new ones will?

What did you decide to do with the corner voids?