1980 HydroStream Vamp resto-mod

Repair materials are on their way! I got fiberglass, resin, rollers, and a bunch of balsa wood core to replace the rotten core thats in there. So I get to strip it all now while I wait for the new stuff to come in.

I need to rebuild the keel box as the last owner cut it open and wood screwed some panels over the top. Since the keel box is empty, I need to figure out how to rebuild the top without the glass falling in. I am thinking of using a thin layer of pink foam with fiberglass wrapped around it and some clamps to keep it in place. Then fiberglass over the top of it, the foam will act as support so the fiberglass does not sag down creating giant air pockets between the deck and the box.

 

8 feet of core removed from the left side of the boat. Need to finish out the back then I will move to the right side of the boat. Once I got both sides cleaned out I can start grinding the areas smooth to put down the new core.

There are 4 cores total that need to be replaced, but I have to do it in a certain order or it wont fit back together right. I have to put in the lower cores around the keel, then I will put in the floor plywood, Once the plywood floor is down I can glass that in. Finally I will replace the upper cores and lay glass over the whole thing.

Once I have glassed the whole thing back together I will hit it with fiberglass reinforced bondo to fill in the gaps and low spots and block sand the whole thing till its flat and smooth. Last step is to apply black gel coat to the whole inside area to protect it and make it look good. Carpet will go over the gelcoat so you wont see it, but I want it to have a finished look in all areas.

 

All the way to the transom with the floor.... Just got some grindings to clean it up on the left side. Got a shipment notice for my fiberglass supplies, should be here by the end of the week!



Started cutting into the right side, more of the same rotten wood.

 

Good progress getting done. Ordering a engine cart so I can pull the motor off and clean up the transom.

 

Nasty nasty wood. The balsa core is mush, and the plywood "replacement" is soaked to the point that the fiberglass is not even holding on anymore.

The fiberglass box keel is getting replaced with a better stringer system. The box is just too far destroyed for me to even think about rebuilding it. So plywood stringers will give me the structure I need, and I can tie it into the transom and put some front side to side to reinforce the deck too.

 

Lots of grinding today to clear out the old fiberglass repairs and old keel box, had to get a new respirator as I was just using n95 masks I had in my glove box and they were not cutting it. Still got a bunch more grinding to do till its all clean and ready for glass. Going to mock up the core and measure out my stringers next week. Shooting for end of the month to have the core installed and the floor in.

 

My skin itches just looking at those pictures. Have you thought about flex seal?

 

Lol yeah its pretty itchy. No flex seal on this baby, going with all fiberglass and gelcoat for that premium feel.

 

Most of the box keel is ground out, I need to get up under the front deck area to get the rest. I should be able to cut just under the front stairs to get that section of the deck out and clear out the box keel thats up there.

 

Little more progress on the hull. A few more hours of grinding and the hull should be clean enough to put down the new core and stringers. I do need to wait till my motor stand shows up though as I want to get the motor off the back before I glass in anything. Just so I know the weight of the motor is not twisting the hull, but also so I can check the transom to see if I need to replace that also (im sure I do)

 

More grinding and removing extra fiberglass from the last repair. Lots of smoothing and prepping the surface for the core to go down. I did a test fit of the core that I have, I didnt order enough, but also I ordered the wrong thickness. I got 1/2 inch but needed 3/8 inch, below the deck it doesnt matter too much, but above the deck I want it to be the correct thickness. SO I will order a few more sheets of 3/8 inch and finish getting it all cut to size so when I get the motor off the back I can lay down the new core.

 

No update this week, went up north with the family and came home with covid. So just waiting till I feel better and I will get back out there and start grinding.

Things that I need to do is cut the floor further forward and try to get under the front cap to get the rest of the core out. I got a new jig saw and a 4.5 inch grinder that should be able to fit in there better than my 7 inch.

New core, cabosil and more resin should be here friday, so I am hoping to get the area ready for the new core by early november.

 

Hope you feel better soon!

 

Put up a new shop light as my old ones wouldnt turn on below 40 degrees, got my replacement core, its the right size, but it turns out the 1/2 inch core that I ordered the first time around was actually 3/4 inch. I can still use the 3/4 under the deck, so that area should be stupid strong when its done.

Did get to spend some time grinding fiberglass to get the areas ready for new core and stringers, I found a mushroom growing up in the front of the hull under the lounge deck.

 

Haha man watching this thread brought back bad memories. I bought a 1977 Bayliner a few years ago and every single square inch of wood had to be replaced. I taught myself how to fiberglass. The stringers were okay, and I’m pretty sure the whole transom was rotten.

I fixed the deck and I never really trusted it after that.

 

Yeah, when I show friends what I am doing they are shocked. They thought when I said restore it that I was just going to put in new seats, replace the carpet and repaint it. But they see me stripping it down to a shell to rebuild everything. One of my buddies asked where I get parts for it.. I had to explain that you dont buy parts, you have to make them from various raw materials or find a couple of broken ones to build a functional one.

Luckily its only a 16 foot boat, has very little electrical (nav lights and engine harness and thats it). So its something can be done, but also I am trained autobody tech that did a lot of fiberglass work in the past.

Im stripping the wire harness from the motor to the throttle controls and steering cables today so I can finish getting the core out on the right side. Finishing up with the floor grinding, then I need to grid cut the old core that is still good so I can match up the new core to it.

 

Good man. Replace the shift and throttle cables while you’re at it, the steel jacket around mine were rotten and swollen so you couldn’t shift the stainless steel core wire.

Amazon sells ‘em if you give the right length. BTW, Home Depot/Rustoleum sells Marine topside paint if you need paint still. I was surprised, it’s good stuff.

 

Yep, wire harness, steering, throttle and shift cables are all getting replaced with brand new even though they work, I feel better being out on the river with the family knowing they are new and not 43 years sitting outside. But first I need to decide if I am keeping the mercury or if I am swapping to a evinrude v4.

 

Four stroke EFI is what I’d like, just a little pricey.

 

Yeah that would be nice. Though I am going for a period correct look restoration, so while I am putting LED lights, nice stereo, and new electronics in it, I want to keep the general body lines nested in the late 70s early 80s. So I need motor that has that boxy 80s look to it like the evinrude v4 140hp motors have. The mercury has a more 70s feel with all the chrome on them, mine is a 1974 mercury.