77railer Posted March 18, 2010 Posted March 18, 2010 Wanting to get everyones opinion on conversions you think I should do on my Crosby Tri Hull. Either looking at doing a full restore or mod it and have fun in the process. Will include pics in the next day or two for reference purposes. Not sure if I want to deck it and go that route or leave it deep. Looking forward to hearing what ya think. 77Railer Quote
TopDog Posted March 18, 2010 Posted March 18, 2010 Hi, I/We would need to see it first. Are you a bass fishing guy that wants a deck and trolling motor? Or do you just want a decent runabout to do a little fishing from? Quote
77railer Posted March 19, 2010 Author Posted March 19, 2010 I want to fish for Bass mostly. The boat measures 14' front to back, 61'' at its widest point, and 18'' deep. Im wanting to deck it and would appreciate any suggestions on how to do it. I also need suggestions on the floor where the fiberglass came up with wet plywood underneath. I was thinking to just let it dry out and put a sheet of marine plywood over the whole floor since I am going to deck the boat no one will see it. Just need it solid. Thanks for the suggestions. Quote
tand Posted March 19, 2010 Posted March 19, 2010 I hate to say this to you but the wood is almost certainly not salvageable and you would probably do better by ripping it out and getting a look at whats underneath. Then decide on how high you want your deck, looks like two options to me: Build a new subframe (you will probably need to do this anyways) or lay new plywood on the edge that already exist. Good luck on what you decide! Forgot to ask but what kind of motor are you planning on running (tiller?) Quote
TopDog Posted March 19, 2010 Posted March 19, 2010 Quote I hate to say this to you but the wood is almost certainly not salvageable and you would probably do better by ripping it out and getting a look at whats underneath. Then decide on how high you want your deck, looks like two options to me: Build a new subframe (you will probably need to do this anyways) or lay new plywood on the edge that already exist.Good luck on what you decide! Forgot to ask but what kind of motor are you planning on running (tiller?) I am going have to agree to this. From the pictures it looks like you should remove all the wood and start over. A clean slate is easier to work from....If you have the time, tools and skill. Quote
77railer Posted March 19, 2010 Author Posted March 19, 2010 Well, that kinda puts a holt on things doesnt it,lol. So, just for clarification I need to use a scraper of some kind and rip the entire floor up without puncturing the actual bottom of the boat? Does this sound right? Im not afraid to try it. I dont have much invested in this boat at the moment, just want to make sure Im doing it right... Quote
TopDog Posted March 19, 2010 Posted March 19, 2010 Anyway of finding out how that floor is attached to the boat? Anywhere on the boat itself you can look under the wood? Quote
77railer Posted March 19, 2010 Author Posted March 19, 2010 No. Not that I can see. Only thing I can think of is dig that spot out and see whats under it. Would it be sitting on the actual bottom of the boat? Quote
TopDog Posted March 19, 2010 Posted March 19, 2010 Makes me wonder if they glued the wood to the floor? Quote
tand Posted March 21, 2010 Posted March 21, 2010 Quote Makes me wonder if they glued the wood to the floor? I would hope there is some space under the floor that...probably why it has a flat floor. I would start buy cutting a small hole in the floor either manually or vary carefully. After you do that post some pictures, hopefully you will be able to remove the rest of the floor. In my experiece anything that is not (and sometimes things that are) coated in fiberglass will rot eventually. Quote
77railer Posted March 22, 2010 Author Posted March 22, 2010 Here are some pics of what I found. I caused the hole accidentally with the hammer. Gonna have to patch that before this is all over. What do yall think? Leroy Quote
Super User cart7t Posted March 22, 2010 Super User Posted March 22, 2010 A lot more work ahead of you than I'd be willing to invest in that boat. Quote
Super User Grey Wolf Posted March 22, 2010 Super User Posted March 22, 2010 Have fun , hope you've got a lot of time and money. Quote
77railer Posted March 22, 2010 Author Posted March 22, 2010 Do I need to replace the foam or can I just remove it and replace the wood? Not expecting this boat to be my end all just want to putt around with my 5hp or trolling motor and do some fishing. Leroy Quote
77railer Posted March 22, 2010 Author Posted March 22, 2010 Have been thinking about this whole project. The boat is now garage kept. If I cover the existing floor with 1/4 or 1/2 ply and use grizzly grip on it the little bit of water that gets on the floor from fishing wont be an issue, especially for what I am using it for. If it provides a season or two of fishing while I save for a nicer boat that would be all I ask. What do ya'll think? Leroy Quote
tand Posted March 22, 2010 Posted March 22, 2010 Quote Have been thinking about this whole project. The boat is now garage kept. If I cover the existing floor with 1/4 or 1/2 ply and use grizzly grip on it the little bit of water that gets on the floor from fishing wont be an issue, especially for what I am using it for. If it provides a season or two of fishing while I save for a nicer boat that would be all I ask. What do ya'll think? Leroy I say go ahead and use it for what you want! Using a 5hp wont put much stress on the boat. Be careful with a heavy load, or jumping/ dropping heavy stuff on the floor and you should be fine. The best way that I have found to get the foam out is a paint scraper and a pruning saw (cuts the foam easily). Cut into squares and then scrape from the bottom, the foam should pop up in little squares. Good luck Quote
77railer Posted March 26, 2010 Author Posted March 26, 2010 Decided to go ahead and cut some of the floor out after all. This is what I accomplished in about two hours. More work to come. At least I have my Jon Boat to fish out of while this boat is being worked on. Will update as the project continues. Quote
spraycrew Posted March 28, 2010 Posted March 28, 2010 I don't know if you've ever checked out tinboats.net but there is a TON of info on working on older boats and everyone over there seems really helpfull. You might check it out if you get a chance. Quote
77railer Posted March 28, 2010 Author Posted March 28, 2010 Thanks, for the info I will check them out. I had about 45mins of free time today so I worked on getting the old plywood off the stringers. I finished one and hope to finish the other tomorrow. If I can patch the hole tomorrow as well I will be happy. Never played with fiberglass before. Tomorrow should be interesting... Leroy Quote
tand Posted March 28, 2010 Posted March 28, 2010 If the stringers are good I would put a layer or two of fiberglass over them before moving on with your project. Looks like a good platform now you get to do what you want with it!! Keep updating the post! Quote
77railer Posted March 30, 2010 Author Posted March 30, 2010 I did decide to work on the boat a little today. Took most of the wood of the fiberglass stringers and fixed the two holes I made in the boat. This was my first time using fiberglass and it was interesting to say the least. For starters I didnt wear gloves and my hands are still sticky as I am typing this,lol. I always have to learn things the hard way. Tomorrow night I will fiberglass the holes on the inside of the holes and hopefully cut and poly the new plywood for the front deck. Will post pics of the progress tomorrow. Leroy Quote
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