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Laser deck removal

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Laserupstateny

Member
So I got a 79’ laser for free as the deck started to delaminates from being in a flood. Upon further inspection, the mast step was detached but not broken. Same with the center board trunk. I simply ground out the little resin and glue left and took the deck off of the hull. Will post more pictures later on in the project and hopefully a YouTube video. Any suggestions appreciated.
 

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Jason Rucker

Jason Rucker

Active Member
That’s cool! Not every day you get to see that. If it were me I would put a layer of glass on the underside of the cockpit floor, so that it wraps up the plywood stringer in the middle and extends up the side wall of the cockpit. I have a ‘74 hull that cracked through the cockpit floor during the last regatta. I’m havingmake that repair through inspection ports with the boat upside down suspended off the ground. I use West System for the resin.
 
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Laserupstateny

Member
Jason Rucker said:
That’s cool! Not every day you get to see that. If it were me I would put a layer of glass on the underside of the cockpit floor, so that it wraps up the plywood stringer in the middle and extends up the side wall of the cockpit. I have a ‘74 hull that cracked through the cockpit floor during the last regatta. I’m havingmake that repair through inspection ports with the boat upside down suspended off the ground. I use West System for the resin.
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I replaced the plywood stringer since it was fairly rotted, and am wrapping it in fiberglass for reinforcements. Just got to let it dry and will post more!
 
Cactus Cowboy

Cactus Cowboy

Well-Known Member
C/B trunk & mast step can both be used again, just gotta glass 'em into place properly... any rotten glass or trash within the hull, NOW is the time to clean it out and replace it with good solid wood or glass repairs, aye? Might wanna add an inspection port or two to simplify matters when finishing work on the mast step & C/B trunk. Use gravity to your advantage when glassing, flip the hull as necessary on sawhorses or in slings. Plenty of video tutorials on glasswork nowadays, in case you have NOT done much of it... probably some pics and/or videos here at this site as well. This sort of project may seem overwhelming at first to those who've never tackled such work, just take one step at a time and eventually you'll knock out all the necessary tasks. Might cost ya a bit in time and materials, but WTF, you get a "free" Laser for your trouble, LOL. Good luck, and CHEERS!!! :rolleyes:
 
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Laserupstateny

Member
I thoroughly cleaned and scrapped off bad fiberglass and all surfaces are ready! Just need to pick up more resin and hardener and should be good. Thanks for the advice!
 
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Jack

Member
How did you detach the centerboard trunk? Was there any drama putting things back together?
I need to do the same thing on a boat of the same color.
 
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Mountain Mariner

New Member
Jack said:
How did you detach the centerboard trunk? Was there any drama putting things back together?
I need to do the same thing on a boat of the same color.
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Blue seems to be the bad luck color. With the Laser Camper (see photos: Laser Camper 82974), I used a diamond crusted grout removal hand tool, a bendy hacksaw blade, and really stiff putty knife. At some point, it became possible to use an oscillating multi-tool with flat blade to remove the adhesive and stray fiberglass (maybe I briefly used a toothed blade, but it was probably too aggressive). Once the gunwale was separated, I popped the mast step out of the hull with brute force, then I could reach into the hull for further destructive acts with tools.
 
captjon

captjon

Bad Blue Laser
Funny just picked up "Bad Blue" this afternoon........... a "free for the taking" Facebook Marketplace find. I was hesitant to get it, as when I first saw it the owner pointed out the deck-hull separation issue, but I thought I'd give it a go and bring it home. Now, after further investigation, it looks like I have a lot of work to do............... almost exactly what LaserupstateNY is doing/has done. I have only started to poke around, but most of the hull to deck gunnel seem can be pulled apart. I haven't tried working the centerboard trunk, cockpit drain, and mast step yet. Visually, the mast step looks good as far as I could see in, but water goes right out the bottom. So, lots of work, and probably will have to wait until next summer when we come back up here for the summer. Fortunately, I have two other complete and sailing Lasers, one of which I put through a cosmetic restoration two summers ago.

I do hope to at least get the boat apart before we head south next month.

It's a Canadian 1979 build, and blue!

Thanks Laserupstate for the great postings here.
 

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Laserupstateny

Member
Awesome! It’s great you are giving this laser another life. I recommend taking the whole deck off and redoing all of the seems. Make sure you get the mast step tube out and the centerboard trunk separated and your golden. It will make the boat much stronger and will last another 40 years. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. Good luck!
 
captjon

captjon

Bad Blue Laser
Update on project.......... I was able to get the hull and deck separated with minimal damage to either by prying them apart with wood. There was not much left of the nasty old adhesive that was still wanting to stick.

Structurally she looks sound, but the wooden parts need to be ground out and replaced, the foam needs replacing and reglassing under the seating area, the mast step tube needs to have the bottom resealed, and then she will be ready to remate the deck and hull and fix and refinish the exterior surfaces. Looks like it will be a good project for next summer when the weather gets back to fiberglass friendly temperatures here in Maine.

Couple of questions......... what is the best sealant/resin to mate the hull and deck back together, given the time necessary to apply it to the gunnel and mast step all at once and then clamp it together while curing?

and somebody mentioned making their Laser into a "foiler"........... who was that and did they have any success?

Cheers,
 

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Wavedancer

Wavedancer

Upside down?
Staff member
The Sunfish forum has many threads on major projects such as yours, including info on 'getting it all back together'.
In the meantime, I am in awe of your courage to undertake this project.
 
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Laserupstateny

Member
captjon said:
Update on project.......... I was able to get the hull and deck separated with minimal damage to either by prying them apart with wood. There was not much left of the nasty old adhesive that was still wanting to stick.

Structurally she looks sound, but the wooden parts need to be ground out and replaced, the foam needs replacing and reglassing under the seating area, the mast step tube needs to have the bottom resealed, and then she will be ready to remate the deck and hull and fix and refinish the exterior surfaces. Looks like it will be a good project for next summer when the weather gets back to fiberglass friendly temperatures here in Maine.

Couple of questions......... what is the best sealant/resin to mate the hull and deck back together, given the time necessary to apply it to the gunnel and mast step all at once and then clamp it together while curing?

and somebody mentioned making their Laser into a "foiler"........... who was that and did they have any success?

Cheers,
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Nice work! I just used resin from Walmart that came with hardener, which will make sure it dries quick and hard. I cut strips of fiber glass sheets and soaked them in the resin and then spread them along the seams
 
captjon

captjon

Bad Blue Laser
Thanks for the info guys. I kind of figured it should be epoxy and glass cloth, or epoxy resin with filler...... micro ballons or wood dust........ I wonder what the adhesive was that the Canadian factory used in that era that only lasted 40 years...... my other two Lasers are still well stuck together, both built in the mid 70's.

The toughest part of the work will be glassing in some new foam to solidify the seating area on the deck and getting it flat. The rest looks pretty straight forward...... transom, keel, and mast step. I've done a some glass work before on another boat restoration so I am not discouraged by a bit of challenge. I will check out those Sunfish forums, thanks Wavedancer.
 
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walterev

New Member
Minimize the stress of getting everything back together while on the short timer provided by polyester resin.

I used a bog of micro balloons, milled fibers, and cabosil mixed with a thickened epoxy (not laminating) which provides an extended time plus does not run. See US Composites for the epoxy. Highly recommended.
 
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HelgeS

Member
Well, I have discovered that 74-76 models are glued much better. Så I discovered a 76 model with a broken maststep. Then cut the maststep from this one, inserted and this gave me less trouble with things that are difficult to fix. Next level, I will fix the support wood under the cockpit floor. IMG_20220823_153529.jpg
 
Graibeere

Graibeere

New Member
HelgeS said:
Well, I have discovered that 74-76 models are glued much better. Så I discovered a 76 model with a broken maststep. Then cut the maststep from this one, inserted and this gave me less trouble with things that are difficult to fix. Next level, I will fix the support wood under the cockpit floor. View attachment 53241
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I'll be interested to see how you refinish the deck surface.
 
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