Refurbishing/improving a hull

[lounger]

So I picked up a 1990 hull in what I think is little used condition. Last summer I destroyed a 1975 softie--I had it for a few years and sailed it in big winds, and it was becoming quite a leaker despite my best efforts. It broke off its temporary mooring one night (no leaving boats overnight on Lake Tahoe public beaches any more) and ended up getting bashed around on the rocks. So I stripped it, and off to the dump it went.

Anyway, I came across this Pearson hull and got it for $150. The bottom is oxidized, and there are a few dings/wear points on the gunwale, but other than that it seems little or lightly used. The deck is perfectly solid, the mast step holds water, and there are no stress cracks anywhere on the deck or cockpit. There is an access hatch with a stow bag starboard of the CB trunk, and the inside air smells like resin, not musty Bay water.

I have read the Laser lore regarding the bad Pearson builds, and I want to beef the hull up in a few areas to see if I can maximize the life of the hull. I figure if I put another $100 in the hull--a couple of access hatches and some fiberglass cloth--for $250 and some project time I'll be doing OK, even if it doesn't have the longevity of another builder. I've already got epoxy and polish.

Looking through the access hatch I can see a few glops of Bondo, one at the base of the mast step, and in the CB trunk area (I can feel it along the deck/trunk joint, and there is a ribbon of it in the bilge that looks like it got away from the guy at the factory with the Bondo gun). The fore/aft plywood stringer forward of the CB trunk is bare untreated plywood on the top cut...before installing the deck it would have been really easy to seal the end grain with a little resin, right? The fiberglass inside the boat doesn't look "resin rich," which means less weight, but also kind of unfinished.

I've read the threads on installing an access hatch and dealing with the mast step. Is it pretty much the same thing with the CB trunk hull joint and deck joints? Chip off the excess Bondo, prep and add fiberglass?

To do both sides I'd have to put in another access hatch port of the CB trunk.

I'll try to post some photos of the project as I get organized.

Thanks,
Chris

 

[lounger]

So here are some photos. The guy working the Bondo gun really went to town!

I have a 6" white hatch and a 5" black one on order from Murray's--I'll start with the mast step refurb, and then maybe hit the CB trunk/deck joint if I can figure out how to cut out the excess Bondo without being able to see it.

 

[lounger]

After some deliberation, I tackled the mast step over the weekend. Part of me wanted to go sail the boat, and wait for some problem to require me to cut the deck and add weight; however, I also know that at 200 lbs., and the fact that I only go out in bigger days, beefing up this area would be worth it.

I cut a 6" port aft and to the starboard side of the mast hole. then, using a dremel I chipped away at the donut. Although the exterior was solid, as I worked I found that the interior was much less so, and in the space closest to the mast tube was some super soft (brown colored) wood filler (you can see it in a photo). This filler was like cake frosting, not at all strong.

You can also see that the tube is offset in the wood block; there is little space aft, and a bigger gap forward. Not really precision engineering.

Here is what I did:
-Sanded the whole area with 80 grit, and wiped it down with acetone.
-I barely wet the whole area with unthickened epoxy. As it got tacky, I then mixed up epoxy thickened with colloidal silica, and made a fillet to fill the gap between the mast tube and the wood block.
-Then I wet out without excess epoxy 8 10" long strips of 9 oz. 2" wide cloth, and ran them up all sides.
- I wet out some 3"x5" pieces of thicker mat/roving, and ran them over the strips at the base of the wood block to distribute the load.
-Finally, I ran another piece around the base of the mast tube over the 2" strips, and added another fillet around the base of the tube.

I was very careful to just wet out the fiberglass and not have a bunch of excess epoxy, squeezing off any excess. Between the hatch and the added fiberglass, I bet I added about .75 to 1 pound of weight.

Would I do this again with a boat of this vintage that showed no signs of failure? The experience of demolishing the old donut tells me that it was a poorly designed joint, and the mast tube seems thin (I could see my work light shining though while I looked down the mast tube). So, yes, I probably would...it's just one less thing to worry about.

I also washed the hull a few times with Simple Green using a wool pad. The first few washings were chalky, but got less so. Finally I gave it a wash with On/Off, and now the hull is color faded but shines a bit. The only other warts are some gelcoat missing on both sides of the sheet block (no spring securing it), some chips by the traveler eye straps (no tape on the traveler block), and a bigger chip off the bow.

Next up: the soap bubble test, fix any leaks (maybe run some epoxy around the hull deck joint?), and then polish the hull and go sailing.

Best,
Chris

 

[Wavedancer]

Nice work on the mast step (but this from a repair dilettante).