Flatback Fireboat Rebuild

[gran398]

Hey Scott, the title arrived yesterday - thank you my man!  I've been too busy to do much the past few days, between valentine's day, my wife's birthday (today), soccer practice and soccer games, etc., but I did get the rest of the floor up.  Now I need to tackle the wet foam.  It goes from bow to stern, chine to chine.  There was nothing under the deck such as a fuel tank.  I guess the saddle tanks were original.  I'll post some pics when there is more to see.

I must say, if the stringers are secured to the hull as well as the deck was secure to the stringers, I'll be in great shape!  I probably won't get a chance to work on it again until next weekend - another soccer game in the morning and then we're off to visit my parents in Cocoa Beach for a couple days.

One question though - is there a way to tell if previous repairs were done with epoxy versus poly?  As Scott previously pointed out, it looks like the transom may have had a prior repair.  Since poly/vinyl ester supposedly won't stick to epoxy, I need to figure this out before I start buying resin.

Glad everything got there, good deal.

You'll know more regarding the transom rebuild when you begin the demolition. But...she was a workboat...most likely they did it right there, with poly.

Those saddle tanks could have been used for the engine...and various fire pumps/ high capacity pumps etc.

Looking forward to seeing more

[CLM65]

Progress has been slow, but I finally got the insulation out from between the stringers.  I still need to remove the tops of the stringers and tackle that foam, but I'm getting there.  So far I have taken over 1200 pounds of foam, consoles, and decking to the dump.

Here is what it looks like now



The only damage I saw (and I think caused) so far is a small section at the base between the center and interior port stringers.  I think this can be easily repaired.



I'd like your opinions on what the transom looks like.  The entire boat had been repainted.  The white paint on the transom came off pretty easy.  Below that was some grey primer, and below that is black.  As Scott mentioned, it looks like the transom was previously repaired.  Any idea what this black stuff is?  

[Skoot]

not sure about the black, but it looks like you have a great starting point.  The stringers seem to be in good shape, thats a HUGE plus.

Nice work bro, keep the pics coming.

[Capt Matt]

Cool, the C&S has the same stringer set up as all our aquasport flatbacks did.
Expect those stringers to be delaminated from the floor, If you plan on saving them maybe tab them in on the outside and beef them up before removing the foam as they will and can fold in on themselves once the wet foam is removed. If you plan on a fuel tank under the floor rip out the middle stringer, this will be a good test to see if the others are delaminated.

Fun with wet foam
Capt Matt

[CLM65]

My plan is to re-use the stringers if possible.  The stringers are all part of one big drop-in piece, so what you see on the floor between stringers is not the hull, but part of the stringer assembly.  Therefore, the only way to tab them on the outside of the stringers to the hull would be to grind out the horizontal sections between the stringers.  Good point on the potential for the stringers to "close up" when I remove the foam.  My plan is to cut the tops off, while leaving small sections in place to maintain shape.  For example, remove 2 feet of stringer top, leave 6", remove another 2 feet, leave 6", etc.  I think that will give me enough access to remove the foam, and then tab the inside of the stringers to the hull.  Any flaws to this approach?

As far as fuel tank, yes - it will be below the deck.  I'm looking for suggestions on where the midpoint of the tank should be (or either end).  I haven't settled on a size yet, but probably something in the 50-70 gallon range.  And the engine will be mounted on a bracket, so the tank location wil need to factor that in.

Thanks for the input guys!

[Skoot]

Hey brother,  I dont remember who, but there was a member (i think it was Aswaff400) who used some sort of paddle bit, with an extension, to remove the foam from the stringers without having to tear into the stringer too much.  I suggest you take a look before investing too much time

[CLM65]

Thanks Scott.  Someone on here recommended a paint mixer bit.  I picked one up at Home Depot but haven't tried it yet.  I hope it is the right tool.  I'll do another search and see if there is anything else.

[Skoot]

No problem bro!

 Im so glad this boat went to a member on the Classic AquaNet. Keep us posted (with pics), can't wait to see some more progress.

Did you happen to snap any recent pics of the exterior, or is she untouched at this point?

[CLM65]

I didn't do much to the outside yet.  Just removed some of the stickers and did a test on paint removal.  I'll post some pics when there is a little more to see.

[gran398]

Great progress

Is it possible to lift the stringer assembly out as one piece, ie, reverse the installation?

[RickK]

Is it possible to lift the stringer assembly out as one piece, ie, reverse the installation?

I doubt you'll get it out intact - the goop they set it in is pretty tough stuff.  If all of the stringers were already cracked loose, then you could do it.

[Aswaff400]

Hey brother,  I dont remember who, but there was a member (i think it was Aswaff400) who used some sort of paddle bit, with an extension, to remove the foam from the stringers without having to tear into the stringer too much.  I suggest you take a look before investing too much time

on the flatback, i just used a sawzall with the longest blade they had at homedepo(i think around 12 inches) foam pulled out super easy and was completely water logged. on the osprey, i used a 4 inch auger type drill bit from work. it chewed through the foam quick but cleanup was a PITA, chopped the foam into tiny little bits... the foam was newer so the sawzall trick didnt work so much on it. atleast on the flatback i could remove all the foam in large blocks i could toss right in the back of the truck...

if you plan on removing the center stringer, just run the sawzall at the base and cut deep into it and remove as one large piece, saves some time.

[gran398]

Is it possible to lift the stringer assembly out as one piece, ie, reverse the installation?

I doubt you'll get it out intact - the goop they set it in is pretty tough stuff.  If all of the stringers were already cracked loose, then you could do it.

I'm wondering how much space there is between the base horizontal flat of that stringer assembly and the hull bottom itself.

If Craig has already pulled out 1200 pounds of slop...it's bound to be wet. But if the space is minimal, ie tangent (zero)...probably matters not.

Hopefully the flattie owners can chime in

[CLM65]

Started removing foam from inside the stringers.  Aaron had a great idea when he mentioned the auger bit...picked up one of these, which is intended for planting bulbs...



And as Aaron said, it does make quite the mess, but it does pull alot of foam out pretty fast...



Luckily I was able to recruit two willing helpers.  These two are more accustomed to making messes than cleaning them up, but they did do an excellent job...



Next I may try Aaron's other tip about the sawzall to get most of the rest of the foam out.  I also have the paint stirrer.  I still have plenty of stringers to try different tools on.  The auger I have won't fit in the side stringers, so I'll have to try something different there.

I must say I was a little dissapointed about the thickness of the fiberglass sides of the stringers.  I was hoping for something closer to those monsters Rick built, but they are more like 1/16"-1/8" thick.  There is no way I would trust them to hold up the deck without the structural reinforcement that foam adds.  I will need to beef them up after adding the new foam, which will be 4 lb density.

[Skoot]

Looking good and nice to see you got those boys out there doing some work.