Out with the Side Console, hello CENTER Console.......
Time to knock the dust off this thread............Made some changes..................converting the boat to a center console.
The console is here, already made a trip to my windshield guy for the custom windshield. A nagging thought has had me by the short & curly's, Would the boat balance on the pad with such a narrow beam with me, 210#'s sitting all the way to one side of the boat? I really don't think that it would. Will it balance with all weight centerline? Absolutely. I'm installing a 115 setback 10 inches, Personally a center console was the only thing that made sense. I invite comments here, other's insights will be appreciated.
I have to close up the side console opening then I can install a 3 inch rigging tube in the floor before finishing the glass would in the bilge area.
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Moving Along but with Bumps...............
Well I was recruited to manage some special projects for one of the largest marine supply warehouses in the country so my project may get pushed back. Anyway we will see I'm looking at 18 months to 2 years, sounds like a prison sentence but not really the owners are wonderful people.
To the project. In the pictures you see the center console I ordered online. It's made by C&M, great people, but in an effort to reduce weight I bought their "Economy" console. I used their C&M electronics boxes exclusively in my T-Tops and never had to apologize for one due to their quality. Top Shelf. The economy box is thinner, has a coreplast reinforcement, generally just lower grade. If you have read this documentary you know how much extra glass has been added so I'm looking to save weight. The existing reinforcement is lacking a bit so I'm dropping a piece of Coosa Bluewater 26 in 1/2in on the backside to "Sandwich" the existing core with something with "Meat". Also pictured is me taking advantage of the center console to install a built in tackle storage. When you can work on the wiring & install thru a opening like this life is much better too. Don't you just love "Built in"! Being a "Crappie" boat, lots of small Jigheads & Plastics are needed on hand. With the floor storage, rod box storage, console storage, bow storage, the back deck storage will be empty.
The console will get everything cut in including the opening in the back also my plans are to install a Hot Foot. So all that work has to be done before gelcoating the console black. The way I made the deck from double glassed 1/2in Coosa 26 the console will be installed with "Thru Bolting" eliminating screws to loosen over time.
Something I want to bring up here is the cost of resin mixing containers. If you drink coffee and brew your own this works well for you. I only put distilled water in my coffee pot so it never has to be cleaned besides making great coffee. A gallon of distilled water is $1. A reasonable sized resin mixing container is $2-3. Now I use the distilled water jugs to mix Everything! Saves on the material costs and your coffee water ends up free.
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Last of the Hull Fiberglass Work
Happy to see this day. I'm tired of cold showers. The original gas tank platform was a piece of 3/8in plywood. No glass, no paint, no nothing but 4 screws. I made this platform from 1/2in Coosa 26 & 1708 on both sides. It was epoxied in place before glassing in. The rough edges will be ground down so no splinters later after top coating.
The aft Transom boxes originally were rotten luan, just enough to support the chop glass. They were filled with flotation and so will these replacements. It looks like they also were meant to give the transom some support but I doubt they provided much. I fabricated the boxes out of 1/4 Coosa pegged together with small brads. You can see the stages of progress in the photos. To get the chop to turn the tight corners I first radiused the corners with a rubber sanding block and 80 grit paper. Then using a 8in wide roll of chop tape I tore the glass into pieces so it would lay first. Then mixed some resin and rolled to wet every hard surface first allowing it to get tacky before laying on the torn glass pieces. You overlap at 90 degree and 45 degree angles till 2 layers of reinforcement is applied. I have a few small air bubbles but this is still 10 times better than what I cut out. The original boxes overlapped the transom core about 5 inches, I eliminated the overlap creating the 2 pockets on each side of the transom supports. The livewell pump will be installed on one side and the livewell drain on the other.
Holes will be cut in the top to pour in flotation foam then glassed over sealing the boxes up.
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Cockpit Deck Gelcoated - Filler Patch Straightened too
Couple of directions at once now. The skimming was 80 grit DA sanded till nothing but paper thin filler in spots. The rest of the boat was masked off but the Cockpit Deck. Duratec's VE primer was sprayed on, 3 coats, to build a great substrate for gelcoat adhesion. You really want to leave the VE primer after sanding with 180 to 320 grit. I prefer 180 grit scratches for gelcoat application since it is going to be cut & polished anyway. 180 grit leaves a deeper tooth for the gelcoat to grip to. How often does just the gelcoat release and peel. Poor adhesion. The thin black color contrasting paint is Guidecoat. It reveals imperfections so they can be sanded out but you stop sanding once pure white shows. Maximum millage of VE primer is left this way. After all the prep the gelcoat was applied. First 2 coats gelcoat only thinned with MEK then 4 coats gelcoat mixed with Duratec's High Gloss Additive was applied. You want to un-mask as soon as you can, the masking tape will not pull through cured gelcoat of any millage. I had some tape left on the deck after the job was done, a trick is to use a razor scraper, slide it under the glue side of the tape then fold the tape at the line breaking the gelcoat to the line in the process.
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So the old piece of Champion skin I used to fill in the Cockpit side of the Gunnel where the original console was needed more work. The bottom line was very wavy, some waves are unavoidable since I would have had to cut twice as big a hole to straighten that side out perfectly. Since I plan on vertical rod holders on the Stbd side mounted over Seadek I'm banking on the Seadek to hide my laziness. Here is the reason I don't throw any Coosa Bluewater 26 away. I'm using a piece of scrap Coosa and epoxy to straighten out the thin bottom edge. Spray foam will be applied on the hidden side before lowering the cap on for the last time stiffening out what's left. I went to rotate the last picture but you loose too much of the corrected line's view.
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