1993 Nitro 180FS (150HP Mariner) - Should I start the restore process?

[Jon F]

Hey guys,
I'm new to this site. I've been looking over some of the projects on here and am very impressed, nice work! I definitely need some advice on my situation and along the way as well I'm sure! My problems started when I notice waterlogged floatation foam in the bildge area. I have been working all summer on that area, going over everything I can reach from on top. It's going well but looking at some transoms on here I decided to check mine before I go any further. I will attach some pics. I know its hard to see but I would love your guys opinions....should I split it and do a full restore or seal it up and use it a few more years? It seems solid but it does appear questionable at the top. Looking in the mount holes, solid wood but discolored? Knocking on the transom I do hear some pitch changes but not real bad? I guess I am this far into it, I would hate to have to do this all over in a year or two. Unfortunately I live in WI so glassing and foaming doesn't really work in cold weather does it? Once again, I would love to get some feedback to help me figure out a gameplan. Thanks! Jon



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[Jon F]

I will try to figure out how to post pictures, it seems you cannot just attach them from your computer. Hopefully I will figure something out soon...

[dan-k]

You need to host your pics on a site like photobucket, then copy and paste the [img] into the post. It's free to register and use.

[Jon F]

Thanks Dan-k, I'll give it a shot

[Jon F]

[img]http://i1099.photobucket.com/albums/g396/cp4000/IMG00298-20110821-1319.jpg[/img[/url]]

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[Skeet'r89]

Big question is how much do you like your boat and what are your plans as far as future boat upgrades? If you really like your boat and plan on keeping it for sometime then maybe a full repair would be worth it. It will need some sort of rebuild on it as it doesn't look quite safe to run at speed with outboard. You do have some seperation of plywood and glass it looks like. Many will suggest removing the strip across the top of the transom and digging out what wood you can and use the porable products. Me, I split my boat and rebuilt with wood. If you have had wet foam, there are probably worse areas in the stringers. Problem is you gotta dig deeper. You are probably going to need somewhere indoors and some heat for the winter.
YOU GOTTA CHOOSE !!!!!
GOOD LUCK !!!!

[sandbarDan]

the outer skin of the transom looks a little lumpy. so thats a bad sign. if the top area of the transom where it conectes to the splashwell wasnt sealed good (assuming you cleaned off some of the silicone) is another bad sign. If the foam was wet for a while than the water may have found its way to the stringers or other areas. the real question is do YOU want to fix all this stuff. its alot of work and makes alot of dust and noise. been working on mine every weekend and a few weekdays for almost 4 months. it is cheaper than buying another boat, but my neighbor keeps coming over and saying if i was getting paid by the hour i'd be a millionare (jerk).

[Jon F]

Thanks guys,
I do like the boat and do plan on keeping it as long as I'm breathing so guess it's a no-brainer. Im not scared of work and dust, I've been sanding and grinding for a few months now, trying to do spot fixes but wished I would have split it in April. My neighbors told me I was crazy a few times I've been sanding fiberglass in a closed garage in 90+ degree weather a few weeks ago. I'd walk out of the garage looking like a ghost Anyways, I started the prep work to split it and do it right. Will need your input as I go along as I've never laid a piece of glass in my life but catch on quick Here's a few more pics of my baby, next time I post pics, hopefully it's in half! In the meantime, from one of these pics hopefully you can see there are no wood stringers going back to the transom or knee braces which if I'm not mistaken are angled pieces going from transom to stringer/hull? I plan adding those angled pieces but will have to examine the inside once I open her up to see how everything is laid out.





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[sandbarDan]

that bilge area looks good although some of the dark spots are suspicious but I guess you already fixed most of that. If you click on the sandbarDan name and search for topics created by me you can read all the questions and answers I've had.

[Jon F]

Thanks sandbarDan,
I've been through your restoration process a few times and I'm sure I will visit it a few more times as I do mine. Your project was an inspiration for mine...great job by the way! I sanded the bildge area to refoam, reglass and re-gel until I looked at a few transoms here then checked mine. All that discolored wood will be gone soon...Well, I hope mine turns out nearly as good as yours

[tgz71]

Hey Jon. Come acrossed your thread and im in the process of redoing the transom on my 95 nitro 180f/s. Everything else in mine checked out fine, floors ect. The only thing i did was cut the rear cap off just ahead of the pods to gain access to the whole transom(rotting wood). As yours should be , the transom goes all the way to each side of the boat not just the center,should be around 84" wide. Just wanted to give you that little bit of info. That way i didnt have to pull the whole cap off. I will be useing a pourable transom core(seacast) to replace the wood so i'll never have to worry about rot again. Anyway, good luck to ya I'll be watching your post to lean more myself. Cheers

[Jon F]

Hey tgz71,
I thought about that...how are you going to reattach? My final question before I venture into the point of no return...If I split, I won't have it completed until late next summer. Will the extreme cold have an effect on the pieces seperately? My plan is to have all prep work done by spring and be ready to glass once it gets nice again. Will I have problems with the hull, with extreme cold, warping or bending with no stringers and / or support inside? I will use the brace method to keep the hull sides from caving in, but is this wise to have seperated over a long winter? It is garage kept and fairly insulated but not constantly heated.

[tgz71]

Hey Jon
To reattach my rear cap/pods i'll bevel where i made the cut then prep and use 1708 biax mat on the underside for added strength. On the top i'll fill in then sand and gel-coat. As far as splitting your boat, i've never done that but have read many posts where others have. Im doing mine the way im only because my floor /stringers are fine and only have the transom wood to deal with. The guys that have split theirs seems to me they braced the hull prior to removing the floor/stringers. Otherwise i would think the hull would take a whole new shape while you added the new floor/stringers. Then good luck putting the cap back on. All i can say is find a post where that has been done and read,read and read!!! Most of all plan ahead and take your time. I too am a newbie at this and has been pretty easy so far.

[sandbarDan]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by Jon F &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Hey tgz71,
I thought about that...how are you going to reattach? My final question before I venture into the point of no return...If I split, I won't have it completed until late next summer. Will the extreme cold have an effect on the pieces seperately? My plan is to have all prep work done by spring and be ready to glass once it gets nice again. Will I have problems with the hull, with extreme cold, warping or bending with no stringers and / or support inside? I will use the brace method to keep the hull sides from caving in, but is this wise to have seperated over a long winter? It is garage kept and fairly insulated but not constantly heated.</td></tr></table>

you can see on my post where I used boards screwed through the rub rail holes to brace the top of the hull. I need to add a pic to my thread how I brace the bottom. I slid the boat back on the trailer so the keel was resting on the rollers and then I added 2x4s inbetween the bunks on the trailer. So basically I made the trailer have 6 bunks and rested the keel on the rollers. Also I noticed alot of people leave the center stringer in until the other stringers are done. If you concentrate on supporting the keel and the outer sides of the bottom it should be fine.

[Jon F]

Just so I'm straight on this...I don't have to worry too much about supporting anything until I start removing stringers, especially the center one? Once split, I can then focus on propping up the bottom and keel? (I would love to see a pic of yours sandbarDan.) What about the top? Any care need to be taken other than when lifting? (I did see the braces you mounted on top when lifting it out...anything else you did while it is in storage?) I plan to be ready to split next week

[sandbarDan]

I didnt brace anything until after i took the top off mostly because i didnt think about it. The hull should be pretty solid except for the sides after you take the top off. I took the bracing out from the bottom today forgot to take pic just look at the frame of your trailer and think of ways to sort of shim some boards up to the hull. I used 2x4s with assorted blocks of wood stacked on the trailer frame cross braces to lift the 2x4 up to the hull (just like extra bunks). Really wasn't an excact science, just a bunch of scrap wood resting on the trailer frame. A far as the top it was alot heavier and flimsy than I thought. I was strong enough to lift one end but it would bend alot so it cant be lifted by two people. You really need four people or make some skate board type platforms to roll it. After me and my neighbor DRAGED the top cap to the end of my drive way I used blocks and wood and tried to support it in all the places that had touched the hull except the rubrail. Also be prepared for the top to stick in spots or find areas that are glassed in you didnt know about. Lift a little at a time and watch for movement or lack of. The weak point should be around the consoles so watch around there to be sure its not bending.

[tgz71]

Are you sure your floor wood needs to be replaced before you take the task of splitting your boat? In your pic of the hull area i didn't see any wood rot. Did you cut the square holes in there? Just wondering because i have my inner transom skin off to do my new transom core and i can feel with my hand that there is no wood stringers going to the transom in mine. As your pic shows. Thinking there isn't any in our style of nitros. Who knows, i think its kinda weird that two boats and neither have wood in there. If the wood was rotted that bad in that area think you would see that and would'nt be so clean there. Just my opinon. You my only have to do a transom fix like mine.

[Jon F]

Yea, I cut the squares in there to dig the foam out. I also cut away those holes in the vertical fiberglass against the transom. It had holes in it and was weak, I think that is where the water penetrated into the foam. Yup, I have seen no wood stringers back there either and absolutely no signs of decayed or rotted wood floating around. I know there is wood (stringers / bulkheads?) under the main floor by looking through the drain hole, so I will inspect that once I get the top off. If it is good, it might stay. All of the floors will be replaced as they do have soft spots, especially around drain holes and seat posts. Nows the time to do it. I will seal those new holes off good so that wont happen again. There is rotten wood on top of the vertical fiberglass in the bildge area, the ones with the squares in it. One solid piece that goes from the transom to up under the bench seat. It is dry but rotten so I can't wait to replace that. With that gone it will be so much easier to refoam that whole area. The bildge area was nasty before I started. I used a bilge compartment cleaner for personal watercraft and a pressure washer. Looked great after with almost no scrubbing, FYI for those who just want to clean theirs up

[tgz71]

Ok. Soft spots on the floor says it all. You have a bigger job to do than i. I'll have to post some pics of my nitro on here. Purchased the boat in May then on my 6th time out in it in July i discovered the cracks in the transom cap, low and behold... bad transom. Made the wife and i just sick. Was quoted a $4200.00 repair and the insurance denied the claim. We love this boat, rides great on the river here. I'll keep watching your posts to see how your progressing. Your gonna have a great boat there. Good luck.

[Jon F]

tgz71,
I've read about a denied insurance claim on NTOWS? Are you a member? This person had an adjuster come out to check his transom. They had a moisture meter and said it was too moist to cover under insurance? My heart sank after hearing that one!