The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

[cprince]

I am going to do this project in three stages due to necessity; I need the boat river worthy for the 10th of October for my little 4 day camping/walleye fishing trip on the Gatineau River using just my 50lb trust transom mount MinnKota.

Stage I (From September 21st to October 4th)

Remove all bondo-silicone and any other goop from the bellow water line. Stainless steel brush then sand.
Repair holes with Star Brite aluminum epoxy putty.
Sand.
Paint outside with Interprotect 2000E.

This will conclude Stage I.

Stage II (October 5th)

Sea Trials.
Ensure that the sucker doesn't leak!
If there are leaks - Gluvit on the inside- Apply on the 8th)

Stage III (April 2009)

Finish painting the entire boat.
Replace and reinforce transom to safely accommodate 15HP engine.
Fabricate removable casting deck for bow and stern.

---------------
Sept 21st

I went fishing today with my friends boat today and when I came home I decided to have a look at my new project. I flipped it over for the first time and had a good look at the bondo that was jammed along the keel. Gouged it out and scraped it away;

Found a nice hole.

QUESTION: Was it bondo? (Don't know if you can tell from this shot or not)

QUESTION: Is StarBrite good enough to fill this and expect it to safely last to next year? Should I use something in conjunction with this stuff?

There was also a piece of metal screwed in about 3 feet along the keel. Looked like an old shelving brace. Flat head screws mixed with Robertsons... guess which ones I like better! Quite worried about what I might find underneath... more gaping holes? Here it almost off:

Much to my surprise....

Silicon and screw holes!

WTF? I am going to assume that this was meant to protect the keel... what else would it be for?

Close up of the silicon and screw holes:

There is a bunch of silicon on many of the seams and rivets...

QUESTION: Wire brush on a drill get that silicon crap off? Or should I use a chemical stripper first then the brush? Just not certain if that stuff will just gum up the weel making it ineffective.

All in all, a lot less dammage than I thought there would be. I thought for sure that there would be a bunch of gapping holes under the metal strip. Feel like I dodged a bullet.

When I got the boat, the previous owner said that the boat leaked a fair bit; bail every hour rate of leakage. So far, I have not put it in the water, but I am reasonably confident that the drain plug was leaking as it was cloged and siliconed into place. I have since dug it out and purchese two new plugs for $5.

I might look into taking Thursday off to start, weather is supposed to be nice.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

If it were mine, I'd want to weld up that keel area since it's a high wear area. If not, you could fill it with JB weld or similar epoxy and install a Keel Guard to protect it from future wear. I'd also clean and coat the whole inside with Gluvit below the water line.

 

[cprince]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

If it were mine, I'd want to weld up that keel area since it's a high wear area. If not, you could fill it with JB weld or similar epoxy and install a Keel Guard to protect it from future wear. I'd also clean and coat the whole inside with Gluvit below the water line.

Welding is in the future of this boat for sure. My brother welds aluminum for a living... but it takes him FOREVER to get anything done... that's why I am only going to plan that part for the spring!

Gluvit will be used this year only if I have to. I want to use it next year when I do the rest of the boat. Just want it to hold water until November or so...

 

[cprince]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

Lets try asking the questions like this;

QUESTION: Is StarBrite good enough to fill this and expect it to safely last to next year? Should I use something in conjunction with this stuff?


QUESTION: Wire brush on a drill get that silicon crap off? Or should I use a chemical stripper first then the brush? Just not certain if that stuff will just gum up the wheel making it ineffective.


QUESTION: Was it bondo? (see picture of debris in the top post!)

Thank you!

 

[jcsercsa]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy!

If it were mine, I'd want to weld up that keel area since it's a high wear area. If not, you could fill it with JB weld or similar epoxy and install a Keel Guard to protect it from future wear. I'd also clean and coat the whole inside with Gluvit below the water line.

I agree with reelfishin I would want to get her welded and then Gluvit her !! john

 

[jcsercsa]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

Lets try asking the questions like this;

QUESTION: Is StarBrite good enough to fill this and expect it to safely last to next year? Should I use something in conjunction with this stuff?


QUESTION: Wire brush on a drill get that silicon crap off? Or should I use a chemical stripper first then the brush? Just not certain if that stuff will just gum up the wheel making it ineffective.


QUESTION: Was it bondo? (see picture of debris in the top post!)

Thank you!

the starbrite im not sure on , but the wire brush should work , and it kind of does look like bondo but cant be sure !! I still like the idea of welding her up , is that a option?? john

 

[cprince]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

I like the welding option too... I will try and get my brother to do it. But if he is not able to, I am curious about the JBWeld/Star Brite option being a safe one or not.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

Re: Is that bondo?
Looks like an aluminum/epoxy putty. I used this for an almost identical repair on a 12 footer. The front keel plate (correct name?) was worn through after many years of being hauled up onto a concrete dock every week.
Th e-putty is still holding well after three years.

 

[cprince]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

I think that it may have been e-putty too. Just not applied properly. It was squished over and not jammed into the hole. Looked like gum on a shoe rather than a repair!

I would imagine that it should be thought of as plaster repair on a gypsum wall; flush and unnoticeable. According to the label, you can use a wet cloth before it dries to rub it down flush and smooth.

I am also pretty sure that painting over it with the 2000E will help keep it water tight.

 

[cprince]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

Well... here is a little update on the work that I have done and the work that is still to come. My camera is a battery hog? therefore there are no new pictures. I will try to take some over the winter to show some of the work that I did.

I used a wire wheel brush on a couple of drills and ground out all the paint on the outside and on the inside. I used about 5 wheels to get this job done. I used two sticks of StarBrite on the keel hole.

I then changed the wood supports on the transom both in and out. The replacements are over sized to accommodate the 15HP engine. The wood was coated with Polyester resin.

After the brushing, I applied one QT of e2000. Went on nice and dried well in the sunlight... unfortunately, I needed it to dry in the night too. When I did it, it was about 2 to 8 degrees C (35 to 40 F). Dry time is dramatically increased.

After a second outside coat (another QT) and two or three days of dry time, I flipped the boat and started to do the same on the inside. Two coats inside as well.

I replaced the old plug, but it would not fit right. This drain style is on the floor of the boat and has a plate on the outside. This plate limits how deep the plug can be. The placement plug is about 1/32 of an inch too deep, so it won?t fit right L
This is what I did? not necessarily what I SHOULD have done!
I used the boat about 6 or 8 times in October and November. It started to leak after the second trip. I am relatively certain it was due to my stupidity. I ratcheted the straps way too tight when I attached the boat to my trailer. I think that the hull flexed to the point of the seams opening up at the bottom of the boat. This caused some leakage? not terrible, but enough, about a half quart an hour.

What I should have done is this;
-Ground off the paint in and out.
-Removed the center bench so I can get at ALL the rivets.
-Tighten all rivets by pounding the snot out of them.
-Apply Gluvit to the INSIDE only of the boat leaving the outside bare.
-Not tighten the ratchet straps that hold the boat to the trailer to the point of flexing the seams at the bottom of the boat open.
-Pound the plate under the plug hole so it can accommodate the new plug.

The list above is my to-do list for this spring!! I will make sure I have a better camera and batteries!!

 

[Duelfuel]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

My question is about the colour red... I have a mid 70's Springbok 12 (though I'd say its closer to 13), that the red paint is pretty faded on. Has anyone purchased some red paint from Canadian Tire and repainted it? What's the closest match? Any thoughts?

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: The Springbok Cronicles; Three Stages Of Joy! 14ft Aluminum

Did you notice the Red Banner at the bottom of the thread before you posted. It's 4 years old!!!! You should start your own New Thread and ask your question.