85 Bayliner restoration

[Circa]

Looking for opinions

I was given a 85 Bayliner with a Volvo penta.

I don't know a ton about boats, but I have been doing lots of research. I am a mechanical engineer and spent the last 15 years doing car and engine restorations as a hobby.

The boat hasn't been registered since 2004 and the interior is pretty bad, Being in AZ it doesn't look like there is any mold or rot.

I am not too worried about the mechanical and electrical side of things as I design wiring harnesses for a living.

But I finally got the boat home yesterday and noticed the top section of the exterior is warped.

My plan was to get it mechanically and electrically back into shape, replace the floor and seats and then just use it until it dies. I don't need something super nice or fully restored as this will be my first boat.

With the top being warped the way it is, should I just dump it at the scrap yard and buy something a bit nicer as a starter project? Or who cares if it's warped, slap an interior in it and use it until it dies?

 

[garbageguy]

...85 Bayliner...the top section of the exterior is warped...

can you elaborate on that?

 

[Scott Danforth]

welcome aboard

the interior being bad is just the tip of the iceberg.

mechanical and electrical are the easy things. do not even focus on it, least of your concerns at this point

first and foremost. read thru links 14 and 18 in the DIY stickies https://forums.iboats.com/forum/boa...r/295740-how-to-s-and-other-great-information

then go on to links 2, 3, 4a, 4b. being a mid 80's bayliner with a trashed interior, guaranteed that the transom, stringers, and deck have issues. if they dont, yours literally would be the only one.

start by making test drills in the stringers and transom

with a warped cap, that would mean that the structure under it did not support it during periods of high heat.

BTW,

this came up the other day

here is a cut-n-paste from here: https://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...***-boat/page2

this will cover the cost of hull restoration:

Im lucky now, as there is a fiberglass and resin store between work and home so I pick up resin as I need it. when I was in Wisconsin, I would order resin in 5 gallon cans and hope I didnt run out..... and pay shipping and EPA handling fees

depending on where you are, when mixing resin, watch the temperature. I have had resin kick so fast and hard it melted the bucket, even at 1% MEKP

about 25% of the resin you buy will become trophies (bucket with a puck of resin and a brush hanging out of it). about 25% of the resin and glass you buy will be ground out as you re-grind for next layers.


if you want to break it down to expenses for a typical 19-21' boat:

PPE and incidentals - estimated
$75 on tyvek suits (full with hood, etc)
$30 on tyvek booties
$120 on a good 3M full face particulate mask
$30 on gloves
$30 on masking tape
$40 on shop vac bags
$100 on saw blades
$150 on a grinder (your going to burn one up)
$50 on grinding discs
$50 on mixing cups
$75 on brushes and poly rollers
$10 on trash bags
$75 on various cup brushes and extensions
$50 on aluminum bubble rollers for fiberglass

Wood, Glue, etc - estimated
$250 for 6 sheets of plywood
$100 for stainless screws
$10 for tite-bond III glue

Resin, Glass, foam, etc - estimated
$750 on resin (6 5-gallon buckets at $125 each)
$100 on CSM
$200 on 1708
$300 on foam
$100 on ground fibers, milled fibers, cabosil, Q-cells and fillers, etc
$30 on PVA
$200 on gel
$120-180 on EPA hazard fee
$250-500 on shipping

Solvents:
$130 worth of acetone


add 10% for misc

you can save a small amount by using 2-part paint vs gel

from there, add for your interior. estimate up to $3k for interior

as for the time, depends on how quickly you get thru the itchy portion..... could be as quick as a few weeks however more likely 6 months to a year. Im on 2.5 years of a re-power/re-gel, new interior, etc. of my boat namely because i have to work outside and fiberglassing or grinding in 90+ F at 95% humidity sucks.





if the VP motor and drive are not running, figure at least another $1k to get it running reliably

 

[Circa]

can you elaborate on that?

Like the top section above the hull slants toward the center of the boat. You can see it in the picture slightly if you look toward the back.

 

[tpenfield]

Is the 'warp' what can be seen along the port side of the cap (top portion) of the boat?

Got any better pictures to share?

Maybe it had a tree fall on it.

If the floor is in bad shape (soft, flexing, crumbling) expect to find even more 'joy' below it.

 

[Circa]

Yes you can see the warp just behind the glass section. And the tree would make sense. Floor felt solid but it's been a few months since I was in it.

Pretty much what I'm asking is, I don't want to fix any of the body or fiberglass. So the damaged top would just stay that way.

I want to make sure there is no holes in the floor, it has seats, and it functions. Other then that I don't really care as long as it floats.

Ride around for a season in it, learn some things without risking a lot, scrap it once I am more familiar with the ways of the water and get something better.

Or I can buy something similar, that doesn't need almost anything, around here for about 2k.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Pretty much what I'm asking is, I don't want to fix any of the body or fiberglass..

then stay away from any bayliner older than 2000

Or I can buy something similar, that doesn't need almost anything, around here for about 2k.

for $2k, get an aluminum boat and an outboard. anything under $5k in a fiberglass boat is a project boat. the $5-10k boats will soon be project boats.

 

[Circa]

I gave the boat away today.

Thanks for all the replies, I'll save up and get something that I can actually get out on the water.

 

[mickyryan]

I am willing to bet someone tried pulling/lifting the motor with a board across the cap and crushed it .. just a hypothesis