To foam or not to foam..that is the question..

[tartuffe]

Gotcha Destroyer. You and I are on the same page. I'm going through the foam chronicles myself which is what drew me to your thread.

I'm kinda new around here so I'll just it.

[Destroyer]

Foaming complete.. after thinking about it and everything I just decided it was easier to foam, make it all watertight and (like MJ said) go fishing. Made a few improvements though... Foamed it completely up to the bottom of the deck , and, as shown in the last pic (sorry its a little dark) in the transom area we glassed from the splashwell to the transom to add a little extra strength to that area. (There's a gap of about an inch and a half on both sides of the splashwell that we filled with putty and then glassed over). Don't know why Wellcraft didn't do that when they made the boats... just seems like common sense. Oh well.....





Moving right along.... Next I have to add the hatch in the front area as previously discussed, get new rod boxes for the sides and install them and then start mounting things like the bimini, radar arch, antennas, engine, etc.

[reelapeelin]

...I'll hand it to ya, Destroyer!!...that's a lotta nice work you've done there...and in a relatively short period of time...yer gonna have a mighty tight V there when you get done!!...

[Destroyer]

Thanks Reel. The deck is far from complete yet. Still gotta put down the equivilant of Rhino liner on it to hide the cut marks and some minor miscalculations on the cuts....[oops]. (I can actually have it done in REEL Rhino liner, in white, but the cost is just prohibitave.. almost $800)... so I'm going to do it myself. Biggest problem with that is choosing the right one. Just a quick glance on eBay revealed at least a dozen different brands... Hippoliner, Raptor, Bondo, Monstaliner, Duplicolor, LinerXtreeme, etc. all claiming to be the best and most durable... And then you get into the application process... to spray or to roll...etc. But we're making headway, and eventually we'll get er' done. I want her all finished in time for the annual get together at Tices, so I have to get my a$$ in gear.. but it's springtime and there's a ton of work to do around the house also...including painting the house itself... <sigh> just never enough time...

[macojoe]

I was going too use bed liner when i did mine, but the $$$ is also what stopped me
I used Duraback paint and it was great! there are a few here that have also used it with good results, but a few say if you get the texture paint one its a bit tuff on bare feet.

Skools did a complete rebuild of a boat a few years back and did a awesome job, he used a different paint that he rolled on. you can see the thread here, its 38 pages long and all nice reading, but floor stars on page 30

http://www.wellcraftv20.com/communit...+paint&page=30

here are a few pics from my v20 when i did it.

[spareparts]

I used durabak on my 14 McKee. I'll say this about it, make sure you put it where you want it, because once its cured, it ain't coming off. You are not going to slip on it, but if you do, its going to take meat with it. I'll spare you the details, but if they send you durabak and it comes with extra paint to tint it with, call them and ***** at them till they give you the color you ordered. When you make your initial order, they usually give you a few rollers(3" is all you need, skip the 6"), get as many as you can as they aren't cheap when you reorder more. They usually get you on shipping, so try to get all you need at one time. All that being said, its tough paint. The only complaint I have about the paint is that it does show dirt, and is a paint to clean (pressure washer)

[Destroyer]

MJ, you're right, that floor that Skools did really looks great. Ditto with your V. (Shame she's gone) :( Great pics of both boats!!

Spare, I understand the meat gone with a skid... took a little off my knee last year on a Rhino lined pick up truck bed. Who would have thought rubber could be so hard. Thanks for the advise on the get many rollers comment. I don't mind using a pressure washer... so the cleanup shouldn't be a problem. Does Durabak come in white? That's really my only major criteria. Question...how much Durabak does it take to do a deck?

[bgreene]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

Foaming complete.. after thinking about it and everything I just decided it was easier to foam, make it all watertight and (like MJ said) go fishing. Made a few improvements though... Foamed it completely up to the bottom of the deck , and, as shown in the last pic (sorry its a little dark) in the transom area we glassed from the splashwell to the transom to add a little extra strength to that area. (There's a gap of about an inch and a half on both sides of the splashwell that we filled with putty and then glassed over). Don't know why Wellcraft didn't do that when they made the boats... just seems like common sense. Oh well.....





Moving right along.... Next I have to add the hatch in the front area as previously discussed, get new rod boxes for the sides and install them and then start mounting things like the bimini, radar arch, antennas, engine, etc.

Good for you - turning another good V boat into a great classic V boat.
Look foward to seeing the finished results.

[Blue_Runner]

+2 on the Durabak. Very good stuff. My buddy used white. The light gray would probably not show the dirt as much. It cleans up nice with a stiff brush and good detergent but takes some scrubbing. Very good non-skid product and 2 coats will do. I never go barefoot but it doesn't seem like it would be too bad on the feet?

[Destroyer]

Well, the deck is done and drying/curing. Went with U-Pol urathane bed liner in Artic white. (it's kinda like a slightly off white....not grey) Put in a hatch as was suggested in front of the gas tank...although truthfully, after it was in I'm thinking I should have gone with a bigger hatch...but it's easy enough to cut out a new hole and just screw in a bigger one if I deem it necessary. Time will tell. All underfloor hoses were replaced with new....just seemed prudent. Rod boxes have a few cracks in them that I'll need to glass, so they're just in there for show right now. Next project is lenghtening my 20" Merc 200 into a 25" and mounting it on the rear. Fun, fun, fun ... Oh..and I MUST get new seats and cushions.