1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Questions about boat repairs with our resins and fiberglass: hull patches, transoms and stringers, foam, rot etc.
SEASQUIRT72
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2012 10:45 am
Location: California

1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by SEASQUIRT72 »

I purchased this boat in 1996 ( 1982 Seasquirt 183) from a coworker that had it stored for years. Got it up and running and fished it almost daily at the time. By 2002 the hull began to show its age. The liner broke under the fuel cell and the deck began to crack- not to mention the stress cracks on the inner skin around the engine mounting bolts. I stripped the boat down for repairs as I wanted to maintain a sound craft for my family and myself but you all know how these things go. At the time, websites for assistance were little to none and I just was not educated enough in fiberglass structural repairs to confidently complete this boat.
This project has become a personal quest that I have always know I would return to. Now I have finally arrived at place in my life to complete this and the motivation has never been greater as my son is now 6 and I would love nothing more than to teach him what I've learned of the ocean and fishing. ANY guidance and advice with this project would be greatly appreciated.
At this point the major question is how to re-core this deck...i.e. should I attempt to separate the liner from the hull completely or can I cut these areas away and correctly make the needed repairs? The transom core is junk as well. I would be reconstructing the area forward of the transom with a splash well as this transom is low and occasionally allows water over the top in rough conditions . The hull has low stringers that do not contact the deck at any point to aid in support and no bulkheads are present. The major question is if this type of hull can be rebuilt to accommodate bulkheads without compromise as I believe this is what's needed but again that is also the help I am seeking with this project. Have made several attempts at uploading photos of this project but have been unsuccessful and might not be possible from this tablet. Instruction is greatly appreciated.

User avatar
tech_support
Very Active Poster
Very Active Poster
Posts: 12318
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm
Location: Vero Beach, FL
Contact:

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by tech_support »

Have made several attempts at uploading photos of this project but have been unsuccessful and might not be possible from this tablet.
try a photo bucket of other type service if you have trouble with our gallery. Posting pictures is the single most important thing you can do in order to get good answers.
should I attempt to separate the liner from the hull completely or can I cut these areas away and correctly make the needed repairs?
depends how hard it is to cut deck out. I would probably cut the entire deck out. need to see pictures though
The major question is if this type of hull can be rebuilt to accommodate bulkheads without compromise
Im not sure why it would not, but do you know what the stringer grid looks like underneath the deck ?
The transom core is junk as well.
Since you know your going to have to replace the transom, then I would go ahead and cut the cap and deck out at a spot at least 2' forward of the transom. If you post some pictures, i can recommend a good place to make the first incision. This is going to give you a good idea of what the rest of the boat (stringers/frames/deck) is going to entail.

SEASQUIRT72
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2012 10:45 am
Location: California

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by SEASQUIRT72 »

It seem i'm having some technical issues with getting any photos to post. Photos are loaded in the Builder Gallery, but have been unable to transfer them to this post for some reason :doh: :doh: :help: . If anyone can point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated. I have been opening the images to full size-right clicking on them and selecting "copy image URL" . This works in the preview but will not submit stating " you are not allowed to post URL's" :?: Have also tried to just copy and paste the images but have not been able to get them upload at all in this manner.....What am I doing wrong? :lol: :lol:

User avatar
Cracker Larry
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
Posts: 22491
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2005 3:39 pm
Location: Savannah, GA

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by Cracker Larry »

Test,,,


Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
Completed GF12 X 2, GF16, OD18, FS18, GF5, GF18, CL6
"Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made." -Robert N. Rose

User avatar
Cracker Larry
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
Posts: 22491
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2005 3:39 pm
Location: Savannah, GA

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by Cracker Larry »

Just open it full size, right click, copy image location, paste it here, highlight it, then click Img in the box above.
Completed GF12 X 2, GF16, OD18, FS18, GF5, GF18, CL6
"Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made." -Robert N. Rose

SEASQUIRT72
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2012 10:45 am
Location: California

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by SEASQUIRT72 »

Thanks Larry. Trying to get used to the format. Will have plenty of pictures to post once I can get this going.
"Just open it full size, right click, copy image location, paste it here, highlight it, then click Img in the box above."[quote][/quote]
Was missing the highlight aspect. Seems to work fine. Much appriciated :D :D

User avatar
Cracker Larry
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
* Bateau Builder - Expert *
Posts: 22491
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2005 3:39 pm
Location: Savannah, GA

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by Cracker Larry »

Welcome.
Completed GF12 X 2, GF16, OD18, FS18, GF5, GF18, CL6
"Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made." -Robert N. Rose

User avatar
tech_support
Very Active Poster
Very Active Poster
Posts: 12318
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm
Location: Vero Beach, FL
Contact:

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by tech_support »

alright, now we are cooking.

Removing the entire liner/cap in one piece is always going to be the ideal way to do it, but in practice that can be pretty difficult. If you can do this, it will save you some time down the road in fairing/splicing

If removing the whole cap/liner is not feasible for you, I think I would cut the liner/cap out about 3' forward from the transom (middle of that hatch). I would then repair the transom.

If you are going to just re-core the deck, then you will need to cut it out. Leave a lip of the liner/deck, so later you can put it back level. You would epoxy a strip of glass or plywood under this lip to create a "shelf" for the re-cored deck to bond to.

Stringers: Do you know if they are rotten all the way up?

SEASQUIRT72
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2012 10:45 am
Location: California

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by SEASQUIRT72 »

Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

She's definitely seen better days. I soon hope to restore her to a more functional and sturdy vessel . Once the deck is out, we could get a better idea of the stringer situation but as it appears now there are only vertical stringers present. The initial plan was to just remove the existing fuel cell cavity from the liner and mount a 40Gal fuel cell I had built to match the angles of this hull. But after removing the fuel cell cavity, the majority of the damage was revealed . The spider cracking at the outer edges of this deck had allowed water to seep in the core. The deck sags badly. Installing the fuel cell would have been a waste as to seal it under the deck would have allowed contact and eventually forced it out of the bottom of the hull. After further inspection, I found several areas of the transom that water had penetrated as well. At that point is when I knew I wouldn't re-assemble this until I could do this right as we have had this 20 to 30 miles offshore at times. Through the years, I had attempted to get going on this and have collected a vast amount of parts and components for reassembly but lacked the guidance to complete the structural repairs. It seems very few individuals on the west coast are willing to attempt builds like these themselves. The basic response has always been to take it to a boat yard. My thoughts," and be subjected to the financial suffering as well as the boat not getting repaired correctly". Eager to get busy on this one....

SEASQUIRT72
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2012 10:45 am
Location: California

Re: 1982 Seasquirt 183 rebuild

Post by SEASQUIRT72 »

The areas of the stringers from that rear hatch forward seem solid- as i have not been able to puncture them as easily as the transom or deck areas- still not saying there sound at this point . It's what is under that rear battery box liner that worries me. Water is basically trapped there. Once I am able to get this deck out, the idea was to replace the transom core first and then progress to the stringers if needed. I was intending to bulkhead the stringer setup to capsule the fuel sell and allow a larger fish box forward of that- also bringing the necessary parts of the stringer grid up to the deck for support. The deck needs to become a self bailing design when reassembled and drainage is a must.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 11 guests