Maintenance & Restoration

kevin61 · 08-09-2011, 08:49 AM

Hope you had a 6 pack of beer to help you through the videos. They can be a bit dry. (I suppose not so boring if your interest is to renovate a trailer)

I have other videos that have been filmed however my new camera, computer and software are not co-operating with each other so my sound isn't coming through on the new videos. I am waiting for a DVD copy of my software to arrive so that I can re-install it. Hopefully the problems will dissappear. The old camera still works great and I have managed to post some videos with it. Glad you enjoyed the videos.

Night Sailor · 08-09-2011, 11:51 AM

I recommend that you leave the dark side and move towards the light by switching to an Apple computer. I do a fair amount of video work myself--Apple computers are more expensive but worth every penny. One thing I was thinking about through out your many video's was where would I put my lMacBook, iPad,and HAM radio. I would use RAM mounts for these.

In any case I have restored a few boats and have pictures and written blogs on that. Like you I have found it adds some fun to the project and helps others gain confidence to do it themselvea.

I have stripped out the interior of a 46' sloop and will be starting to put it back together soon. I don't have the money for all the materials I need at present, but I do have quite a few parts like a new stove, head, and new water heater. I have to decide if I should rip out even more of the interior like the cabin sole. The one that is in there might be structural--removing it vould weaken the hull.

Most importantantly I need a welder to build a new companionway ladder so I can get in and out during the process. Also, I'll need more than a breathing mask, I'll need a pressurized clean air supply.

In the short term I plan to start living on it so a head, and galley would be nice.

In any case Kevin, you are doing an amazing job on your sisters camper. She will love it when it is done and it will probably triple in value. It is a good thing in so many ways. I look forward to seeing it completed, step by step. I expect some of your ideas may appear in my boat!

Paul Chet · 08-09-2011, 02:51 PM

with Conrad, Kevin!

i have been watching your progress and its one thing to shoot video ... we have all been stuck watching someone else's home videos (where they apparently just discovered the zoom/wide button and pan so fast you get sick). its wholly another thing to create an engaging and more important, an educational 'how-to' series. i am a professional editor for work, and i really appreciate the care you take with each video. even if i dont have a beer handy!

thanks again.

kevin61 · 08-10-2011, 12:11 PM

Here are the tests for the new oven for the 17 ft. Boler. It is actually a used unit but the oven was never used and the top burners look brand new. I think the previous owner may have boiled water for tea only. They were selling it as they had replaced with a cooktop and wanted the extra storage space.

‪Testing the new Magic Chef Oven and Cooktop‬‏ - YouTube

kevin61 · 08-13-2011, 10:38 AM

I've recently been out looking for an extra gallon of the Lepage's water based contact cement in the green can (just in case I need more) and can't seem to find it. One source tells me it has been discontinued but is not sure why. I may need to switch to the Blue can which is solvent based. I will attempt to discover why the water base cement has been discontinued and if it will adversely affect my glueups.

kevin61 · 08-13-2011, 10:42 AM

I had considered the Apple brand but it was a balance of my amateur video processing needs and the $$.

kevin61 · 08-14-2011, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevin61

I've recently been out looking for an extra gallon of the Lepage's water based contact cement in the green can (just in case I need more) and can't seem to find it. One source tells me it has been discontinued but is not sure why. I may need to switch to the Blue can which is solvent based. I will attempt to discover why the water base cement has been discontinued and if it will adversely affect my glueups.

I managed to find another store in town (Rona) that carries the Green water based LePages contact cement. According to them it is not discontinued so I will have a supply if I need extra. $53/gallon

kevin61 · 08-18-2011, 06:50 AM

Conrad thanks for the comments on the videos. I figure someone else may as well learn from my successes and my mistakes.

In your boat building are you planning to use any foam/resin/fibreglass composites for the construction of walls, cabinets etc? I'm presently experimenting with materials I can purchase locally, Polyester Resin, Polyisocyanurate foam board, and Fibreglass cloth. (video to follow) It seems Epoxy Resins in conjuction with a compatible foam and fibreglass cloth would be a stronger and less smelly alternative but the cost of the resin locally is prohibitive. If you have any experience with these techniques I'd appreciate hearing about them.

kevin61 · 08-18-2011, 07:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul Chet

with Conrad, Kevin!

i have been watching your progress and its one thing to shoot video ... we have all been stuck watching someone else's home videos (where they apparently just discovered the zoom/wide button and pan so fast you get sick). its wholly another thing to create an engaging and more important, an educational 'how-to' series. i am a professional editor for work, and i really appreciate the care you take with each video. even if i dont have a beer handy!

thanks again.

Thanks for the feedback on the videos Paul. I try to weed out most of my stammering and stuttering and try to follow things through in a logical sequence. I don't always succeed and my success usually depends on how tired I am during editing. Nothing is scripted so I am usually flying by the seat of my pants. With the voiceover capabilities in Pinnacle perhaps I will clean things up a bit better during production. (still waiting for my disk copy so I can re-install and de-bug)

kevin61 · 08-24-2011, 10:39 AM

Here is the solar panel that will be going on the 17 ft. Boler.

175 watt solar panel - YouTube

(not sure what is happening will all that "gobblety-gook" that seems to be showing up in the post. It doesn't appear in preview mode)

Night Sailor · 08-24-2011, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevin61

In your boat building are you planning to use any foam/resin/fibreglass composites for the construction of walls, cabinets etc? I'm presently experimenting with materials I can purchase locally, Polyester Resin, Polyisocyanurate foam board, and Fibreglass cloth. (video to follow) It seems Epoxy Resins in conjuction with a compatible foam and fibreglass cloth would be a stronger and less smelly alternative but the cost of the resin locally is prohibitive. If you have any experience with these techniques I'd appreciate hearing about them.

Kevin, I use epoxy for all my repair work. It is stronger, and not terribly expensive unless the jobs are very big. Even on big jobs, my feeling is that it is smart to chose epoxy for the strength--albeit it is slightly heavier.

Funny you should mention cabinets. It seems that plywood does not hold up well on boats. It can be skinned with veneer to look attractive, but my feeling is water will get in, so I'm leaning toward building cabinets out of figerglass. I have a few designed already. I have a supplier that will make panels for me, any spec I want. the other option, making your own is not a bad one considering the loads will be light. So I'm debating doing that as well.

I've used mostly balsa core material, but I plan to switch to high density foam for core material in the future. Each have advantages. Balsa bonds better. Foam good too. My friend uses foam and his work came out very well. so I now lean towards foam. I would rout out any exposed edges and fill will a mixture of glass fibers and epoxy. I use West Systems for most epoxy, and 403 for filler. I use thinner epoxy for thicker material like "Stitched Mat" which I get from Merton's in Massachusetts. Price out what you need with Joe Merton and let me know how that compares with local prices. I buy a lot of stuff from him.

You always want random mat on the outside, fiberglass cloth on the inside. The random mat does not as much strength if you sand it down, while the cloth will. For carbon fiber work, there is a material called "veil" which is very thin for the same purpose.

You can save on epoxy by using vacuum bagging. Your shop vac can be made to work. It sucks the resin though and puts pressure evenly everywhere. Still it is hard to estimate sometimes. When i do small repairs I mix up smaller batches and even then there is waste. I try to have secondary jobs, like fairing something smooth ready for the excess. I'll do my repair and quickly mix in the light weight filler, and then use the rest to fair another area smooth. Anything left over goes on my outdoor work bench, which is now totally waterproof but weighs a lot.

I'm a huge fan of carbon fiber and would like to build a camper out of it. It cost 2.5 times as much but is half the weight.

If you would like to chat some. PM me and we can trade tips. If I get up that way, I'd like to stop by for a visit. You do great work. Keep up the videos. You inspire people to try new things.

kevin61 · 08-24-2011, 11:04 AM

Thanks Conrad. I'm still experimenting with Polyester and was wondering if I should put a second layer of cloth or use matt instead. I will give the matt chop a try. I will check into the epoxy resin pricing again as I may have been looking at the wrong product.

Any advice on how to deal with those 90 degree angles. For my test piece I fibreglassed each of 4 sides separately with one layer of cloth on each side. Seems to me the joint won't be strong as there is no cloth there.

Night Sailor · 08-24-2011, 11:26 AM

You can't just glue them together, it won't hold up.

Take a 5" grinder with a sanding disk and bevel the corners 12 times the thickness of the material. So 1/8'' thick material would need to be ground back 1.5 inches in a bevel. So the thinnest part of the joint is where they join.

Then you need a length of fiberglass tape 3" wide, and the following layers not as wide or you can grind off the excess. Three or more layers is good. Afterwards, grind out any void, fill and fair the edge, and when you are done and painted, it will look perfect and last forever.

For the inside, I'd rough it up before assembling, lay a filet of filler material to round the inside corners, and put a layer of tape in there also. I'd do those last.

The below description discusses how to do a patch. The last image is misleading as the largest patch goes against the prepared surface for maximum strength an adhesion.

Fiberglass Repair by Don Casey

kevin61 · 08-24-2011, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Night Sailor

You can't just glue them together, it won't hold up.

Take a 5" grinder with a sanding disk and bevel the corners 12 times the thickness of the material. So 1/8'' thick material would need to be ground back 1.5 inches in a bevel. So the thinnest part of the joint is where they join.

Then you need a length of fiberglass tape 3" wide, and the following layers not as wide or you can grind off the excess. Three or more layers is good. Afterwards, grind out any void, fill and fair the edge, and when you are done and painted, it will look perfect and last forever.

For the inside, I'd rough it up before assembling, lay a filet of filler material to round the inside corners, and put a layer of tape in there also. I'd do those last.

The below description discusses how to do a patch. The last image is misleading as the largest patch goes against the prepared surface for maximum strength an adhesion.

Fiberglass Repair by Don Casey

Thanks Conrad. Good information to know.

My 90 degree concerns aren't with joining pieces of foam but actually encapsulating a single piece of foam with six faces (2 sides and 4 edges). I will read the article and see what I can get from it.