Deck Replacement 18 SF
 

I'm just beginning the work to recore my transom, deck, helm pad on the console, gunwale caps and the hatches. Going to do all the demo work myself and have a friend, (professional fiberglass guy), do all the glassing. My question for right now is, is it less expensive to recore the old deck skin or have the new deck fabricated from one of the composite materials? Speaking about the stuff that has 1/4" of glass, lightweight core and a thin coat of glass on the backside. All thoughts are welcome.

I struggled with the same question. Even though its more expensive (~$300-500?), I decided to make a new deck for several reasons:

• My nonskid is in bad shape and I didn't want to spend time/effort in grinding it off of the old skin before I put a new nonskid down.
• I did not want to spend a ton of time trying to get a good blend on the cut line of the deck - getting the height right seems like a challenge and so does matching nonskid.
• I wanted to use the remaining edges of the old deck after I cut it out to support the new deck.
• Most of the new seam lines will be hard to see so screwups are hidden better.
• My new deck will sit ~ 1/4" higher but the new core will be thicker (.75 Corecell vs. .375 balsa/plywood mix) and provides a little more flotation.
• With a new deck I could vac bag the whole thing to make it stronger and not have to worry about a delamination or bond separation to the old skin. It is more like putting a new liner in the hull.

Good luck with the decision - I waffled back and forth a bunch before I cut the deck but cracking the old skin when I pulled it of confirmed the decision for my case.

I had a nice long response with some other points and the site timed out and kicked me off. Soooooo, I'll respond with additional info. later. :(

Update. I have been stripping the boat for the repairs. Got to a point where I could see the thickness of the outer skin of the deck. It's about 3/8" thick. Will be cutting it out this weekend, hopefully. If it's that thick overall, I'm going to proceed with decoring it and we'll make the decision of recoring that or using the composite board when I take it to the glass shop. I'm struggling with downloading, uploading and all that crap as I now have to work with windows 10 and I'm not that savvy with it, but, will somehow get the pics coming soon.

One thing I saw, there is the number '8025' molded into the inside of the splashwell in the center of the transom . Any of the other hulls have a number there? Another mystery?

I think if you are doing spot repairs it works out doing a re-core by pulling the skins in the effected areas but if the entire deck needs changing I would think you are better off cutting it out. You will get a better end result and can make modifications to height if wanted or any other changes. I think you will end up with a stronger deck as well done new. It leaves an option to build on a molding table upside down out of the boat for a clean finish that dose not need as much sanding and fairing if you go that route. Also one big thing is you will get to inspect the under side. You can check on the foam under the deck for water, stringer tops to make sure they are sealed with out holes, check for cracks or damage to areas hidden by the deck. When the deck is out you will be able to access everything during that window. Give me a call if you need any help. Sent you a PM.

I hate when the site dose that. You loose all that you typed once it time out. I started right clicking the text and copying it prior to clicking the post button so that if it kicked me off I could log back in then just reply again then right click and paste the original text back with out retyping it. Maybe that trick will help.

[QUOTE=flyingfrizzle;255370]I think if you are doing spot repairs it works out doing a re-core by pulling the skins in the effected areas but if the entire deck needs changing I would think you are better off cutting it out. You will get a better end result and can make modifications to height if wanted or any other changes. I think you will end up with a stronger deck as well done new. It leaves an option to build on a molding table upside down out of the boat for a clean finish that dose not need as much sanding and fairing if you go that route. Also one big thing is you will get to inspect the under side. You can check on the foam under the deck for water, stringer tops to make sure they are sealed with out holes, check for cracks or damage to areas hidden by the deck. When the deck is out you will be able to access everything during that window. Give me a call if you need any help. Sent you a PM.[QUOTE]

The floor is coming out. Just weighing the cost of all new material or recoring my old skin, which appears to be substantial. I will be raising the floor as well. Thanks for the help, guys!

I promise I'll get the pics coming, but, cutting the floor out this Saturday! Praying for the Potter Putty gods to be kind to me! (Locked in on coosa for the deck and the transom.) After removing the fuel tank hatch, I was delighted to see the coffin has enough room for me to move the tank forward about 14". It is not original and has a 35 gallon capacity. After all the glass work is done, I'm going to reinstall the motor on a 3" manually adjustable jack plate then drop it in the water and move stuff around until I'm happy before fastening. As I mentioned previously, the console will be moved forward about 9". I was surprised that, after stripping everything off, the console only weighs about 35-40 pounds. Much more to come.

The tank on my 18 also was only 35 gallons and didn't fill up the coffin.
I was able to push mine forward about 14 inches as well.
I moved my console only as far forward as the front edge of the coffin box lid.
With 2 group 27 batteries also up forward right inside the seat of the console, I felt that maybe I had pushed a bit too much weight forward.
She rode great, but at rest she sat a little bow down.
Probably batteries further aft would have fixed it, but I sold her this summer and never got to try.

On my 18 I moved my new tank forward, moved the console only about 2 inches forward and moved the batteries from the opening of the console toward the bow only about 16". It rides fantastic. I wouldn't have guessed just slight moves forward would make such a difference.

My batteries were about mid-way of the tank hatch. My first try they will be placed in the same spot. Nothing will be attached when I dunk it so shifting of stuff will be easy. I can't wait! Working on it in the shop at work so every moment I'm not 'working' I'm plotting each move. That's kinda tough cuz I can't concentrate on my work!