1975 - 23' Tsunami --- Cork decks ?

[FELLOW-SHIP]

WHEN I WROTE MY RESPONSE I SAID END CUT CORK I’M SORRY MEANT TO SAY END GRAIN BALSA. I THINK ALL THE OLD ONE ARE END GRAIN BALSA I AM NOT SURE WHEN THAT STARTED USING THE NEW COMPOSET MATERIALS.
FELLOWSHIP. [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img]

[abl1111]

Hmm. I was hoping it was cork ( even though I've never heard of a cork floor ). Cork seems water proof enough.

End grain balsa rivals a sponge when it is exposed to good 'ole H2O. And it rots like... enough analogies, you get the idea. Too bad. Balsa is great as a sandwich material ( light and strong ) as long as it doesn't get wet; then one block will leach wet onto the next and the next - and 'oila - mush.

I think my deck is pretty solid though. There are a few spots I will keep my eye on and then I would go the WEST SYSTEM route ( drill holes, excavate, dry and fill w/ epoxy ). First things first; find and fix ANY place where water might get in.

One thing that's annoying w/ many boat builders is the shortsightedness ( is that a word ? ) when assembling cored areas; i.e. something as simple as a fuel tank hatch - you know if 'they' just used solid fiberglass on the undersides of the hatch-cover where the screws screw through, instead of using plywood or balsa in these areas, these areas would never need to be re-done. I moan because I have to do this job !

I also have a perfectly good hatch that covers my forward storage area. I've already removed it and am going to hole-saw, w/out the arbor/bit, all the screw-holes in the sanwiched plywood core - w/ a 1" saw. Remove the 1" of ply and fill the hole w/ epoxy. A little preventive maintenance never hurt anyone...

By the way - You guys know anyone who has actually done the 'ole (2) i/o's to (1) i/o conversion themselves ? It would be great if you did, I have a ton of questions. If not, wait a few months and you'll know someone then...

Thx,

Alan

[SECF3114M73J]

I know someone who converted an I/O to a straight inboard. Converting an I/O to a bracketed O/B is a more popular route.I don't think going from 2 I/O's to 1 will be a major problem.