Hendo's Randall 35 Cray Boat complete rebuild, Perth, Western Australia

good job

Ok well day 13. Did some more frame racking and levelled the floor joists. Installed the fuel tank bearers and dry fitted the fuel tank. Got 5mm to spare between the top of the tank and the bottom of the floor joist bearer so its a nice and snug fit.

I also installed some transom braces and ran around tightening all of the bolts.

Probably one and a half days left in the frame, trimming the overhangs and doing the bow ribs etc, before I start sanding the all of the ribs down and add a second coat of epoxy. Then it's sheeting time Woooo Hoooo. Can't wait. Gonna be a big milestone.

Here's some pics from today.

skipperdude said:

I helped a friend build a wood and epoxy boat.
He didn't use any metal at all in the whole construction. Not one nail screw or staple.
The boat could go thru a metal detector and not set it off.
He even fabricated hinges and clamps and cleats from wood and epoxy. The hinges and door handles are kind of big but work beautifully.
The only metal was in the propulsion, shaft and prop.

He called it welding with epoxy.
The number one tool he used aside from a saw was a plastic spoon.
It allowed him to apply the paste made of epoxy and a filler. Using the back of the spoon to shape and fill the inside curves.

sd

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Wow wooden hinges. Umm I won't be going to that extreme. Actually come to think of it, that would piss me right off lol. Your mate must have great patients. Kudos to him tho!

Yeah same principle as but ill also be using mechanical fixings. I'll be counter sinking the stainless steel screws and sealing them in epoxy. I've been assured I don't need to mechanically fix the ply with the High strength filler powder mixture but I can't seem to get over it so ill chuck a couple in for piece of mind.

What your friend did with the spoon was called "filleting". I'll be doing the same but mine have to be bigger, approx 50mm round. I'll make mine out of 6mm Perspex I have here at home. The main areas I will be doing the filleting is where the plywood butts into the keel and on the chine plate. There will be more filleting to be done when I do the cabin but everything I am talking about at this stage pertains to the hull.

What sort of boat do you have mate?

iPad Forum Runner

dhmeissner said:

Wow, what you are doing is amazing. I am enjoying the updates, keep-em' coming mate. Happy new year! And by now you've survived the apocalypse.

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Ah thanks for the kind words mate. Posts like that help me and give me drive when I'm not feeling up to it and alike. I hope you have a great Christmas and a happy new year also mate!

Hahaha yeah I was mildly disappointed as I had prepared myself for the first wave of the zombie apocalypse but none showed up hahahahahahahaha

Thanks agin for your kind words and support. Very much appreciated!

Cheers
Matt

iPad Forum Runner

skipperdude said:

Matt,
I found the web site. Sounds like remarkable stuff..
I wonder if it would bond to polyester resin. The stuff most of our boats are made of.

SD

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Hey SD,
Yep this stuff will stick to anything including, wood, fibreglass, foam cored plywood, concrete, steel, aluminium and others that I can't remember right now. If you like I can ring them and find out for you? Be cheaper and easier if I called tho I'm not sure how you'd get it over there if you found out you liked it and wanted it. I get it at cost price so if you did end up wanting some I could get it cheaper for you but then there's the issue of postage and the associated costs.

Either way I'm happy to help if you need it ;-)

cheers mate
Matt.

iPad Forum Runner

Art said:

Here’s link to Bote-Cote products http://boatcraft.com.au/bc_products.html Skeleton of a boat frame (similar to yours) is in the window on upper left hand corner. Are you Aussie boat restorers Plum Cwazy! Do you all rip a boat down to its frame to rebuild?? Gatta Hand it to Ya - lol!!

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Hahahahahahahaha yeah Art we are all a bit nuts mate but that has nothing to do with the boats, we are just so thorough we need to rip the **** out of everything before we rebuild it. Lolololol. :-D

iPad Forum Runner

Day 14

Well I've finished the ribs YAAY !!! Woo Hoo :-D

I made a template for the bow hull sheets so I didn't bugger up the main boards. Cheaper to bugger up a $10 piece of 4mm MDF than a piece of 18mm ply.

I installed some more bracing so the cold moulding process won't throw out the frames. I had a mate come down and "help" me sand down the epoxy on the ribs but he got the shits with that and left after 45 minutes lol. Needless to say he'll see a view of the ocean from the shore not the boats rear deck

After the sanding was done, I ran around with a rattle gun and did up all of the bolts extra tight. Once they were all tight i welded the nuts on so they don't decide to undo when im motoring along :-/ after that I applied the second coats of epoxy and went home to play with my ply sheets.

I used my template and made the two bow lower hull panels

Tonight I finished epoxying the last of the 20 plywood panels. Once they are fitted ill order another 20 and the process starts again

Tomorrow the two panels I cut today will go on. VERY EXCITED :-D

Cheers
Matt

skipperdude; said:

I helped a friend build a wood and epoxy boat.
He didn't use any metal at all in the whole construction. Not one nail screw or staple.
The boat could go thru a metal detector and not set it off.
He even fabricated hinges and clamps and cleats from wood and epoxy. The hinges and door handles are kind of big but work beautifully.
The only metal was in the propulsion, shaft and prop.

He called it welding with epoxy.
The number one tool he used aside from a saw was a plastic spoon.
It allowed him to apply the paste made of epoxy and a filler. Using the back of the spoon to shape and fill the inside curves.

sd

Click to expand...

Hello Skipper
What size boat was that? Mine is 46' LOA and 40.2' LWL and there's not a single piece of metal in the hull structure. As you said, the only metal will be propulsion equipment. All structural parts were "nailed" with wood pins glued with epoxy. Drill a hole, machine wood pins and stick them in with epoxy. Everything becomes one only piece. The plywood plating was fixed with plastic nails and epoxy. These nails are only suitable for temporary plating. Once the plating is impregnated with the resin, and FG is spread over the hull, all becomes only one structure.

Seasons Wishes

Portuguese said:

Hello Skipper
What size boat was that? Mine is 46' LOA and 40.2' LWL and there's not a single piece of metal in the hull structure. As you said, the only metal will be propulsion equipment. All structural parts were "nailed" with wood pins glued with epoxy. Drill a hole, machine wood pins and stick them in with epoxy. Everything becomes one only piece. The plywood plating was fixed with plastic nails and epoxy. These nails are only suitable for temporary plating. Once the plating is impregnated with the resin, and FG is spread over the hull, all becomes only one structure.

Seasons Wishes

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Interesting. Plastic nails. I would never have thought of that.
His boat is a 32 with rather a large fishing deck. He even fabricated a davit for pulling shrimp and crab pots.

I like the idea of no metal. No metal = no corrosion.
One thing I found interesting was that he first applied a what he called a tac coat to the marine plywood by diluting the epoxy resin with acetone to about a 50%. The acetone allowed the epoxy to saturate or soak into the wood forming a better bond to help prevent delamination.

If you are familiar with stitch and glue, that is the method of construction.
Using heavy wire to first stitch things together then gluing with the epoxy.

Sd

What sort of boat do you have mate?


I have an X commercial power troiller once used in the Pacific Northwest for salmon.

Fiber glass hull with a Cat 3208 for propulsion.

Sort of like you I started with a sound hull and engine and have rebuilt the deck and cabin myself.
Lots of glass work carpentry.

I know her from the keel up, as all the systems from two hydraulic systems. One for the anchor and pot davit the other for steering. All the electrical, (I must have run 3 miles of wire.) To replacing all the windows and doors. I have even rebuilt the motor myself. The top end anyway.
I posted a lot of the rebuild on this forum under Cat 3208 coolant leak.

By the way what is that engine?


There is not another like her in the harbor and I get lots of comments about her

She is almost where I want her to be.

I haven't gone into debt building her as it has been all done out of pocket as time go's on, little by little. Like eating an Elephant One bite at a time.

SD

skipperdude said:

Interesting. Plastic nails. I would never have thought of that.
His boat is a 32 with rather a large fishing deck. He even fabricated a davit for pulling shrimp and crab pots.

I like the idea of no metal. No metal = no corrosion.
One thing I found interesting was that he first applied a what he called a tac coat to the marine plywood by diluting the epoxy resin with acetone to about a 50%. The acetone allowed the epoxy to saturate or soak into the wood forming a better bond to help prevent delamination.

If you are familiar with stitch and glue, that is the method of construction.
Using heavy wire to first stitch things together then gluing with the epoxy.

Sd

Click to expand...

Tac coat or soak coat should be diluted for the reason you mentioned. I have used a product call TPRDA. it's from the same Bote-Cote brand and non solvent thinner based. Ill be using 8g stainless steel screws for mechanical fixing to transfer some of the sheet stress to the surface and not at the glue line.

I'll be doing stick and glue in the cabin on the seating and kitchen

iPad Forum Runner

skipperdude said:

What sort of boat do you have mate?

I have an X commercial power troiller once used in the Pacific Northwest for salmon.

Fiber glass hull with a Cat 3208 for propulsion.

Sort of like you I started with a sound hull and engine and have rebuilt the deck and cabin myself.
Lots of glass work carpentry.

I know her from the keel up, as all the systems from two hydraulic systems. One for the anchor and pot davit the other for steering. All the electrical, (I must have run 3 miles of wire.) To replacing all the windows and doors. I have even rebuilt the motor myself. The top end anyway.
I posted a lot of the rebuild on this forum under Cat 3208 coolant leak.

By the way what is that engine?

There is not another like her in the harbor and I get lots of comments about her

She is almost where I want her to be.

I haven't gone into debt building her as it has been all done out of pocket as time go's on, little by little. Like eating an Elephant One bite at a time.

SD

Click to expand...

Is directed at me SD? Or Portuguese?

iPad Forum Runner

Day 15 ... PLYWOOD DAY!!!! Woooo Hooooo.

Today marked the day that her first sheets went on and she was a stinking hot day. I decided to run the gauntlet and do the hardest sections first so I don't need to worry about them again. I was stressing about this section ever since pulling the original hull off but it appears I was stressing over nothing :-D

My best mate came and helped me out which was awesome. It was 45 degrees Celsius here today and the flies were thick so it wasn't the best (well it was awful actually) to be building a boat in the open but you get that. Can't always be roses.

We snapped the corner off the first sheet but that's an easy fix. When I say we, it was actually me but there were two of us there and it's my boat so I'm never solely at fault lol

The epoxy glue i am using is a high strength filler powder/bote-cote mixture. Boat craft pacific said its a major overkill using high strength on that purpose as it is primarily used for boat masts and bulkheads but I'd rather overkill it than underkill it IMHO. It's a bit messy and gappy in places but once I machine sand it and fillet the joins she will look sweet.

After the two sheets were on we came back to my place and started sanding the epoxy coated sheets ready for tomorrow and finished off with a nice sider.

Was a great day and proud of where I am at considering I've never built a boat before :-D

Photos attached

Cheers
Matt

Way to go Hendo!

Gotta admit to wondering at first if you where crazy or not. The answer is yes you are. Just crazy enough to make it happen.

CPseudonym said:

Way to go Hendo!

Gotta admit to wondering at first if you where crazy or not. The answer is yes you are. Just crazy enough to make it happen.

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Lol thanks for your support mate! Some days I too think I'm crazy but I'm committed now and will see it through.

Thanks again for your comment and support :-D

Cheers

Hendo

iPad Forum Runner

Except for the frame, you are building that boat from scratch! I sit here, amazed. Well done. Still far to go I know, but well done.

Ben said:

Except for the frame, you are building that boat from scratch! I sit here, amazed. Well done. Still far to go I know, but well done.

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Hi ben. Thanks for your comment but your missing 14 days of updates buddy!

i have replaced everyone of the frames mate. I cut the boat in half and replaced everything "Except for the keel". See below for pics from earlier posts

Don't deny me of the time spent and the hard work i have done with the ribs by under selling this project! I would be most upset and probably have to cry myself to sleep LOL

Thanks agin for your comment mate

Regards
Hendo


iPad Forum Runner

I've just got to ask about your avatar. Do you keep a kangaroo as a pet? If you do can you attach a photo? Would like to see him/her up close.

Giggitoni said:

I've just got to ask about your avatar. Do you keep a kangaroo as a pet? If you do can you attach a photo? Would like to see him/her up close.

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Kind of. I don't keep him. He has the choice to leave with his friends or stay with us. This particular night he was eating our dogs food. It's not something we make a habit of doing as they don't naturally eat dog food in the wild but he seemed to enjoy this one time treat

iPad Forum Runner

Thanks for the photos. We have raccoons, coyotes, deer, and a rare mountain lion in our yard from time to time. Sorry for taking away from your boat project thread. I'll be looking forward to watching your progress. Good work!

Giggitoni said:

Thanks for the photos. We have raccoons, coyotes, deer, and a rare mountain lion in our yard from time to time. Sorry for taking away from your boat project thread. I'll be looking forward to watching your progress. Good work!

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Lol all good mate. Don't apologise. I've showed you mine so now you have to show me yours

iPad Forum Runner

Had some great news today and had to share. The diesel mechanic said the motor is original, never been rebuilt and is in near new condition.

He said the motor has had very little use and has been extremely well looked after despite the **** external condition.

We are going to put a new set of rings as well as new big end bearings and main bearings but only because he wanted to do something on her. The bearings and rings are fine but ill do them anyway.

One thing I am curious about it the gearbox. I have attached a pic of the ID plate. Does anyone know what it is or where I can find out this info.

I am also wanting to know the age of the motor. Does anyone know where I can find this out as the mechanic doesn't have access to his data base as he is on holidays for 8 weeks and is doing this as a favour to me and wants it done in a couple of weeks. Attached is a photo of the engine number plate.

Cheers all

Regards
Hendo

Here are a couple of pics I took today of the hull and the batten screws I used.

Another day putting ply on the girl. I really love the Bote-Cote high strength glue powder epoxy additive. This boat will be rock solid. Can't wait to get her in the drink.

See pics.

Cheers
Hendo

You Go Hendo! Show Her No Mercy... With Lots O' Luv!!!

Progress!

Hi Hendo,try here. Paragon Marine Hydraulic Transmissions
Gordon.

flashwillie said:

Hi Hendo,try here. Paragon Marine Hydraulic Transmissions
Gordon.

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Hey Gordo!

Thanks heaps mate!

iPad Forum Runner

Today was the day from hell. What could go wrong did go wrong and as a result was Not very productive at all.

Busted a couple of braces trying to wrap the front which threw the whole front out of alignment.

So i did what anyone in my situation would do. I Cracked the shits and in doing so, totally removed the front ribs and will do them after a bit more homework. Failing that I might just make a 38ft gondola as seen in the last pic.

Oh I also smashed my finger with my hammer and ripped the nail back from my finger so that was tops!.

The only positive thing I did was the temp install of the shower back wall panel and the toilet back wall panel.

Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day :-/

Hang your hat on the positive and piss on the negative.

Ya made progress and that's what is important!

Fix the ribs and keep at it. Fingernails grow back eventually.