23 Sceptre - last unmolested one

[FLexpat]

After reading lots of CSC threads, old and new, it looks like every 23 Sceptre ever built by Potter has been attacked with a bunch of saws and grinders by CSC members. So now it is time for this one to follow the lead. Since I finally figured out how to attach a picture, I thought I'd throw this out for comments.
[IMG][/IMG]
My dad bought this new from Potter in '76. It has been run hard but never painted, sunk, or overtly abused. It spent the last 10 years covered and on the trailer. It still has the original upholstery, cushions, and seats. I will use them for patterns - they are pretty long in the tooth. No repairs on it other than Marine-Tex on various chips and dings. Starboard deck has a soft spot from people jumping off docks into it and skin has delaminated under helm pedestal from too many Miami-Bimini trips with unbedded screws (from the factory). Like all good Potter transoms, water drooled out from one area when I pulled the dive platform. 1991 5.7 Alpha with 400 hrs - engine is fine but transom housing and Y tube are toast. The pictures don't show the carnage of a recent weekend; engine is out, drive is off and fuel tank sold for scrap. I'm not sure if it would have sunk or blown up first if I had launched it.

Plan for the transom is to cut the cap and cut out transom from the inside. I will cut the transom of the inner liner for access and glass that back in afterwards. I will replace the core with Coosa 26 and epoxy it all back together using vacuum bagging.

Plan for the deck is to recore one side at a time with Coosa 26 and reuse top skin, vacuum bagging with epoxy.

If I'm not completely broke, trashed, and ready to sell it by then, I will put in a Bravo 1 and join the martini navy.

I did a similar rebuild of a '65 Bertram 20 about 25 years ago and I think I may have finally recovered from that adventure by killing enough brain cells.

[IMG][/IMG]
[IMG][/IMG]

[Capt Chuck]

Welcome to CSC Flexpat!

Just after a few weeks with this crew, you will be Trashed & Broke...
Keep the pictures coming as we all like boat porn

Good Luck with the refurb & thanks for keeping her in the family.
Capt Chuck

[Entourage]

Looks like you have about the same amount of work i do on my 73 Tsunami. Lets go ill race you to the finish.

[hallburg]

Looks just like mine, also unmolested. The red gelcoat seems to re-fade easily. Good luck with your project. If you end up completely broke, trashed, and ready to sell it you may be in good company!

[kmoose]

Build it like a battlewagon and it will serve you well in anything you put it in. I wouldn't even consider trading mine for a CC of equal or better condition. They are an awesome platform to build from.

[gofastsandman]

Are you familiar with pourable transoms like seacast or arjay? Cut the top off, grab a chainsaw and auger the mulch out, pour and smile. Pretty impressive compression and shear numbers. Lot less itching as well.

[bgreene]

Originally Posted by gofastsandman

Are you familiar with pourable transoms like seacast or arjay? Cut the top off, grab a chainsaw and auger the mulch out, pour and smile. Pretty impressive compression and shear numbers. Lot less itching as well.

What about the transom strength on both ends where it flushes up to the sides of the boat - port and starboard ? How does pouring a new transom confirm strength in those sections ?

[77SceptreOB]

Originally Posted by gofastsandman

Are you familiar with pourable transoms like seacast or arjay? Cut the top off, grab a chainsaw and auger the mulch out, pour and smile. Pretty impressive compression and shear numbers. Lot less itching as well.

That is what i am going to do to the transom on my 1977 Sceptre in the near future. I've researched it and it seems like a good route to go.

[FishStretcher]

Nice. A plan for vacuum bagged coosa cores. I wholeheartedly approve.

These are fiberglass boats. Not fiberglass termite houses.

[FLexpat]

Entourage will win this race - since I am living 2000 miles from the boat it is a long walk to the shed. I should get a few days there every month. If I am on the water by Jan of '15 I will be shocked but I have some buffing compound just in case.

I seriously considered pourable for both the deck and the transom. My concern for pourable in the transom was if it would work with future reconfigurations of the boat. If I went to a bracket someday I wouldn't feel comfortable without redoing it and I would hate that I caused my own nightmares. Also the I/O engine I like for the future is a L96; 385 HP in a 364cid GM marine small block. At 13k for the motor, that can wait but I will go ahead and put a Bravo in now. Or maybe my son cuts college short and I get the motor.

That twisted bit of overthinking pushed me into a re-core. Since I am not a big fan of wood in a transom, I decided composite. I ran across a screaming deal that kinda forced my hand and there is a 4x8 sheet of 1.5" Coosa 26 and 2 sheets of 3/4" in the shed. The transom gets the 1.5" and decks get the 3/4; hopefully I don't screw up and run short on the 3/4. I have modeled the whole stern area and decks out with CAD software in an attempt to have a clue of what I am getting into and what I will need to do. There is no way I could have done that without all you guys doing this already and documenting it with threads, pics and scar tissue. THANK YOU ALL!!!

I have some 5cfm rotary vane vacuum pumps so that makes vacuum bagging an option. If I can pick the right weather and hardner for the epoxy I am going to do a single green layup for the transom; 10 oz cloth, then 1.5" Coosa and then alternating 3 layers of 1808 with 2 layers of 1708. If I seal it well I should get >15 in Hg vacuum which will give pretty good compression of the layers. I hope it will be faster for me with that than a more complex laminate and partial drying between layers; a bunch of ifs there. I'm pretty sure it will be fairly strong but I haven't run any calcs.

The deck is where I'm struggling. I still need to finish figuring out all of my cut lines, but I'm getting close. I think I want to put 2 layers of 10 oz cloth down on the lower skin, then the 3/4 Coosa, then another 10 oz layer followed by putting the top skin back on. Maybe a layer of 1708 on the bottom too so the laminate is more symmetrical. That only raises the deck about 1/2" but we have never had water on the deck from the scuppers even with a full 35 gal livewell on the transom platform and 3 guys fighting fish from the stern. I still want the 1/2" because I'm going from the 72 gal tank to the biggest I can squeeze into the hole; 94 gal??? Also the Coosa weighs 70 lbs more than the balsa (if it was all dry). At least that new weight is all landing near the CG.

Other than stupidly attempting a long-distance rehab, am I doing anything else stupid here? Is there a better way to do any of this?


I am 100% confident that I will find something unexpected or that stumps me. Thanks to Gillie and Bushwacker for reminding me about crevice corrosion. I'm pretty sure that all the new hardware will be an alloy of unobtanium and expensivum.

I also have already proven that you can get enough electrolysis in the bilge of a 'dry' boat sitting on a trailer to dissolve about 2 cubic inches from the bottom of an aluminum Y-tube in the exhaust. The grey pile on the right side of the Y-tube in the transom housing and spilling into the bilge is a big pile of aluminum oxide.