Lex Strahorn's Home Page

Update:
Several days later new bulkheads made of fiberglass covered foam were fitted in place. Going a step further, I added an extra set of bulkheads for improved floor support and a series of PVC pipes to allow drainage through the flotation foam.( I didn’t want any water to be trapped by the foam again.)

Fiber glassing the bulkheads to the hull was a real pain. Every time I tried brushing the tape with the resin it wanted to move and bubble. I worked around this by using blue painters tape to hold it in place while applying the resin. Since the bulkheads were not going to be visible I could just resin over the tape as well. This made the process go a lot faster and smoother.

After the bulkheads had cured, Dustin asked me if they would pass the “kick test”. Umm…O.K. I climbed into the boat and gave a bulkhead the ole swift kick. Not only did it part from the hull, the fiberglass cracked badly where my boot impacted. I wasn’t amused with the laughter that followed. Apparently a “kick test” wasn’t supposed to be a six-foot-three-inch, 280 pound, steel toed punt. All of the other bulkheads passed what I dubbed the “pansy-ass kick test”. I re-glassed the offending bulkhead.

Update:
After double checking my measurements, I cut out and pre-fitted the rear deck. I cut the foam with a jigsaw on medium speed and blade angle. The results looked very nice and the fit was better than I expected. I then measured and cut the holes for the twin live wells and the under seat storage. I tried to use a Roto-Zip for that part but after breaking off three blades I went back to my trusty jig saw. Wow is this stuff dense! (Kind of like my head considering it took three blades to make me change)

I had already purchased a large roll of fiberglass mat to do the deck and floor. However, I liked the way the tape looked and felt better. So I went back to my computer to see what else was available. I found that a material called Roving that looked very similar to the tape and had very good strength properties. In fact it is used in hulls according to the write ups I read. A bit more expensive than mat and Biaxle but again I am not looking for cheap, I am looking for quality.

On Ebay I found many sources selling fiberglass, and of course the type I wanted, roving. So I hit the buy it now button for a roll of 24 oz and 18 oz from Summitcentral. I figured that I would use two layers of 24 oz on both the top and bottom of the decks and follow up the top with another layer of 18 oz.

While waiting for the fiberglass to arrive I removed the junk bilge pump, all of the through hull fittings, the live well pump, cleats, rod holders, all of the wiring and went to Marine Surplus in Bradenton, FL to do some serious shopping.

What did I buy? Well too much! Four large hatches, four medium hatches, a seat hatch, eight stainless steel flush mount rod holders, Eight new through hull fittings, a gas cap riser and a stainless flush mount hose adapter, fifty feet of rub rail, a ten inch dry box, six stainless pop-up cleats, three hundred stainless steel screws, and a new seat cushion. So much for the low credit card balance.

Bulkheads fitted