Custom/Hybrid Finally decided to open up the 97’

V

vcolf

Been procrastinating, but finally decided to open up 97’ rn to start the defoam and wide tray. No disappointments here, she was full of sand, water, and surprises. looks like water was coming in from the bond line, pump bolts, and exhaust pipe.

Unfortunately there is enough water sitting inside the foam to corrode through my exhaust pipe! since I’m going to do a wide tray looking for some ideas on what I should do. also if anybody makes an aftermarket pipe that works good for reroute. For the wide tray it would be nice to have the exhaust sit lower so I could not have to lift the tray over the pipe. Or should I just JB Weld it :)!

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fastgtfairlane

fastgtfairlane

Location
Charlotte, NC
always a good time defoaming a tray. my 96 superjet leaks into the tray really bad. the tray was widened, new stainless exhaust pipe and refoamed with blue contruction foam and it still leaks. luckily it has tray drains to drain the water out after each ride. id definitely like to figure out the source of the water leaks.
 
aboarder

aboarder

Location
Goodwood, ON
fastgtfairlane said:
always a good time defoaming a tray. my 96 superjet leaks into the tray really bad. the tray was widened, new stainless exhaust pipe and refoamed with blue contruction foam and it still leaks. luckily it has tray drains to drain the water out after each ride. id definitely like to figure out the source of the water leaks.
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I tilted my RN up and saw water running out of the bond line at the back of the tray. Last place I would have expected to be my issue, but there were multiple leaks in that area.
 
V

vcolf

All good replies, thx. Yup found leaks in all those areas. I agree that drains are a good idea and have installed some. On the older skis the smc glue can start fail at the bond line for a number of reasons. So many places these skis can leak. I have decided tp lower the exhaust tube enough so I wont need to creat a hump to glass over it. Also reinforce the sides and glass over the bond line.


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Pro-pulsion

Pro-pulsion

Location
Ontario, Canada
Don't forget to use some good sealant around your water pickup and siphon bilge tubes. Seal them both inside and out at the pump area and firewall area. I have seen the factory sealant fail very quickly allowing those tubes to slip in or out and bring on water. Also make sure the steering cable through hull plumbing bits are doing their job. Mine backed off becoming loose, I can watch a stream flow into my engine compartment from the steering cable tube alone. My bond line also leaks, I use 3M 4200 Marine for sealing everything because it can be used above or below the water line and is meant to be more of a sealer first and adhesive next. 5200 I have found is not a great one to use when it's getting frequent exposure to water and water pressure. I used it to help lock my sponsons onto my hull, it lasted for a few years but this year the water won. It pealed up the 5200 and tore the leading 1/4 of my left sponson off. I could pull the lifted 5200 out after each ride because the water would force it out between the hull and the sponson.

I too am in the process of rebuilding my tray, if you use construction grade rigid foam, don't use the Home Depot stuff for about $30. It doesn't have the compressive strength you need and it might not be closed cell foam. Look for either Dupont's Dow Highload 100 or Owens Corning Foamular 1000. Those have 100 psi compressive strength, are closed cell with a 0.01% by volume water absorbtion rate (meaning it won't soak up and hold water like pool noodles will - ask me how I know lol) and used in areas where some structural fortification is needed like under airport runways and floating docks or floating golf course islands <--- same stuff but referred to as dock billets due to the much larger thicknesses. It's spendy stuff at about $75 per 2"x2'x8' sheet, but a fella needs to ask how much is the ski worth to them? If you need to stack it, there is rigid foam adhesive too, the other silicone adhesives might not stick or might attack the foam degrading it.
 
V

vcolf

Here is some proof at how the factory did not seal the water lines well. This piece of sealant off with ease and you can see where they did not cover the entire diameter.
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brapperdoodle

brapperdoodle

Location
Asheville, NC
I bet it was a battery powered multi tool. I brought one over to sano's house when I cut up my tray. Makes WAY less dust too!

This ski looks great, Its a hard job to start but once you get rolling, its not so bad ;) Keep up the good work! I regret not lowering my exhaust tube, Now I have funny looking useless ramps in my tray.

P.S. the harbor freight foam scraper seems to be the best tool for the job, I used the same one haha
 
V

vcolf

Used the multitool/oscillating tool. This tool is a game changer, can use it for cutting the fiberglass and scraping the foam like butter. Used 10oz cloth, 1708, milled fibers, and fumed silica. Thanks for the compliments, but I think my work is like a 5 out of 10 compared to what if seen on this site. I have experience fiberglassing, but some of the build threads are insane. Seems like guys here have access to vacuum bag equipment. Glad I moved the exhaust, love the flat wide deck.


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SXIPro

SXIPro

JM781 Big Bore
Location
Here on the 'X' mostly
brapperdoodle said:
I bet it was a battery powered multi tool. I brought one over to sano's house when I cut up my tray. Makes WAY less dust too!

This ski looks great, Its a hard job to start but once you get rolling, its not so bad ;) Keep up the good work! I regret not lowering my exhaust tube, Now I have funny looking useless ramps in my tray.

P.S. the harbor freight foam scraper seems to be the best tool for the job, I used the same one haha
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Which blade? Like the plunge blade? (for the fiberglass, not for removing turf)
 

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V

vcolf

yup, That one works for fiberglass and doesn’t wear out too quick. The razor blade edge smooth one works great to get foam off in chunks. Here’s the pic after the final wet coat.
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V

vcolf

any opinions on whether to paint or leave it as raw glass since it will get turf over it. I’m thinking the mat would stick pretty good to the unpainted fiberglass but starting to think it might stick to good and be hard to replace one time comes. Paint might help it come off a little cleaner when needed?


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