Another Dumb Question

[brianh]

When I purchased my 16 there was a good bit of standing water on the interior that was coming in through a leaking hatch near the bow.  My fear is that toward the rear of the boat the wood might be rotted for the bunks.  If I were a younger (thinner) man I might be able to reach back there to make repairs but I'm not.  My question is, has anybody ever separated the two boat halfs and if so does anybody have any pictures and advise on how to do this operation?

[ssullivan]

im planing on doing the same thing to mine next year,  the hull half's are attached together under the rub rail with rivets and some kind of sealant (i think it is 3m 5200)  i think it would be easiest to then saw in-between the flanges to get them apart being VARY careful not to saw any fiberglass and then you pop it apart (after you take off the compression post its attached to the cap under the tabernacle)       
i stumbled across a bunch if pics of a guy who did it but i cant find the page it was on.      

[Bob23]

There is a solvent that dissolves, or softens 3M 5200. If I can find it, I'll post back here. I've thought about re-sealing my 23, but it doesn't leak so "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" prevails!
Bob23

[MHardy]

Keith Scott of The Sailboat Company recently addressed this on his website: http://www.ipass.net/sailboat/

From the homepage, click on "Answers" in the left nav, then scroll down to "16Jan11 Message: How do you replace rotted bunkboards in the cabin?"

[brianh]

I thought I had saw a post somewhere that said there were pics on this site at one time of the founder doing it but I can't find them if that is the case.

[mrb]

I and Military used to say the only dumb question was the question not asked. Still do...

If you remove deck and make repairs why not take photos of process and post as a follow up to your question,

Good luck

[brianh]

Just got a really good look at the wood on the inside.  The bunk wood appears to be ok but where the bunk area attaches to the stringers has come loose.  The storage area in the bow is a different story.  Due to the leaky front hatch the wood there is toast.  The wood that the compression post attaches to however is fine.  As far as me being the one to blaze new grounds and separate the two halves, somebody has done it and here are the pics:  http://s779.photobucket.com/albums/yy72/tmdrozd/Com%20Pac%20restoration/

[RCAN]

brianh,

I can't thank you enough for the restoration photos of your Com-Pac 16. I bought a 1976 Com-Pac 16 in fairly good condition last year but the bunks have some damage way back toward the stern where you cannot see it under normal use. However, I had to crawl back and forth through that area when I replaced the outboard motor bracket and have it in mind that some day I might want to replace those bunks.

Had absolutely no idea what these boats look like underneath all that is covered up. Those photos were incredibly informative and will be quite useful for me in the future.

It looks like a great job of restoration. May I ask who did the work and if he is available for other restorations or small repairs/ improvements/ upgrades? This guys looks like he knows what he is doing and I live in Florida (Fort Lauderdale). Might be able to trailer the boat to him some day to get some work done on it.

Boat looks great! Enjoy the upcoming boating season.

Thanks again.

Robert

[brianh]

Rcan, the pics were not of my boat. 

[RCAN]

Thanks for correcting me on that. I misunderstood your comments as being that this was your boat but that someone else had done the restoration on it.

However, I do appreciate that you found those photos and posted them. I have saved the link to the photos.

Good luck on your improvements.

Robert

[brianh]

I contacted Hutchins about interior templates and was informed they can make them for me for a cost of $150.  I think I'm going to go that route that way I can have as much pre-cut for when I take it apart.  I'm also trying to think of what I can do to best utilize the space in the bow.  I might put in another panel to install switches and maybe a AM-FM-CD but haven't decided yet. 

[Salty19]

Brian,

When I had the 16, always thought it would be cool to put shelves up in the bow fit for what will be stored (fenders, anchor, tools, spare line, etc).
Just a thought.   I do suggest considering fore and aft balance here as well.  The 16 squats in the rear and sails a lot better with some weight up front.  Especially so if you're using an outboard more than 30 lbs.   If you do something like this, I also suggest rebuilding, resealing the bow eye connection as this would be tough to access later on.  The bow eye is something that should be at least checked on older boats anyway.

[brianh]

I just took an inventory of the work that I'm going to have to do.  It appears there was some damage done on the starboard side of the boat from what I assume was contact with a pier.  With the rub rail out you can see daylight due to no bonding agent or caulk being present.  Whoever repaired the damage appears to have been an amateur.   

As far as the bow goes, I'm thinking of making that area look like an XL model but with some twists to it.