Not good news for Christmas. Ouch

[blueskyracer]

The pictures below are what I found when I opened up "OLD BOB" the purple boat.. The pictures are of the bottom plywood inside.. I think it is time to retire this baby. By the time I replace the deck and bottom what is left. Bottom is delaminating and buckling everywhere. And all the sand. This baby has been upside down a lot and drug into the beach

[form-e one]

can onestly say karelsens where never made to last this long ,,,,,ugg

[Tim Weber]

I've seen worse. To retire it is a choice of how much labor you want to put into it.

Vacuum it out, sand the waves out of the plywood and thin some epoxy to an almost watery consistency. Let the resin ooze into all the cracks and seems.
Then laminate some carbon fiber over the top.

The boat won't last forever but there are some more races left in it. Use it for the new guy as it's sort of a throw away boat anyway.

Tim

[blueskyracer]

well I also weighed it before I started and it came in on the scales at 160+ and it is only 9' 6" long so I think it has been soaking up water for a few years. I have no idea how long this boat has been around but I would guess at least 15-20 years

[johnsonm50]

I've seen worse. To retire it is a choice of how much labor you want to put into it.

Vacuum it out, sand the waves out of the plywood and thin some epoxy to an almost watery consistency. Let the resin ooze into all the cracks and seems.
Then laminate some carbon fiber over the top.

The boat won't last forever but there are some more races left in it. Use it for the new guy as it's sort of a throw away boat anyway.

Tim

I was thinking that too, floating it in epoxy. could be salvaged for awhile If you think the time & cost worth it.

[G Stillwill]

For a boat that size with that kind of weight and then to soak it with epoxy adding even more weight the boat is just about used up other then for a lake racer that wants a boat just for the fun of it. To me the time would be best spent building a new boat unless it had special interest or was old enough that it had value to a collector but thats going back to the shovel nose days.

[KURPS]

Would make a great bonfire for New Year eve!

[blueskyracer]

We will try to get a hold of the owner today and see what they want to do. I did not want to ruin their Christmas but the New Year will suck.. I have a burn pile started for this spring during open burn season.. Weiner roast anyone..

[Dave M]

Ouch Indeed

I have had to call a few racers and give them the bad news. Never easy to do, as there is usually some history to go along with the hull.

What I have seen done is to strip the boat of finish, and let sit for a few months to dy out. This diet works real well on some older boats. Once it is dry and lighter, recoat with epoxy, lightly, and you can use the hull again. There is no guarentee how long it will last. I have seen it last as much as ten years and as much as a season.

Good luck !!

[daveracerdsh]

Karelson

Is this an old Karelson hull? And the bottom is waterlogged? I bet you could scarf in a new bottom...I have done it before....just a thought. 160lbs with hardware or without? Sorta curious.....dave

[blueskyracer]

Is this an old Karelson hull? And the bottom is waterlogged? I bet you could scarf in a new bottom...I have done it before....just a thought. 160lbs with hardware or without? Sorta curious.....dave

Dave there is nothing to scarff to since the whole bottom is shot and yes it is a very old Karelson.

[johnsonm50]

A past discussion presented some good ideas about re skining a boat. Getting the old off w/o messing up he frame being the challenge. Ideas that came up were using a router set at skin depth. You could mark out he frame members by drilling from the inside to locate them, then router the edges so not to run over fasteners. Then some careful grinding & it could be off & prepped for new fairly quick. Getting in the airtrap corners would be difficult but possible. Worth it or not's the $64-Q

[form-e one]

as far as bottom just have to replace whole and get twist right,,, and have to know how to twist it right that was always a trade secret with ed,,, and yes this boat has history,,,,

[Tim Weber]

Burn it! If it's that heavy, don't waste your time.

Tim

[johnsonm50]

I think you could mark the twist where it is beforehand. The skin on it probably has some to do with why its heavy. New Lloyds register quality okuome could be a beautiful thing done by a man of your skills. Any frame issues would be easy to get to meanwhile..