My 1975 SeaCraft 25' Seafari rebuild thread

[flyingfrizzle]

Well, I can say Herman @ Hermco defiantly earns his money. If any body thinks he is high on his product they need to try to build their own cause it will change their mind. I was starting to think I should of just bought a bracket but I am on the short rows now. It has been a very labor intensive and time consuming process to get the tub laid up and the core in. I has took a bit more resin than I expected as well. Being the tub on this one is 60" wide and so big for the extra flotation I have burned threw some 1708, biax and csm. I lost count how many layers I installed but just started building it out to a desired thickness. The back of the bracket where the motor will mount ended up being 1/2" thick and 5/8"-3/4" thick in the corners. There rest of the mold is around 3/8" thick in most areas and 1/2" thick in the corners where it has the extra 1708 tape strips. After that there are two 3/4" Douglas fir marine ply cores that were pre-bonded together with two layers of csm, one on either side of the two layers of 1708, that are in the middle of the cores bonded together. The rest of the core was hot coated and soaked in thinned resin to seal the wood up. I wanted wood ply for the compression strength of the motor mounting bolts to prevent crushing of the core. The rest of the cores will be core cell. The core section that was premade was boned into the mold while the layers were installed so it is all a "green" lay up. I did smear in some thickened resin on the last layer of glass prior to laying the core in just to make sure all the voids were filled. I used a plastic card with 1/4" notches in it to spread the thick resin on top of the layers then laid the core in and clamped it in place and squeezed the air out and let it set up over night. I need to go back and add some layers over the core then it will be ready to come out of the mold. I was thinking that it would take around 10 gallons of vinyl ester but I am at 12 gals now and have to still add in the front of the core and all the stringers. That will take another 3 gallons I am guessing due to the stringers will not need much as they will be just a few layers over the core cell. I feel like I way over built this thing but I didn't want to under do it either. I will be hanging 850 lbs of motors off of this thing and will be doing 60 + mph in 3-4 seas and don't want to worry about it breaking. I just hope all the extra weight will not hurt the balance to bad. I am thinking about doing the swim platform out of epoxy and carbon fiber just to save weight at this point so I can keep the bracket under 200 lbs.

I didn't get many pics due to the intensive work laying it up and to the fact that I had resin on everything everywhere but here are a few:

[Vezo, Part II]

Holy 5#!+!!! What a read! Not going to question the price and value of a Hermco Bracket again!.! Frizz, does my Seafari have a removable portion of the glass inner liner of transom? I found seams just inboard of rear seats, and appears to open up rear of engine box like your beginning pics. This is about 18" of curved transom cap where engine vents and blower is located. Appears I would have to remove aluminum rub rail to access screws to remove cap. I guess I should add pics to my thread. Nice job documenting your progress. Keep at it.

Michael

[flyingfrizzle]

Originally Posted by Vezo, Part II

Holy 5#!+!!! What a read! Not going to question the price and value of a Hermco Bracket again!.! Frizz, does my Seafari have a removable portion of the glass inner liner of transom? I found seams just inboard of rear seats, and appears to open up rear of engine box like your beginning pics. This is about 18" of curved transom cap where engine vents and blower is located. Appears I would have to remove aluminum rub rail to access screws to remove cap. I guess I should add pics to my thread. Nice job documenting your progress. Keep at it.

Michael

I didn't think that the 20' hull had a removable panel on the inboard model. The seafari 20' I owned was an outboard model and it was just like the rear of a sf or sceptre. I would think the back of your would be just like my 20' sceptre (I did the same conversion to it). Yours should have the jump seats on either side of the engine box, that have flip up seats. You can take the screws out of the aluminum rail and that will release the lip section but you will have to cut the lower part under the uprights on the seats and also cut the gunnels on each side of the boat. There will be a lot of potter putty (thickened resin) behind the back rest liner section bonding the inner liner to the front of the transom as well that will make it hell to get out. Look on my 20' sceptre thread below and you will see how I did mine. You say something about seems? I don't remember any seems?

http://www.classicseacraft.com/commu...ad.php?t=25648

[Vezo, Part II]

Wow! Nice finish and documentation. Then Strick hast to introduce the Gucci of all live wells! But your rebuild does show exactly how you removed the section, and it looks identical to mine. Thanks for the link.

[flyingfrizzle]

Originally Posted by Vezo, Part II

Wow! Nice finish and documentation. Then Strick hast to introduce the Gucci of all live wells! But your rebuild does show exactly how you removed the section, and it looks identical to mine. Thanks for the link.

Strick has done some "Gucci" boats. I done the sceptre for a family boat for skiing and tubing with the kids but with a family of five (3 kids) the 25' seafari just makes more since. I never got to wild Gucci-ing the 20' up or will I do the 25' real wild yet due to I want to get it going by spring. I cut out a lot of my plans on the 20' once I got the 25' and didn't do nothing to exotic like first planned. But watch out for my seacraft race boat thread once I get to work on it, that one I will be going after the "Gucci Award". The plans on it change daily sometimes but it will be an eye catcher I hope.

Good luck with yours, some people like to cut the transom from the rear but I prefer to cut the back liner skin out and do it from the inside. There are advantages both ways but way more for doing it from the inside. Just a few examples of advantages changing the core from the inside: You can make it thicker easier, you don't disturb the outer shell of the hull, you can fillet the corners then tab them in better, better access & more space to work, easier to remove the old core out, less likely to trap air when laying it up and most of all way less fairing. Did I say way less fairing?...lol

[Vezo, Part II]

Yes, I agree with the inside route. That's how the MA was done. And I strongly feel that paint is for cars and gel coat is for boats. I have been fortunate refurbishing both Whalers without paint. My MA I did have the cap sprayed and its holding up well, until you bump a dock. But hey, it is just a boat right?