bedding the stringers

Like what was said earlier about skinning a cat. You are not going to find that everyone agrees on what methods to use. Do some research and make the decision. I prefer the method of using Epoxy glue on the underside of the stringers so in a sense my stringers would be about 1/8" off of the hull also.

Wood flour from a cabinet shop would be fine as long as it is clean with no debris. Remember polyester resin kicks way faster than epoxy, you must thoroughly mix the resin before adding the filler. By the time the filler is mixed in, it's about at its setting time. It's nice to mix up some epoxy and have all the time you need to spread out one continuous fillet. You just may find that you will spend more on the polyester because of the amount you throw away. I would say at least use epoxy on the stringers, glue and fillets and switch over to polyester for the deck and such. I am not going to get into the epoxy vs. polyester adhesion argument as it has been beaten to death everywhere.

For the deck, I would just use some 20oz. cloth or so, no need for the 1708 there.
 
Agree with you Curapa. Not going into debating epoxy vs. PE VE. If PE or VE just know that the surface prep needs to be 100% as they lack the adhesion properties of epoxy. Rough the hull up with some 36 grit to aid in the mechanical bond. I purchased a 5 gallon kit of putty, and have seen others do the same with great success. Mixing the hardener in with the putty in small batches will give you some idea of your work time. Large batches take longer to mix and have a exothermic reaction that tends to harden faster so getting it spread out fast is the ticket. I know all too well about throwing out resin/putty that kicked in the bucket. Frustrating. All you can do is drop the pail and grab another.
 
Good exchange of info in this thread. I'd be interested to hear what Skools Out thinks about the stringer issue.

Looking good Kracker Jack, keep it up. :beer:
 
I just got a message from Skools yesterday. He has been keeping busy with other things and just hasn't had time to get on the computer.
 
I've been researching info on this very topic, and found a video produced by ShipShape TV. Although this video is about a specific product, the narrator mentions that wooden stringers should not be touching the hull directly (that part is towards the end of the video):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Muf7G3T7Z8

As RidgeRunner already mentioned, the bedding compound serves the purpose of keeping the stringers off the hull. I like the idea of putting small spacers (kinda like shims) between the stringer and hull before bedding it down. That would prevent you from accidentally pushing the stringer too far into the bedding compound. What kind of thickness would be appropriate? I'd guess 1/16", or would you want as much as 1/8"?
 
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Factory stringers in my 74 are spot glued every foot or so. Read a thread on a forum lastnight that said a guy who has been building boats for 30 years has never heard of the floating or spot glueing stringers I thought that was kinda odd
 
Curapa said:
On a side note: The host from Ship Shape really gets on my nerves for some reason.
Click to expand...


I'm the same way...can't hardly stand to watch him cuz he's such a WEENIE...problem is that weenie knows a LOT about boats and his guests are TRUE EXPERTS in their fields...so I endure him to glean the info he offers up...his show is what lead me to a prop solution back in 2004 tryin' to match a honda motor to a V-20...called his company after seeing a Honda tech who told me which prop to use...NAILED it...:clap:

And this IS a great thread on stringers...thanks, Vic and others for the info!!...
 
http://boatbuildercentral.com/howto/repair.php

here's a good tutorial with pictures on bedding and tabbing and glassing.....but basically it goes, raise the stringer and bed it in and underneath with resin putty.....make nice wide transition fillets and tab it in with 2 or 3 layers of 6 inch wide 12 oz tape first, then cover the whole thing with 2 or 3 layers of 17oz biax
 
While we are on the subject of stringers anybody ever seen a stringer run right down the center of the hull ,,I have seen them midway up the hull but never right in the middle ...my buddy pulled his floor and thats the way it was layed out ..Seem odd to me just wondering if it was normal or if it was redone years before and it was added
 
Skinny Water flats boat has a center stringer. Improper trailer adjustment from day one, broke one of the outer stringers at the chine and cracked the hull on my best friends boat. Get the floor out and bingo, there it was. It did not go any further fore than the start of the front deck. Used to support the center of the floor. The stringers were wood and all were touching the hull. Lightweight design IMO, no ribs (bulkheads) and the outer stringers were very small. 2x3 pine maybe??
 
yeah...its done....but mostly for cost purposes IMO......instead of putting multiple layers of glass and beefing up the keel, they made the keel the same thickness as the rest of the hull and used the middle stringer to help stiffen things up...it was cheaper than more layers of glass and resin.....but it does work in many an application
 
Ship shape tv is reruns of infomercials. Very rarely do I see a new episode, or learn about something other than why brand x, presented by paying advertiser, is better than all others. Like the avg do-it-yourself is looking for $5k nightvision?
 
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