maintenance of a 10 year old 5200 bottom

[cuckter]

Hi. My Sportsman had a 5200 bottom done in 2003 by a professional shop. Now after 10 yrs. I can see 1/32 space in between the boards. The boat does not leak but I am concerned it appears that the 5200 is not flush with the bottom. I been told to reseal with 5200 and I was told not to do any calking as this could cause the boards to push against each other and cause problems once the boat is in the water. I was told that the bottom needs to be stripped, sealed, re apply 5200 and paint. Question: Has anyone had any experience with this situation or suggestions. Thanks for any help.

[maritimeclassics]

I would really like to see some pictures of what is going on. I wounder if the inner screws were re installed in the bottom.But if it does not leak then why would someone say it has to be torn apart and redone?

[cuckter]

(I am not sure how to post a pic.) . However, the bottom had spaces between some of the boards, and on some of the boards you can see the 3M5200 and you do not see any space. The boat does not leak or show any rot any where. I inspected the bilge and the bilge was very clean and had been painted approx. 10 yrs. ago. Don D on his blog suggested that the bottom was not sealed properly when originally done. I contacted the original shop that installed the bottom. They said," that things don't last forever". They basically said that 10 yrs was a long time to expect no problems with a 5200 bottom! This is why I asked the question.

[charlesquimby]

Did the shop put on a new inner planking? Sounds like no. If they left the original inner planking, and it was oil-soaked or otherwise damaged this may be causing some movement due to poor adhesion. However, you state the boat does not leak, so this might be a case of over-concern. Obviously you are getting some shrinkage, but once back in the water these planks should close. Just me, but I would not re-caulk; just let the planks tighten naturally. Does the boat stay in the water, or does it see a lot of wetting and drying? CQ

[cuckter]

Pic. of boat bottom

Here is a pic. of the boat bottom

[jim g]

Looks like the shop that did it did not fill the space between the planks with 5200. Also looks like its been that way for a while because there is paint in the seams.

[boat_art]

When did the gaps first appear?

[jfrprops]

That picture would represent the best bottom I have ever had on a wooden boat......go boating!

John in Va.

[Captain Nemo]

I'm w/ John on this one. You say it doesn't leak, and from the pic it looks good. Go boating.

[iwally]

Has it been re-painted since it was done 10 years ago?

[boat_art]

If the shop that did it says "nothing lasts forever" then they are admitting something is wrong. Take it to a pro and have it looked at. Where are you located?

[mbigpops]

The main question is are the planks still moving? If they are then you have a more serious issue. If not then you may get away with 5200 in the gaps and then address sealing the planks.

Mark

[cuckter]

Hi. Let me see if I can answer some of your questions.

1. Yes, the shop who did the work did install a new inner planking and the screws were new. I have a copy of the invoice which includes new inner planking, new bottom boards, new screws and use of 24 tubes of 3M 5200.
2.The boat will be on a boat lift in the summer. Stored in a heated garage during the winter.
3. The shop claims that they did fill the seams with 5200 10 yrs. ago. I can see some of the seams have 5200 between some of the planks.
4.I just purchased the boat in 2013 . I been working on it this winter.
5. I am in Iowa, so not easy to get the boat to a professional shop for an evaluation.
6. I have not seen any movement of the planks when using the boat in the summer of 2013. The boat was on a trailer and in/out of the water. Also, the boat has shown no leaks and I have yet to use the bulge pump last summer.

Also, I want to thank everyone for their comments. I would still like to hear from someone who has a 5200 bottom for the past 10 plus years to hear what has been their experience. One of the reasons that I purchased this boat was because of the 5200 bottom and I felt that I was capable of the remaining restoration that I felt the boat needed to bring it to a good-very good condition. I have worked on 4 other wood boats including Yellow Jacket, Higgins, and 2 wood kayaks. This is my first Chris Craft. Again thanks for your input.

[mfine]

Sounds like the planks were not sealed with CPES and are going through normal expansion and contraction.

Perhaps you can strip them down, seal with CPES to slow that process and be done.

[boat_art]

The heated garage is a problem unless you keep the humidity up. The planks still shouldnt shrink if the bottom was done right. I assume the topside planks also opened up too, right?

[cuckter]

Hi. The garage R/H is approx 60% which should be good to prevent shrinking. The top side planks show little opening up between planks. I do keep large plastic pans of water under the boat as suggested by Don D.
I think I will use the boat this summer and see what happens. If I see either the seams moving or any other problem, then I will strip down to bear wood and seal with 2 coats of CPES, followed by 5200 on all seams, Interlux Interprotect 2000E Barrier coat (4 coats) and then 2 coats of bottom paint. This is my understanding of what may be required to do the bottom correctly. Thanks for all your suggestions.

[boat_art]

Good plan! Have a great summer...Minnesota may hit 50 on Monday!

[cuckter]

Look at earier post vs current pic.

I would like to update anyone who is interested in a 10 year old 5200 bottom. After much research and help from Don Danenberg,
I have found the cause for the open seams in my boat bottom. The "professional shop" who did the work did not follow Don's procedure and "short cut" the 5200 process. They only used 24 tubes of 5200 vs recommendations of using up to 40 tubes, they did not use a sealer like CPES on the wood and they did not use Interlux 2000E or any other product as a barrier coats. The did charge the former owner $11,000.00 for a 5200 bottom and a total of $17,000.00 for other repairs like replacing broken frames, etc. in
2002. The reason I am posting this information is to warn boat buyers that not all 5200 bottoms are created equal. I purchased this boat based on the facts that the invoice stated that the "shop" installed a 5200 bottom in 2002. Now for the good new, I completed redid my bottom using Don D. process and the bottom looks great compared to my original bottom.

[Doug P]

I'm with John and Capt. Nemo.....Has this boat been soaked?... Sounds like much ado about nothing

[mfine]

You completely re-did a 5200 bottom in less than a month? Can you please come visit me for a few weeks?

[mbigpops]

Well done finding out the root cause of the problem and fixing it correctly. There is something to be said for that.

Enjoy your many years of worry free boating and congratulations on keeping another great boat going for years to come.

Mark

[cuckter]

Mr. Doug P.. With all due respect for your opinion, I wrote the follow up to alert boat buyer that It appears that some "professional shops" are doing short cut 5200 bottoms. Also, a 5200 bottom does not need to be soaked.

To mfine... I been working on this boat since November 2013 and when I said I re did a 5200 bottom, I did the following steps over the last month:
1. Stripped bottom down to bear wood
2. Sanded with 80 grit
3. Filled any open seams with 3M5200
4. Applied 3 coats of CEPS,(Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer) to all the wood and allowed to dry for a few days
5. Applied 7 coats(2 gallons) of Interlux 2000E barrier coats per label instructions
6. Sanded using 120 grit
7. Painted bottom with 2 coats of Pettit 1959 Copper Hard Racing Bronze Bottom paint

All the bottom boards looked like new when sanded as well as the bulge showed no signs of damage or water into the bulge last summer.
Thanks for the offer of working with you for a few weeks. Maybe next year.

[mfine]

That's still a pretty impressive pace for a DIYer. And I agree, a professional "5200 bottom" is a buyer beware situation since many pros seem to skip the CPES step due to fume concerns and I think that is a critical step to avoid exactly what you saw happen to your boat.