[Rhodes22-list] construction questions

[Lucky Dip]

I have a 74 and have been making major repairs to the deck. This what I
found. All of the horizontal surfaces of the deck and cabin top are cored
with plywood. The plywood is very cheap and appears to be interior grade.
The plywood is attached to the underside of the skin sporadically with some
sort of sealant. I h thought that I had deck core rotting because the deck
was flexing badly when I stood on it. I also had a marine surveyor use his
moisture meter to "confirm" that the core was wet. To make a long story
short I ended up literally removing the fore deck entirely but cutting
across the deck in front of the cabin , removing the rub rail, drilling out
the rivets , removing the calking and lifting the entire deck off. 
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/n44963/Deck_reconstruction_Aug_2009_%286%29.jpg>
I was then able to peal the liner from the core and remove most of the
plywood with my hands. As it turned out there was only one place where there
was any rot and that was in the immediate area of the septic air breather
through hull in the bow. The flexibility was because of delamination - not
rot. Don't trust moisture meters.The plywood had not only separated from the
deck skin but the layer of the plywood had also delaminated from each other
- clearly indicating that the glue was not appropriate. This approach was
extreme and in the end I would not do it again knowing what I know now.
Getting the deck back on and looking reasonable was far more difficult that
getting it off. If anyone is actually interested in how I did that, just
ask.For the side decks I determined by drilling a few holes that the plywood
was delaminated but dry. I drilled 1/4" holes throughout the deck in a
patter with each hole about 4" apart stopping short of the inner liner while
still in the plywood. I did not want my holes to reach the space between the
core and the liner as I expected that the epoxy mixture that I injected
would simple run down the inside of the liner when I wanted it to fill the
voids in the plywood where the plys has delaminated. I used epoxy thickened
slightly with the cabosil. I wanted it fluid enough to flow into cracks but
thick enough to stay put when the pressure stopped. I injected the mixture
using a large syringe sold in automotive stores to measure oil for mixing
with gasoline for lawn mowers etc. It is much bigger than the ones sold by
West System. The tip fit snugly into the holes I drilled. I injected the
mixture with some force until it came out the adjoining holes working my wad
down and back the deck. The epoxy will drop back into the holes as it
spreads between the laminations so until it goes off you can keep topping
up. Use the slowest hardner and work when the surface is cool. The side
decks are now rock solid.So far as I could tell the cabin top is solid with
no flex so I have not done anything there. I probably should have but the
project just seems to go backwards and I am getting desperate to start going
forwards. I might do it yet. I would like to finish this before I die and so
far it is not looking hopeful.The sides of the cabin top are hollow. The
four chain plated that on the cabin top are simply 1" stainless strips that
are bent under the plywood core and held with a single 1/2" screw. Nothing
else. No wonder it was always loose and leaking. Again. this is probably
overkill, but I decided that I wanted to repalce these chain pates with ones
bolted to the outside of the cabin sides. The fact that the sides were
hollow were problematic so I filled the spaces with marine plywood epoxied
in place. That was a fuzzy job toe get all of the voids filled but I had
during an earlier reno removed the posts and significantly enlarged the port
holes so this gave me greater access. The plywood greatly strengthen the
sides, it gives me a solid place to bolt the new chain plates and
strengthens the areas around the portholes that were weakened when the ports
holes were enlarged.
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/n44963/P1000282.jpg> I have
discovered many problems with the construction of this boat. The fiberglass
work is good and the design is excellent but the construction -everything
below the surface was inevitably substandard. Even the stern U bolts had
been inserted without nuts as was the genoa track where the bolts had simply
been threaded into the fiberglass - how it held for 30 years is beyond me.
So if you have an older boat I would assume nothing and go over every
fixture. The hull deck join is terrible in my judgement as evidenced by how
easily the deck was removed. It is an overlap join that is held entirely by
a few rivets. Hull deck movement let water into the v birth. In my repair I
have glassed the join all the way back to the aft of the cabin. I had to cut
away most of the lip of the liner to do this. I will be bolting as well when
I get to that part. It is rigid now and completely sealed.Hopefully that
gives you some idea of what lies inside the deck on a boat of this vintage.



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