Hull restoration of Second Nature

The interior hull restoration was completed by renowned boat builder Dan Parker of Monaro Marine in late 1992. Dan and his craftsman did absolutely the finest work and paid attention to the many intricate details of this project. With this work completed the hull is now structurally sound, free of all vibrations, and most importantly unsinkable. You can actually pull the drain plug for days and not get your feet wet! The following photos show the progressive steps from beginning to completion, in a series of 17 photos, with a brief explanation of the work being performed in each photo.

Click on the thumbnails below for a larger version.

The boat is lowered onto a rollerable cradle, in preparation to move freely inside the shop.	Sections of the cockpit floor are carefully cut away until the entire floor is removed. Note the broken stringer on Left side.	With the entire cockpit floor removed, hours of grinding and repairs to the stingers, the entire area is prepared and cleaned for fiberglassing.
Heavy fiberglass matting with 10 gallons of resins, reinforce the interior hull and stringers. Weights are used to keep the high spot stringer in a level form.	The fiberglass was allowed to cure for 7 days, then urethane foam was sprayed under the cabin door all the way through to the stern. The foam had to be shaved at the proper level height in preparation for the new floor.	Along the main keel, tinfoil wrapped boards were removed to create a water run channel to the stern bilge pump.
Marine grade plywood is screwed down then fiberglassed in, creating an extremely strong flooring system. Note the original inspection cover is duplicated in the battery / fuel area.	Holes were cut in the cuddy cabin to also spray urethane foam completely filling the bow area under the V-Birth. A total of over 25 cubic feet of foam is now inside the hull.	In the stern below the swash plate (directly forward of the outboard, in the well area) The foam was removed and the area was fiberglassed. A solution had to be found to install the bilge pump basket, so I used cold-cure resin and literally glued it in place. A below water ground cable is also installed for quieting the electrical system.
Utilizing Anchor marine grade wiring and heat shrink tubing, the new bilge pump (should you ever need it) is installed.	The remaining area below the swash plate is vacuumed, and prepared for.. you guessed it...more foam.	A total of 5 cubic feet of block foam is test cut then installed, ensuring the stern won't sink either.
Many old small styrofoam cubes were found under the V-Berth. This was the factory flotation. This completed the hull restoration by Monaro Marine.	The next project was making the transom area strong enough to support the 75lb. kicker motor/bracket. Note the countersunk holes on the wooden bracket (where you screw the motor in). Also a custom made aluminum backing plate (bottom left).	I can contest to the fact that this Bellglass construction is real tough stuff. I had to grind for hours to get it this clean. Lots of prep. and sanding too. I used a round, stiff, steel wire attachment on a drill to do the narrow left side area and bottom.
Two layers of special matting are used in connection with cold cure resins, after the area was cleaned with acetone. Note heavy fibers and powders are built up on the Left side and along the bottom for extra strength.	Finished for another day.