Not another Mustang restoration thread.

Will vinylester play well with the poly already in there and the CPES treatments?

John,
You forgot the first step will be to grind off the bilge resin almost down to glass.

John,
I missed the vinyl ester too. Go with the epoxy.

TRBenj wrote: Wait, vinylester? I'd skip that.

Hmmm, I thought I had this figured out. no Vinyl ester? I was looking at the U.S. Composites 700 vinyl ester resin.
http://www.uscomposites.com/polyesters.html

John,
When you order the resin, get the metering pumps. It makes each batch easy to make up.

Hollywood wrote: Probably comes in 1 gallon quantities just like the epoxy. Not a bad idea to start small and get more if you feel you will need it instead of kicking around 2 gallons that never get used.

I have 3 gallons of U.S. Composits 4lb foam I have been kicking around. I hate to throw it out but I'm tired of seeing it. Anyone need it?

That elongated hole is where the Marine tex was, I have removed all the Marine tex with a drill, screwdriver and long nose pliers. The hole is about 2-1/2" deep and the wood still holds bolts as is. The wood around the hole is in good condition. It seems to me that it may be a bit drastic to do a complete stringer job for this area. I have a theory that this area was damaged due to a cracked and leaking manifold or exhaust hose that dripped on the engine mount over years. The discharge of the manifold is right above the motor mount bolts and the manifolds had been replaced with Oscos when I bought it due to the H/Ms cracking and leaking many years ago. You can see the condition of the other mounting positions and there is no damage. Tim was nice enough to explain some of the basics of fiberglass repair to me so I am worse than a complete clueless amateur, I am an amateur armed with just a little knowledge. I plan on using epoxy thickened with milled fiber to fill the hole. I am reluctant to drill holes in the stringers in any area but around the bolts. For the most part they are very solid. I feel that repairing this hole is not that much more serious than repairing a hole that has been stripped by removal and over tightening of the bolts from repeated alignment and engine removal, and dealers/repair shops must run into that all the time. but what do I know? Thanks for the help and suggestions everyone. I am going to order the supplies today or tomorrow and I am thinking of buying 3 gallons of vinyl ester epoxy. I think that will be enough but if not they will be happy to sell me more. I think the 5 gallon will be too much and would be hard to handle if it comes in a pail or large can.
One more thing, I think I understand the advantage of a double tapered shaft. I do not want to pull the engine in the event of damage to the strut / shaft / seal. The hub is VERY hard to remove and would require heat. I may go that route. Also I think I need remove the genitalia and lower the boat down onto some foam pads to do the fiberglass work. I am having a great deal of trouble climbing into the boat repeatedly from a ladder. Joints are never as good as new after they have been repaired and three out of four of my limbs have had had surgical repair, one as many as three times. Not complaining, just trying to plan accordingly.

A full cradle is certainly an option but now you're talking welding.

I would recommend a piece of angle on each side, not connected. Put the vertical on the outside of the mains. That way, access the underside from the bilge side rather than complicating the floor design (like seen on 80-88 SN's).

I meant scallop for the nuts on the underside of each mount, but you're right- may or may not need to trim he stringer height by the thickness of the angle so that it ends up flush.

Agreed on milled fiber of you fill it back in. Scalloping under the mounts and putting a cradle (or 2 independent pieces of angle) and then through bolting the mounts is another consideration.

You're also very close (in terms of cost and effort) to a full stringer replacement... So if you come across more questionable spots, keep that in mind.

There are several viable repair options from what I see.

I feel the Cab-o-sil since it's softer than the milled fibers so I feel it will handle the lag bolts better. Unless you drill plenty of clearance for the threaded section and the shank of the lags, there's a chance of cracking the fill using milled fiber.

FYI info straight out of the DAL composite Class Training Manual.............

Milled Fibers -   Used to thicken and reinforce resin and typically used to repair small holes in solid laminates (ie wood)

Microballoons - Very Small hollow spheres. used to displace resin and lighten the potting compound. Primary use is a potting compound and dent filler....

CAB-O-SIL - Added to resin as a thixotropic agent to prevent sagging. ( turns runny watery type resin into a cold molasses consistancy or creamy peanut butter if you add enough)




Where cloth is concerned you have 2 basic types of weaves.....SATIN or PLAIN

SATIN - asymmetrical weave pattern that will have a different number of yarns per square inch. Satin weave fabrics will not have equal strength in all directions but its attributes are its more drapable than plain weaves and used in areas of complex curves.

PLAIN - Equal number of yarns per square inch and equally strong in all directions. The drawback is that it doesn't conform to complex curves to well. (ie corners and tight radiuses)

Hope that helps y'all who are reading!

John,
I agree with Bruce about a repair. I know you were planning on a CPES treatment anyway but I recommend taking it on more step. Drill 1/4" holes I'd say every 6" down the full length of each stringer as deep as you can. (long drill bits are available but, don't drill through the hull!!! ) Using a small funnel repeatedly fill each hole with the CPES. Considering how dry the wood is, it will really soak it up. Around the area where it looks like they used Marine Tex, (I hate the stuff!!) see if you can get it out by drilling small holes around it and pulling it with a needle nose. If not, CPES around the Marine Tex via the holes you drilled. For the big hole, the epoxy filler of choice would be Cabosil.

Keep in mind us old guys do get beat up pretty easy so get some rest but also keep on moving forward!!

I had a disappointment today, I found that there is damage to the port stringer at the rear engine mount.The two bolts have an issue that a previous repair had fixed, but I believe the repair could have been done a bit better, maybe not, I'm an amateur so go figure. It appears the two holes had an issue and probably wouldn't hold a bolt. The area between the bolts looks like it was drilled to a slot and filled with something that looked like Marine tex. Slightly longer SS bolts were installed. The bolts were tight and held pressure when I removed them, but it's just not right. I believe all the bolts have all been replaced with slightly longer SS bolts and bedded as well. The wood toward the keel is a bit compromised but will still take a moderate ball peen hammer blow.
I'm planning to address this with composite stuff. I would thing that the CPES treatment would prepare the wood well and the hole could be filled with thickened epoxy and drilled to accept the bolts. With a bond between the wood and fiberglass I believe I could build a bit of thickness for rigidity and be ready to go. The stringers have good adhesion to the hull. I would love to do a Coosa stringer job but the reality is that I am just too beat up to take on that job. I may be down for a few days after the work I have done today. I want to enjoy the thing and the "kids" would like to go skiing. Is this reasonable?

I got off the L Z Boy today. A little more work than I thought for a one arm geezer.