I recently acquired a used Chesapeake 17 and a sailrig. I knew that both were rough around the edges but did not anticipate needing to make repairs. Upon closer inspection, my perfectionist tendencies won out and compelled me to start major refurbs for all components. I'd be grateful for any feedback you might have on my plans.
The short version (questions):
• The C17 plans/manual seem to align with the PDF version of the manual I bought 1-2 years ago, but the sailrig is the Mk2 version rather than the current version. My understanding is that the Mk3 version is stronger owing to deck reinforcement and/or mast step. Would it be wise to purchase the Mk3 plans/manual since I am rebuilding the kayak portion anyway? I don't think I owe CLC a plans purchase otherwise since I am repairing, but please correct me if I'm wrong.
• Is it OK to re-do enormous/heavy fillets by removing tape/cloth over them, scraping/chiseling back, and finishing with cosmetic fillets and cloth/tape? One concern might be compatibility of epoxy originally used (unknown) and MAS epoxy.
• I am considering wrapping akas/crossbeams in 4oz (or 6oz) FG cloth before coating with epoxy and varnish to improve wear resistance and add strength (possibly to enable addition of trampolines, which I've seen ome other builder do but know CLC would probably never condone). Worth the effort?
The long story:
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Chesapeake 17
Problems observed:
• Weight (62 lbs) - due mainly to huge fillets (~3" wide). I feel like I'm playing Russian roulette with my lower back and the kayak itself every time I lift it.
• Sloppy fiberglass work in cockpit led to lots of big (1-3" long, up to 3/4" deep) air bubbles under tape/cloth. No rot, amazingly, but this may be due to prior owner using spray skirt religiously. I took it out once and capsized it 2x while getting out (1st time in a sea kayak). I found water and fine sand in these bubbles a few days later.
• Sheer clamps were not sealed with epoxy, and they have dustings/clusters of dark mold on them (mainly in cockpit but also in hatch areas). I was shocked that they were left completely unprotected.
• Light surface rot on top of deck due to dings in center of deck and intrusion around a few nail holes.
• Light rot around a few deck fittings (especially rudder, where deck FG/epoxy had also cracked).
• Wear down to bare wood at bow/stern (beachings?).
Work done:
• Sanded the coaming down and put a radius on upper inside edge (likely wasted effort since I will remove deck).
• Started removing FG cloth/tape from cockpit using heat gun and chisel.
• Cut off the deck with a router and a flush trim bit once I realized the sheer clamps are unsealed and moldy.
Plans:
• Remove nailed edges of deck. Heat gun and chisel to peel off FG, nail remover + mallet to remove nails, mallet and chisel (possibly with heat gun) to peel up rest of plywood and epoxy?
• Clean up/seal sheer clamps. Plane/sand back to bare wood to remove light surface mold. Seal with unthickened epoxy according to manual.
• Clean up/lighten cockpit. Use heat gun and chisel to pull up glass cloth/tape. Chisel/scrape fillets back and add cosmetic fillets on top as needed (for fillet width of <= 1" vs 3"). Add epoxy, tape, and cloth. Paint most visible area since I'll likely mangle plywood surface when removing cloth/tape.
• Optionally clean up taped fillets in bow/stern compartments too (weight savings) in same way as cockpit.
• Cut new deck from 4mm okoume ply and install without brad nails (I like the look but want to minimize opportunities for water intrusion).
• Attempt to salvage existing coaming (but likely build from scratch).
• Make new hatch covers since existing ones are lumpy/dinged up.
• Drill/fill/drill through holes for deck rigging and for rudder.
• Add under-deck reinforcement for sailrig and replace cracked/rotting (unprotected) mast step on floor.
• Add FG tape and Dynel strips to protect worn bow/stern areas.
• New seat (happy bottom), backband (TBD), hip/knee braces, etc.
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Sailrig:
Problems observed:
• Akas: corners not rounded. Major epoxy/varnish chipping and minor fastener hole rot.
• Amas: Unglassed decks have lots of dings/damage and some rot. Bulkhead tops (where amas attach) are chipped but repairable. Hulls are a little lumpy, but I can rejuvenate with sanding and varnish/paint.
• Leeboard: Needs corner rounding in places and new epoxy/varnish.
Work done:
• Amas: Removed most of decks with router and flush trim bit. Removed nails.
• Akas: Removed cracked spacers (and cut new out of fir). Scraped/sanded back to bare wood and rounded edges w/ 3/8"-radius router bit.
Plans:
• Amas: Remove edges of decks with chisel/mallet, plane, sander, and possibly heat gun (so I can peel away rather than chip away). Fill chips in bulkheads with thickened epoxy. Plane/sand sheer clamps flat and install new decks from okoume scraps. Round deck edges and add 4oz FG cloth over deck and fillet/bulkheads to protect against future wear. Again, not planning to use brad nails this time.
• Akas: Sand rounded akas smooth. Optionally wrap in 4oz FG cloth to make more strong/wear-resistant before adding epoxy/varnish. Drill/fill/drill fastener holes to remove existing rot and protect against future rot.
• Leeboard: Round square edges, sand, and coat with epoxy/varnish.
• Mast: Might buy 2-piece tube to replace existing 1-piece tube since rooftopping seems risky (could squeeze into car otherwise). Use existing 40sf sail.