[jpiombo67]

Hell Friends. Rescued this 1984 G23 at the Martime Auction her in N. Michigan. She was calling me. Not much info out there on this model or the Newport-Lockley. Any insight from any seasoned veterans in this community? Her Interior was stripped out. I have to fabricate the Bulkheads to attach the chain plates and was looking for more that a couple of picture for reference. Thank you all in advance

 

[jpiombo67]

Ouch. Thats going to be a lot of work and cost more than she’ll ever be worth. Are you familiar/experienced with properly tabbing in structural bulkheads? What‘s the condition of the standing rigging, running rigging, sails and motor?

Standing Rigging, Motor and sails are all in great shape. Sails are crisp, motor 9.9 evinrude runs and rigging is good. Just need to replace lines. Although not familiar with structural bulkhead, I did see that the tabbing process is pretty straight forward using biaxial glass.

 

[jpiombo67]

How old are the sails and standing rigging? I’ve repeatedly seen folks assess 10+ year old equipment as in great shape and it simply never really is. I could be wrong, but I didn’t think Evinrude has made the 9.9 for a couple off decades and they’re completely defunct now. Hope you can keep it running. Don’t put ethanol in it.

Not trying to rain on your parade, I hope all goes well. Just don’t want to see you put so much into it that you get frustrated.

Not raining on my parade at all. Insight. That is what I love about tis community.
Lines will be replaced. Rigging is good.
Putting her in the lake today motoring around to watch the centerboard function. Sails are nice and crisp.
Even has a spinnaker and Genoa in addition to (1) reef main and jib.
Cutting out cardboard to recreate the bulkheads so that I can attach the chain plates for the shrouds. This is my biggest project.
The motor isn't my concern, I have one off of my macgregor that is reliable.

 

[jpiombo67]

By way of background, Newport was a very early fiberglass boat builder. (Not to be confused with Capital Yachts that built boat models named 'Newport'). They started out building a series of different one-design race boats including the Kite, Albacore, Lightning, Finn and a range of other very nice one-design racing dinghies. To be competitive, one design race boats required a higher standard of quality control than run of the mill designs. Back in the 60's Newport was considered to be a high quality builder. The company was bought and sold a number of times during its history and over time its focus shifted to small tailerables rather than one designs, and building boats on contract for other companies. Which gets us to your boat....But first some visual aides:

Below is the original interior layout:
View attachment 157521

In this picture, you can see that the main bulkhead was a 2-piece and had a timber frame (cross spall) at the cabin top and was tied into the liner at the bottom.
View attachment 157522

You can see the same from the other side, except here it appears that there molded bunk rider and flat that was attached the hull. The bulkheads appear to be attached to that bunk head-riser. There also appears to be a molded frame crossing the bilge at the base of the mast.
View attachment 157524

View attachment 157523
The good news is that the molded pan, bunk risers and flats are still in the boat. The bad news is that someone removed all of the bulkheads and the shelves along the sides of the hull. Both the bulkheads and the shelves were key structural elements.

Building and glassing bulkheads and shelves if not rocket science. If you have even moderate carpentry skills, its not that hard to replicate the general shape. The cuts do not have to be perfect because the tabbing forms the structural bond, and thickened resin can be used to fill any gaps and create a fillet for the tabbing.

I usually use tick sticks to take off the shape. I transfer that to 'door skins' (cheap 1/8" to 2/32" thick plywood) that I use to test fit and make sure that I can get the pieces through the hatch. If need be you can glue pieces onto the door skins if you need to extend where you cut to much. But once you have a shape that is close to acceptable (maybe up to 1/8"-3/16" gaps) you can trace that onto your plywood of choice and cut out your bulkhead.

More later...

Jeff

Jeff,

Thank you so much for the insight and directions. I have begun the process as you have instructed. My patterns usually involve a cardboard box...lol. Then I do transfer to 1/8" ply.

I beg your input on a couple more things if you could share your wisdom with me.

(1) I imagine epoxy resin and what type of glass? Also, how many layers, Thickness.

(2) I assume the engineers that put her together knew way more than I, but I am not a fan of the fully closed Aft cabin. Believe it or not I have the cross spall. do you think, I can leave it open without that sliding door?
There is a pulley system that lowers the dagger board behind that frame

1. Can I get away from going all the way up as shown in your picture and do something along the lines of my pattern as to allow more light and ventilation?
2. Would it be ok to add a compression post right behind the pulley system for the mast as added stiffness?

Oh by the way she floats and is water tight. She got wet yesterday...lol

 

[jpiombo67]

I went ahead a built it all out. I figure out that she had a 2x4 compression post that was attached to the framing around the dagger board pulley system.
Thank you for your help. Headed to get 5/8 ply wood.

 

[jpiombo67]

Here are my thoughts:
1) I must admit that I typically start off making a first template with corrugated plywood and then transfer it to door skins to make my final fitting. Corrugated cardboard is not stiff enough and hard enough to rely on to make a template.
2) I would suggest that you use A-A EXT Fir Plywood for the bulkheads. The A-A assures good surfaces and the EXT assures exterior glues and fewer voids.
3) I would suggest using epoxy resin for this since epoxy develops much better secondary bonds.
4) Minimally, I would suggest sealing the edges with epoxy to seal the end grain and reduce the chance of rot and delamination. I would be tempted to roll on a coat of epoxy to seal all surfaces and act as primer, but that is not without is own challenges.
5) you will want to build up extra layers of fiberglass on the plywood between the chainplates and the plywood, I like the fiberglass to extend several inched beyond the sides and bottom of the chainplate. That resists compression when the bolts are tightened and spreads the loads on the bulkhead. I also like to add a second (doubler) layer of plywood on the opposite side of the bulkhead that has fiberglass cloth between it and the bulkhead and on its face as well. I typically make that doubler 3-4 inches larger the area of the chainplates.
6) I would prime and apply the first few coats of paint to the bulkheads before you install them. It is so much easier to apply pain on a horizontal surface. That said, you will want to mask off roughly a 3-4" inch wide margin area around the edges of the bulkhead where the tabbing will extend onto the bulkhead.
7) The old tabbing should be ground flat so that the new tabbing will properly bond.
8) When you set the new bulkheads the edges should be buttered with thickened resin to fill the gaps between the bulkhead and the hull, and then form a fillet between the hull and bulkhead with the same thickened epoxy.
9) I like using biaxial cloth for stuff like this, but I have also used some woven roving (which appears to be what the factory used.) Both are a little more difficult to get to conform to an inside corner than regular fiberglass cloth. I like using 'peel ply' on structural laminations to absorb some of the excess resin. One trick that I like to use is to stick wax paper over the last lamination while it is wet, then squeegee over the wax paper. That allows you to force resin through the peel ply, or else end up with a smooth completely saturated surface if you don't use peel ply.
10) As far as leaving open areas for light and air flow: I would probably cut holes in the bulkhead rather than try to leave corners off the bulkhead. This is pretty crude, (drawn before I saw the photos with the door skin templates in place) but it should give you a rough idea of what I am suggesting:
View attachment 157533
As far as the mast loads, and a king post, I would suggest that you add some kind of compression post under the mast where the bulkhead terminates near the centerline. That should probably be some kind of hardwood.

That's about it for now.

Jeff

WoW... Thank you Jeff for all the wisdom. I like the window rendition in your example very much.
I copy all that you have written. Bulkheads are cut and ready to go in.
I will use a 4x4 in place of the 2x4 as the compression post.
Just sent fo the biaxial and resin epoxy resin and then the fun will begin.
I am hoping to begin this part of the project next week.

Again, thank you so much for your detailed and thorough guidance.

John

 

[jpiombo67]

John,

You are very welcome. Here are a few more suggestions,

With epoxy I tend to make a multiple laminate layup all in one session. I use the slow set resins for that.

The tabbing and reinforcement at the chain plates should be tapered so that each layer is a little smaller than the one below it.

I precut and test fit the cloth before mixing resin. I number each of the pieces with a laundry maker and stack them in the order they go into place. (its easy to see the number on the prior piece and the shape of the next piece should give you a clue where it goes.)

I put down plastic sheets everywhere, and wear 2-3 pairs of gloves since it always seems like I tear one or two along the way.

I keep a trashcan and paper towels nearby.

I use denatured alcohol to clean the surfaces since acetone can bring contaminants deeper into the surface of these materials and dries too quickly.

The resin pumps are a real life saver and well worth the added cost. Have lots of mixing sticks and containers.

Wet out/coat the plywood and the surface of the fiberglass with resin just before putting the base layer of fabric in place Wet out the fabric on a horizontal surface before lifting in place (DIY pre-preg)

Where multiple plywood layers are being bonded, I will typically have a layer of cloth between the two layers. Before starting the layup, I predrill one layer of the plywood for fastenings and then use a power drill and self trapping screws to clamp the plywood hard against the fabric. (The screws typically come out pretty easily, and then I fill the holes with thickened epoxy.)

Even though I work at West Marine, I like Jamestown Distributers to buy fiberglass cloth and resins. Their tech support is really helpful. My only caution is to remember to include the cost of shipping when comparing prices and ordering things. Its much cheaper to get everything in one shipment rather than multiple shipments.

That's it off the top of my head...Good luck with your project.

Jeff

Again. Thank you so much Jeff. I have purchased the woven glass and the pump resin/epoxy. I have fabricated both of the forward bulkheads.
My plan is to put a 4x4 post directly behind the paneling that hides the center board lowering/raising mechanism as compression post for the mast.
I will have access to service said mechanism.
Unfortunately, every time I have a free moment it pours.
I am going to screw everything down so I can see how it all plays out and then will begin the glassing process.
I will keep you updated on this project as your direction has been invaluable.

 

[jpiombo67]

Lots of work. Wishing you all the best as it progresses. Jeff will know better, but I’m wondering if that’s the proper plywood for a damp marine environment.

She is willing to be mostly trailered. I have used it before as decking for my pontoon and sea nymph. I seal it and it has held up in those boats for 3 years.
CDX rating.
I’ll keep you posted.

 

[jpiombo67]

I will say that the plywood you are using appears to pine CDX. That is not a great choice for this application for a variety of reasons.

To begin with CDX has much lower grade face plies and permits a greater number and substantially larger size voids in the core. Pine plywood generally is less stable and more rot prone than fir plywood.

Its hard to say whether the plywood specification has a significant adverse structural impact, but it would have a significant impact on the durability of the bulkheads.

Bulkheads have very high axial loads compared to applications that this material was intended for. The mismatched face veneers make CD plywood very prone to warping. That does not come into play when used for its intended purpose because the plywood would be spanning multiple, relatively closely spaced, framing members. But it is significant in the role as a continuous compressive membrane.

Although the glue is the same as used on AAext, the bigger voids in CDX make delamination and rot much more likely. The permissiblity of having large knots in the face veneers, also greatly increases the likelihood of the face veneers breaking down when the bulkhead is stressed.

But the other issue with CDX is getting an attractive and reliably durable finish.

I get that AAEXT is double the price (and more than that for fir) of CDX, and may be a special order, but that is still only a $60-$70 premium. Beyond the reasons above, that is money well spent in terms of the time saved trying to get a decent finish on CDX and the overall visual appearance of the finished project, and it represents a small investment compared to the costs of the other materials in the project.

Lastly, I am a little concerned about the size of the gaps at the cabin sides and cabin and deck undersides.

Jeff

Again thank you all. Il will be shimming the bulk heads to reduce the gap. I understand 6mm is acceptable

 

[jpiombo67]

Actually back to the drawing board... Tick stick and start from the beginning. Lesson learned.
Menards, here we come. Thank you!!!!

 

[jpiombo67]

Jeff, I was also thinking of gluing popsicle sticks to the monstrosity I made and have them flush with the outline of the boat. Then connecting the dots and tracing that on the AAEXT you suggested. Would that work?
Also, missing the rudder blade on this model. She has a wheel instead of a tiller. Any suggestions on where to get that lower unit?
Happy 4th.

 

[jpiombo67]

Work is making my progress slow.
Today I put my popsicle stick scenario together on the starboard bulkhead. Feeling confident about the fitment. Also, slowly starting to make sense of the shape of the hull etc.

 

[jpiombo67]

Will do!! I still have the port side to do and yes I will transfer to a skin prior to the Final Cut.
? I imagine you would seal and stain prior to glassing correct?

 

[jpiombo67]

ok. Here goes nothing.
I have total boat pump system. I have glass. I
Have read your directions.
How many layers of glass?
Thank you for all your help
John

 

[jpiombo67]

Well Jeff. It’s not pretty, but I can heave on the bulkheads and feel her move on the trailer. Granted, i am not comparing my strength to that of Mother Nature, but I am pleased with the results. Could not have done it without your guidance. You weren’t kidding about the gloves and paper towels. I imagine this is what being tar and feathered must have been like. (Without the hot tar). Should have worn long pants as well. 😆.
A lot of sanding in my future.
…but one step closer to stepping the mast.
Forward bulkheads and Rigging next. Thank you so much.
John

 

[jpiombo67]

Finally stepped the mast. Getting close. Thank you all for your help

 

[jpiombo67]

Finally in the water and moored.

 

[jpiombo67]

Yes sir, was on the boat yesterday, but it was blowing 15-20 with gusts up to 30. Not ideal for a shakedown and then this baby rolled in