SOS please help!! '72 Grampian 30'

You must be nuts.....like me

Just saying hello.

I'm immersed in rebuilding 80% of the top deck of my 72 G30 which sits for now in my back yard. I have no real thoughts to share except to say these are fine boats. Make sure the top deck has no soft spots. If there are soft spots let me know and I will tell you what I have learned about restoring such a boat on the cheap....not that I have succeeded yet but I am on the way. I am in the midst of a huge complex task which only an insane man would undertake involving learning the fiber glass and epoxy arts. Does the atomic four turn? its ok if i wont start now but can you make the engine turn? Try with a monkey pipe or other wrench to turn it at the belt... that is important. If the engine turns take the plugs out and put oil in the cylinders right away. I have learned these engines are so incredibly tough that even a moron can't destroy them...they can almost always be brought back to life. Take it from me.

I am curious. Is this a hobby for you? Where will you work on the boat? Why would you consider such a hare brained idea as buying an old sailboat. Are you completely insane?....I am.... but I am fortunate to be surrounded by close friends... incredibly good talented people including a structural engineer and an understanding helpful girlfriend who loves the water and sailing and share my insanity and help me and support this insane venture. Without them I would never make it. I would drop the idea and the adventure without these people sharing it. I am lucky. I was just about ready to cut her up and haul her to the dump but now I am begining to make actual progress

I LOVE my grampian G30.... That said she needs some work, i don't have soft spots on the deck but i have begun replacing passive vents with solar vents and found the core to be...eh emm... SOAKING WET... well this kinda pissed me off considering im a newbie... I had to use a rasp to open up the hole to fit my 4" vent into it and went through 3 rasps for just two holes.... Not a big deal but its a big deal considering id like to keep the vessel for a few more years...

My project list for spring commissioning consists of this...

1. rebed leaky portlights
2. somehow clean foggy/hazy portlights
3. replace the core near my hatch ( Soaking wet and leaky )
4. rewire bilge & mast
5. repack stuffing box

that pretty much sums up what i "Need to do"

any advice in tackling this to do list would be of great help. I was thinking of replacing the core with expanding spray foam, making sure to have a hole to vent pressure to avoid ruining the fiberglass. seemed to be a quick fix and would get the job done. i dont really wanna have to use balsa wood but let me know what you think is best....

Does anyone know what size flax i need for the stuffing box???? i have a Universal 25 3cylinder... im pretty sure the driveshaft is original though....

A rasp, typically a wood rasp, is not meant for hard materials like metal or fiberglass. A four-inch or adjustable hole saw could run $45 in the hardware store but it will make many more holes, much faster.

Avoiding the ever-present temptation to "make do" or "cheap out" usually makes the jobs go faster, and cheaper in the long run.

Spray foam generally doesn't have compressive strength, which your deck core needs. And if you've got some soaked core here and there? Drill some 1/4" holes in a checkerboard pattern every foot out from the soaked area--on the underside if you want to hide them, but don't mind dripping IN the boat. Otherwise, on deck, and you'll have to reseal them before it rains. Odds are that there's a much larger area that really needs repair. If you don't get it thoroughly dried and sealed, it will get worse. (Or hire pro to tap and meter, if you don't want to make holes and refill them.)