Ugh Oh.....I better check mine next time down...

[96TL]

Ouch. :shock:

 

[hakr]

I believe the Parker hard-tops have balsa sandwiched between the fiberglass. My 2510 does. Soak any holes with epoxy before installing the hardware, and calk with 4200 or 4000 should suffice. Use 5200 if you never think you'll ever need to remove or re-bed, 4200 if you might, someday need to remove it, and 4000 if it needs to be maintained yearly (like the grease in the Horizon windlass). Because of the way the windlass is mounted on the deck between the cleats, the windlass needs to be removed from the deck in order to remove the side of the gearcase to check/replace the grease.

BTW, balsa is light weight compared to 3/4" plywood. Using plywood in the hard-top would make it very heavy, make the boat top-heavy, and add to roll. The lighter the hard-top is, the better. Balsa is the right wood to use up there. Now below the water line...that is a different story.

How about the forward decks and gunnels? Balsa?

I wouldn't use balsa anywhere. There are other light materials that add stiffness without rotting if they get wet.

 

[Anonymous]

I believe the Parker hard-tops have balsa sandwiched between the fiberglass. My 2510 does. Soak any holes with epoxy before installing the hardware, and calk with 4200 or 4000 should suffice. Use 5200 if you never think you'll ever need to remove or re-bed, 4200 if you might, someday need to remove it, and 4000 if it needs to be maintained yearly (like the grease in the Horizon windlass). Because of the way the windlass is mounted on the deck between the cleats, the windlass needs to be removed from the deck in order to remove the side of the gearcase to check/replace the grease.

BTW, balsa is light weight compared to 3/4" plywood. Using plywood in the hard-top would make it very heavy, make the boat top-heavy, and add to roll. The lighter the hard-top is, the better. Balsa is the right wood to use up there. Now below the water line...that is a different story.

personally,i use 3m 5200 all the time,i can be removed...balsa is a light weight wood,it's also very strong...composite cores are nice,they will not rott,however,when the core gets wet,it can and will delaminate...


How about the forward decks and gunnels? Balsa?

I wouldn't use balsa anywhere. There are other light materials that add stiffness without rotting if they get wet.

 

[96TL]

So what do I need to re-bed? The few things I can think of off the top of my head are:

- Roof rails
- Rocket Launchers
- Spreader lights (including wires)
- Anchor light
- Horn
- Bilge hatch
- Both inspection hatches
- Rod holders (gunnels)
- Misc transom screw holes above bilge
- Cleats (Can these be done?)
- Fuel fill fitting

Would just filling each screw hole with caulk suffice? Or do these all need to be epoxied first? I'd like to get started ASAP because now it's going to bother the heck out of me.

Thanks.

Dom

 

[jeffnick]

Like Jimmy's Marine Service, I too always use 5200. I'm not sure where the rumor started that 5200 is permanent...at least it hasn't been for me.

I had no problems removing the 5200 sealed motor mount bolts when the new outboard was put on.

I installed Bennet M80's and 2 weeks later had to pull them to replace the hinges with the new position indicator type. No problem removing the Phillips screws or the hinges; both sealed/bedded amply with 5200.

 

[grouperjim]

Jimmy's Marine Service: Thanks for the pics and heads up. You of course are 100% right that any cored matl will eventually rot if allowed to get wet, and that holes through such matl must be properly sealed. Somebody somewhere obviously did not completely seal one or more holes. It happens, no matter the brand of boat.

I also agree with the previous post that balsa as a core for the Parker roof is absolutely the right matl to use. The moral of this story is that holes, ANY hole ANYWHERE on a boat must be sealed properly.

My personal experience has been that the only things on both of my Parker boats that needed attention as far as 5200 goes is the screws in the bilge area that go into the transom. These are mostly the zip tie holders. Easy fix and everything else seemed to be caulked to my satisfaction. As a precaution though, I might just pull everything (that I did not install) off the roof, and recaulk anyway. Can't hurt.

jim

 

[Megabyte]

In my mind, it's hard to believe that a leak would cause a problem unless the whole boat was underwater for a spell. Is that fish I smell?

Anyone who has ever followed the online 'career' of Jawz would be smelling that same smell. :roll:
He is infamous for stirring the week-old chumbucket.

 

[Hugs Tug]

Kevin,
Touche great post!
Lets not start a war here.
Tom

 

[Anonymous]

In my mind, it's hard to believe that a leak would cause a problem unless the whole boat was underwater for a spell. Is that fish I smell?

Anyone who has ever followed the online 'career' of Jawz would be smelling that same smell. :roll:
He is infamous for stirring the week-old chumbucket.

interesting...it's like this,water will migrate into the core material,the balsa will soak up this water...end result is rotting,as well as delamination...

i don't "stir the pot" what i do is give examples of very poor workmanship...remember,i do this work every day-it's not a hobby... :wink:
use a little common sense here boys,the boat certainly wasn't sunk...anyone,and i mean anyone can and will make a mistake,i've lost count of the mistakes i've made...if you've read what i posted on that other site,the dealer has replaced a few hard tops,for the same reasons,this isn't an isolated incident...i brought this to everyone's attention to show a potential bad spot.it's a poor design to punch a hole thru the hard top and seal it with silicone...the vhf antenna lead was ran the same way...
the "give away" sign on this problem was the spider web effect in the area of the cabin hand rail...the glass skin was delaminated from the core...i removed the hand rail and the spot was ground out...water was present when the core was opened...i called the owner of this rig and i notified him of the problem...
voids in a hull's lay up,these are pretty common,i've seen them in plenty of hulls,this is the first parker i've seen with a problem..
for what it's worth,i believe the parkers are built real well...the bottom of this hull is in the area of 7/8" thick !! this thing is a tank !!! this rig slid down the parkway at 65mph,the damage wasn't really that bad...i had the bottom sand blasted,to remove the bottom paint for a closer inspection,the areas of damage were rebuilt...the sea water wash down pick up acted as a skid plate,it was ground down to less than half it's thickness,it was also shoved thru the bottom of the hull...i tell you truly,if this was a lesser made boat,a grady white or a proline,it wouldn't of been worth picking up-the boat would've probably disintegrated upon impact...
the parker boats in my opinion,are built real well...they're just not my style of boat...
side note,a company i use for sand blasting bottoms,one of the partners has the same boat as this,he has the same areas of gel cote cracking as this one has....the name of the company is "coastal blasting"...the gentleman's name is mike...i showed him this rig when he was at my shop blasting a few boats...


here's rig that was done up a while ago at my shop...it's a 1973 23 mako
it under went a full up restore,which include a fuel system,the transom,the entire deck,the console was rebuilt,the gunnels were recored,the boat was rewired and i made up a pulpit for it and instlled a windlass...i did up the electronics too...here's a link to the job...

http://www.sportfishermen.com/board/f27 ... 236-3.html

 

[gw204]

Jimmy is a good guy fellas. Please don't run him out of town like the guys on the Grady forum tried to do. We can learn a lot more from him than he can from us....

Welcome aboard Jimmy!

 

[Megabyte]

I will admit that Jimmys latest reply was certainly in line with our strict standards, and I am quite pleased with that.

Everyone is welcome here so long as they are civil. Anyone violating that rule will discover that membership here is a privilage, not a right.

Welcome aboard Jimmy. I'm looking forward to your participation.

 

[Porkchunker]

I'm still a skeptic. Any boat that slides down the highway at 65 mph and then later has a water intrusion problem in my mind does not point back to poor construction. You will have to demonstrate that this problem has existed on a boat that has not had this kind of trauma.

Dave

 

[Anonymous]

I'm still a skeptic. Any boat that slides down the highway at 65 mph and then later has a water intrusion problem in my mind does not point back to poor construction. You will have to demonstrate that this problem has existed on a boat that has not had this kind of trauma.

Dave

tell me how a boat that fell off a trailer (trailer was too small for the boat,same dealer sold it as a package deal-trailer was totaled in the acident,replaced with one with the proper weight capacity),slid on it's bottom,later has a an area of stress fractures on the hard top,where the hand rail mounts ??? tell me how the 2 are related ??

 

[grouperjim]

Undoubtedly the boat flexed when it collided with the roadway. Even areas (such as the roof) where there does not appear to be damage, can have the integrity of such structure compromised. From everything that I have seen, I honestly believe that was the case in this situation.

All you need is one thru bolted piece of hardware to be compromised, and the entire roof will wick water until saturated.

I believe the philosophy that a single occurrence is an "anomaly", when it happens twice it is a "coincidence", and when it happens more than twice it is a "problem." I don't think we have a "problem" yet.

jim