1977 GT Resurrection

« **on:** November 29, 2010, 03:01:23 PM »

1977 GT Resurrection
Let me introduce myself.
Way back in the dark ages, 1979, I was attending the local J.C. trying to figure out what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Some people might say that I never did figure that out. I caught Hot Boat fever and the only way I could afford to cure the fever was to build one. I stumbled across GT boats in Pacheco, CA and found my boating Mecca. They had a hull lying in the grass. The gel coat on the bubble had a brownish tinge and spider web surface cracks. Reluctantly, they sold the hull and a used tandem axel trailer to me for about a grand, or close to it. I was now the proud owner of an 18 ft, bubble deck, semi-v, river racer hull and a rusty trailer. Now what? I had been hanging out with some friends who were into v-drive drag racing. They of course gave me a bad time about even considering a bubble squirter instead of a real boat. Through them, I was given 3-4 BBC in various stages of failure. From those engines, I was able to build a 402 BBC. Through another friend I bought a new Berkeley 12JC-A-H pump directly from the factory which was 15 miles from home. I made my motor mounts and found a set of used Glen Wood water jacketed exhaust manifolds and OT pipes. I layed out to cut the holes in the hull to mount the Jet and chickened out. I just could not do it. I was able to get the guys at GT to mount the pump for me. I can’t remember how much they charged, but it was worth it. FYI, my layout was correct. I mounted a 40 gallon belly tank and started shopping around for some seats. About that time, another friend’s boat sank. I bought his seats, go peddle and some other parts he had. So after about a year has passed, we are ready to put this Rat Rod in the water. The boat topped out at 100 mph, in the driveway. The boat ran like a scalded dog in the water. It sure loved that UNOCAL premium leaded gas. I ran that boat in the Sacramento Delta and Lake Berryessa in Napa. I never did clock the boat; GPS wasn’t around for us citizens to use yet. Fast forward to 1989. I decided it was time to get the boat and trailer painted and freshen it up. I tore it down and got the hull off of the trailer. I had a buddy paint the trailer with black Imron. I was on a roll, the engine was opened up and looked great, new gaskets and ready to install. Then life changed. I fell in love and got married, bought a house that needed a full remodel, had a kid, moved across the country and the boat sat until now. We live on the other side of the country and decided to buy some property on the river. When you go to the river, you have got to have a boat. She said, you need to put your boat together so we can use it next summer.

Life is good for those who are patient.

So here we are, resurrecting a 1977 GT Hot Rod boat.

I registered on this site and have read a lot of your posts and am looking forward to sharing and learning how to best get this boat back in the water.

SAM in L.A., that’s Lower Alabama.

« **Reply #1 on:** November 29, 2010, 03:16:56 PM »

Welcome Sam
Would love to see some pics of the project and maybe some from the past.

« **Reply #2 on:** November 29, 2010, 03:56:46 PM »

cool story

welcome
ralph

« **Reply #3 on:** November 29, 2010, 04:17:20 PM »

Welcome. Don't forget to post pics of your project buildup.
T.J.

« **Reply #4 on:** November 29, 2010, 04:20:17 PM »

I don't have any digital images from the 80's. I'll have to find the box of pictures from that era.

This is what she looked like when I removed her from the time capsule.

A rear view before I removed the pump.

The starboard stringer was rotten.

I mean rotten!

I probed the port stringer and it looks OK, but I think I will go ahead and replace it while it is all apart. I found some nice dried spruce that I can use to replace the stringers.

Question, should I remove the bulkhead and replace the full length stringer or just the part from the transom to the bulkhead?

I can transfer the hole locations from the old stringers. Since I have never replaced a stringer before, let me know if I have the procedure correct?

1-Remove stringer and sand the adjoining area with 80 grit.

2-Transfer hole locations to new stringers. Seal stringers with resin.

3-Support boat hull in three places, the front and the transom where each stringer will be located.

4-Bed the bottom and ends of stringers to the hull using marine epoxy putty and fix in place with a couple of pieces of fiberglass. Allow putty to cure.

5-Fiberglass full length of stringer with woven roving to the hull. Three layers for strength. Saturate glass so it is clear, use roller to force out air bubbles and excess resin.

Am I on the right track?

« **Reply #5 on:** November 29, 2010, 08:46:09 PM »

Sam....

Badass first post...

Nice little boat you have there...

Cool name too...

GT

« **Reply #6 on:** November 29, 2010, 10:53:42 PM »

Welcome and good luck with the project. Glad to see you toughed it out and kept it. Too many of those "I wish I had never sold it" stories.

« **Reply #7 on:** November 29, 2010, 11:15:47 PM »

Quote from: 77GT on November 29, 2010, 04:20:17 PM

(Attachment Link)

A rear view before I removed the pump. That's not a JC.......That's a JB or a JG (split bowl)

(Attachment Link)

I probed the port stringer and it looks OK, but I think I will go ahead and replace it while it is all apart. I found some nice dried spruce that I can use to replace the stringers.

Question, should I remove the bulkhead and replace the full length stringer or just the part from the transom to the bulkhead?If'n it were me, I'd go to the ends, better end result and just a little more work...

I can transfer the hole locations from the old stringers. Since I have never replaced a stringer before, let me know if I have the procedure correct? IMHO, recalculate all the holes, do not just transfer what was there, you'll thank me later.

1-Remove stringer and sand the adjoining area with 80 grit.Or rougher...Make sure everything is flat or fuzzy and very very clean.

2-Transfer hole locations to new stringers. Seal stringers with resin. Don't just seal the wood with resin, they should be completely sanded and smooth/rounded before you get to the FBG resin

3-Support boat hull in three places, the front and the transom where each stringer will be located. Support at two areas at the corners of the transom and in the keel area where the hull starts to arch...

4-Bed the bottom and ends of stringers to the hull using marine epoxy putty and fix in place with a couple of pieces of fiberglass. Allow putty to cure.I'm not too sure about the putty, not a bad idea, just never done it that way..

5-Fiberglass full length of stringer with woven roving to the hull. Three layers for strength. Saturate glass so it is clear, use roller to force out air bubbles and excess resin.sounds heavy to me. A good schedule for layup IMHO is two layers of matt (easier to work with than roving) followed by one layer of finishing cloth...

Am I on the right track? Not trying to sound like a dick, just want you to be successful, sorry if I come off arrogant. $:-\$

I wish you great success with your project.

GT

« **Reply #8 on:** November 30, 2010, 04:50:03 AM »

GT,

I appreciate the comments.

That is why I posted, I want to get feedback from you guys so I don't make any major blunders.

Question-The bulkhead in the bow is glassed in so I can not see how far the stringers go past it. Do the stringers normaly extend throught the bulkhead or are they terminated at the bulkhead?

« **Reply #9 on:** November 30, 2010, 07:27:52 PM »

Quote from: 77GT on November 30, 2010, 04:50:03 AM

GT,

I appreciate the comments.

That is why I posted, I want to get feedback from you guys so I don't make any major blunders.

Question-The bulkhead in the bow is glassed in so I can not see how far the stringers go past it. Do the stringers normaly extend throught the bulkhead or are they terminated at the bulkhead?

The stringers almost always go past the bulkhead. I would say they always do but about the time I say that someone will show up with a boat that proves me wrong.

SJ

« **Reply #10 on:** November 30, 2010, 08:38:33 PM »

Quote from: SuperJet on November 30, 2010, 07:27:52 PM

The stringers almost always go past the bulkhead. I would say they always do but about the time I say that someone will show up with a boat that proves me wrong.

SJ

Not a bad assumption, they need to at least touch the bulk head....if you use a Sawzall around the glassed portion you can use the piece as a template.

GT

« **Reply #11 on:** December 01, 2010, 05:30:03 AM »

Thanks for the feedback.

When the temperature goes back up, currently 37*F, I'll cut a hole in the bulk head and see how far the stringers go past it.

« **Reply #12 on:** December 01, 2010, 05:33:13 AM »

Should I fill the bow with foam for floatation?

What other areas would be good for foam?

« **Reply #13 on:** December 01, 2010, 06:08:35 PM »

Quote from: 77GT on December 01, 2010, 05:33:13 AM

Should I fill the bow with foam for floatation?

What other areas would be good for foam?

That is up to you and how dry it stays up under the deck. I personally would not use the foam as it hold water and creates a mess.

« **Reply #14 on:** December 03, 2010, 07:45:07 PM »

Great Project Welcome to the crazyness , GTs were unique in many ways , great boats Should be a interesting resto Tom

« **Reply #15 on:** December 05, 2010, 01:12:42 PM »

Quote from: jet boat performance on December 03, 2010, 07:45:07 PM

Great Project Welcome to the crazyness , GTs were unique in many ways , great boats Should be a interesting resto Tom

Tom,

Please explain what is unique about the GT's. I really do not have much knowledge when it comes to these boats. My hope is to get this boat back in the water this Spring/Summer without dry rot and with a nice paint job.

SAM

« **Reply #16 on:** December 05, 2010, 02:03:40 PM »

Well the obvious would be the built in transom adaptor for the pump, it is much like the Sanger SuperJet in that the pump has to be removed from inside the boat instead of out the back.

« **Reply #17 on:** December 05, 2010, 08:30:31 PM »

Looking at the shot of the transom, it looks like the bottom has a unique design to it. Looks like the V changes angles right about where the stringers are, less V in the center. Dont think Ive seen that before, but I really never looked for it on other hulls. Just kinda jumped out at me in that shot.

« **Reply #18 on:** December 06, 2010, 04:35:53 PM »

Was thinking the same myself proppy...i was looking at the strakes too...it would be interesting to see how the boat handles and runs

« **Reply #19 on:** December 11, 2010, 07:44:31 PM »

Yesterday and today I was able to remove the second stringer from the hull and have started sanding with 36 grit on my DA. It sure is slow going. My compressor has a 25 gal tank and is not able to keep up with the DA or die grinder. I'm thinking about buying a smaller compressor and running it in parallel with my current one. I want to cut out the front bulkhead and set up the new one so it can be used for storage. It is supposed to get down in the 20's here, so progress will be slow. I want to have both stringers replaced this week. We'll see.

« **Reply #20 on:** December 14, 2010, 03:19:25 PM »

It warmed up today, 59 F just after lunch. I cut out the front bulkhead using a tool I picked up yesterday at Harbor Freight for $30.

I used a crescent shaped cutting blade to cut through the bulkhead. I sure wished I had this when I was cutting out the stringers.

Once the bulkhead was out of the way I found a big surprise. I forgot that I had filled the bow ahead of the bulkhead with styrofoam packing beads. My insurance company required floatation foam to be installed before they would issue a policy. The 2 part foams were very expensive back in the late 70's. The insurance company did not specify what kind of foam to use, so I bought a couple of huge bags of packing beads.

If I had hit anything and breached the bow, there would have been a million pieces of foam floating in the lake.

I spent 30 minutes trying to scoop these beads into a garbage bag. It is like trying to shovel marbles uphill.

Tomorrow I'll try and get the rest of them out. I have already filled 2, 55 gallon garbage bags.

« **Reply #21 on:** December 14, 2010, 05:44:25 PM »

Quote from: 77GT on December 14, 2010, 03:19:25 PM

It warmed up today, 59 F just after lunch. I cut out the front bulkhead using a tool I picked up yesterday at Harbor Freight for $30.

(Attachment Link)

I used a crescent shaped cutting blade to cut through the bulkhead. I sure wished I had this when I was cutting out the stringers.

Once the bulkhead was out of the way I found a big surprise. I forgot that I had filled the bow ahead of the bulkhead with styrofoam packing beads. My insurance company required floatation foam to be installed before they would issue a policy. The 2 part foams were very expensive back in the late 70's. The insurance company did not specify what kind of foam to use, so I bought a couple of huge bags of packing beads.

(Attachment Link)

If I had hit anything and breached the bow, there would have been a million pieces of foam floating in the lake.

(Attachment Link)

I spent 30 minutes trying to scoop these beads into a garbage bag. It is like trying to shovel marbles uphill.

Tomorrow I'll try and get the rest of them out. I have already filled 2, 55 gallon garbage bags.

i had those in my sanger and i ended up usinga garden hoe and the hose to get them out.... it was pretty entertaining

« **Reply #22 on:** December 18, 2010, 12:25:41 PM »

Finished grinding out the old gelcoat and puddles of resin on the inside bottom of the hull. There are a couple of areas where the glass did not have a good bond between layers, so I ground them out. I'll build thase areas back up with layers of glass and resin. I then need to get the hull off of the trailer and squared up. I plan on bedding the stringers in epoxy putty on the bottom and ends before glassing them in. The stringers will be cut to fit the steps in the hull, corners will be rouded over and fillets will be molded out of epoxy putty. Once the stringers are glassed, I will fair the surfaces and lay a layer of light weight cloth and wet it out for a clean smooth surface. I still need to sand the sides before I paint the interior.

I'm thinking about modifying the new bulk head so it has a couple of storage compartments with hatches. If I have room, perhapes they will be long enough to store water skies. I'm also thinking about having an anchor locker in the bow with a hatch on top of the deck. Not sure about it though, it depends on what kind of flush mount lid I can find and how much room there is. I'm also considering having an engine cover to help quite things down a bit. Lots of ideas, not enough time.

« **Reply #23 on:** December 24, 2010, 11:53:24 AM »

I found a couple of photos of my boat from the early 1980's.

This photo is after the boat was taken apart and I had openned and inspected the engine internals. The engine was wrapped in shrink wrap on the stand and still is sealed up since 1997 when we moved.

« **Reply #24 on:** January 05, 2011, 03:14:37 PM »

I actually have made some visible progress.

Today I fit the port stringer to the hull.

I will round over the edges before I seal it with epoxy.

Tomorrow, perhaps I will fit the starboard stringer.

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