SR4 Restoration

alexmcrobbie · 27 November 2011, 16:22

Hi guys,

Newbie to Ribnet so go easy... I've got a pretty mammoth winter project which is to completely restore my sailing club's 1989 Avon SR4. Years of being bashed about and dragged up and down a sandy beach have taken their toll on the old girl, the base of the transom around the flood hole has worn through, as has the leading edge of the hull at the bow. Apart from that the underside of the hull has many deep scratches (many through to glass). The plan is to completely restore the hull to an "as new" finish in time for its brand new engine getting fitted early march (Yam 30 EFI).

It's not all doom and gloom though. Since the RIB has lived in a garage all of its life and is always washed down after use the glass is all very solid and dry - no osmosis to be found on this old boat.

Anyways, I'll be posting loads of pictures of every stage of the restoration and hopefully getting some help from all you Searider experts out there.

Alex

alexmcrobbie · 27 November 2011, 16:31

Some photos to show the initial condition of the hull. Here's hoping I make it better rather than worse...

captnjack · 27 November 2011, 17:02

Honestly if the tubes are in decent shape and you don't mind sandpaper work that shouldn't be too bad. Be greatful you can flip her over and work on a basically level surface instead of sideways or upside down!

alexmcrobbie · 27 November 2011, 18:23

Cheers! Was also wondering if anyone knew the colour of gelcoat used on Avon's of this age (1989). It's a sort of light creamy beige, there seems to be plenty of info on the orange coloured SR's but not much on this type. If anyone thinks they could shed some light on this one it would be much appreciated,

Cheers, Alex

Mollers · 27 November 2011, 18:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexmcrobbie

Cheers! Was also wondering if anyone knew the colour of gelcoat used on Avon's of this age (1989). It's a sort of light creamy beige, there seems to be plenty of info on the orange coloured SR's but not much on this type. If anyone thinks they could shed some light on this one it would be much appreciated,

Cheers, Alex

Hi Alex, I wouldn't be too fussy over colour match. This boat is getting a mullering, I'd glass it up, fill, sand and roller apply cream flocoat. That way it's not the end of the World when it comes in looking the same next season.

Jizm · 28 November 2011, 08:56

Keep the pics coming.

captnjack · 28 November 2011, 15:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mollers

Hi Alex, I wouldn't be too fussy over colour match. This boat is getting a mullering, I'd glass it up, fill, sand and roller apply cream flocoat. That way it's not the end of the World when it comes in looking the same next season.

Agree you're never going to color match faded gel coat from eons ago. Just repaint the whole dealio after you're done patching.

PeterM · 28 November 2011, 15:32

Maybe fit a keel guard strip to stop it ending up the same?

Downhilldai · 28 November 2011, 20:54

The hull colour was known as 'Ivory'. Quite rare in a rescue version.

Good luck with the refurb.

whisper · 28 November 2011, 22:32

Hi, I found the right colour for my orange SR4, it turned out to be a llewellyn-ryland colour and looking at the chart they do have an ivory colour:

:: Llewellyn Ryland :: Bringing Colour to Life ::

If you want to see my SR4 restoration, have a look here:

http://www.rib.net/forum/f8/whisper-...ect-38078.html

alexmcrobbie · 29 November 2011, 13:19

Hi guys, I think I'm going to do it properly and go for the coloured gelcoat, (cheers for the link, it looks like the right colour to me

)

The keel guard was an idea that never occurred to me, but it sounds like a good idea, my friend's ribcraft has a hard rubber keel guard on it which looks better than the metal strips so I'm thinking that's the route I'll go down.

First job to tackle before I can get onto the good looking bits will be the gaping hole around the stern flood port, any ideas as to how to go about glassing this area up (I've not got particularly small hands so it could get tricky). Also, any thoughts on the holes on the keel at the bow? Should these just get packed up with resin and a sheet of glass to strengthen it?

Cheers, Alex

The first thing

ollyit · 29 November 2011, 15:09

best of luck , have a a look at mine for some inspiration!!! and yes, its light enough to flip over yourself, if its outside have some carpet ready to pretoect the tubes -

alexmcrobbie · 29 November 2011, 15:19

Thanks guys! Yeah the hull is very light, only took two of us to lift it up the stairs and into the clubhouse, (I've got an Avon Adventure 450 that we managed to move about with 3 people).

I hadn't realised just how many SR4 restoration blogs were on here, this forum has such a fantastic wealth of experience and info!

Alex

alexmcrobbie · 08 February 2012, 20:08

Finally, it's time to get repairing, boat is prepped and I bought a tonne of products today, lots of pictures to come over the next couple of weeks!