Took chance on 22’ 1986 classic

1

1Wiley

New member
So about 6 weeks ago I bought a 22’ classic with 2013 etec 90 hp with 8 hours on it. After looking on here at all the info regarding balsa core, wetness, laminating etc. I got a bit concerned. I looked it over pretty good when I bought it and didn’t see anything concerning. Yet that core and horror stories had me concerned. I decided to get a professional surveyor to check it out...
it wasn’t cheap but I now have a Clean Bill Of Health forum the surveyor. She’s right and tight. And I got a great new (old) classic...
Whew!!! Glad I spent the dough for the expert now...
 
Just by way if interest did you watch what method he used to check for core rot? Did he use a meter or by tapping?

I wonder what is the best method as it’s time to go over my boat again

Thx

I want to stay on top of this kind of thing
 
The only balsa core in your 86 is in the transom, the cockpit and foreward deck are one inch +or - plywood. Balsa core in the cockpit and foreward deck began in 1987. My 1985 leaked thru the two cockpit drains. You can pull the brass tubes and check for water and do a proper seal,easy one hour job.
 
Bank ordered a surveyor for my 2005 22. He announced that he was going to use a hammer to check for rot or wet wood and then started to tap the SIDE of the boat all away around the hull. I took his hammer away from him and told him that there is not wood in the side and the only thing that was going to get tapped was him. I am sure there are good surverors but I have yet to meet one. The good thing is that after he was shown to be such a nit wit he valued the boat at the price I set.
 
C-Val: Don't know what your '81 bottom is cored with, but my '84 was definitely plywood - construction grade. Voids in the plys ranged from about a quarter inch to over two inches. I used my moisture meter to map out the water intrusion with grease pencil on the cockpit floor. When I pulled up the glass it also pulled up the first ply, revealing serious voids. The ply itself wasn't rotted, but it's all replaced with no-void plywood thoroughly soaked on all sides with epoxy before any further lamination. Most of the transom balsa core was a dark gray mush... As a cartographer I got a kick out of using a remote sensing tool to see inside, then revealing the reality. Kinda like ground-penetrating radar...
 
C-Val":v8r5xnjx said:
Are you saying the floor in the cockpit is plywood then on my 1981?
And an 1988 is Balsa?
Click to expand...

The boats up through 1986 had a flat outer hull and inner floor, and were made of encapsulated flat plywood sheets of about 1" thick wood plus glass plies above and below (inside/outside) to make a sandwich laminate.

The curved outer hull of the new 1987 design (curved fore to aft and curved side to side) required a curved balsa core, which is little balsa blocks connected with a scrim material which can be laid up in compound (non flat) curves, and saturated with resin and encapsulated with fiberglass above and below.

The outer fiberglass skin is first laid up in the hull mold, then the balsa core added, then the inner skin/floor added lastly.

There are also some plastic foam cores that can be used in this way, and some were later used in other applications on the C-Dory such as the transom and deck structures, but to my knowledge the outer hulls have always used balsa.

Hopes this helps you understand the differences and why....

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
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