She rises from the ashes!!!!

[harnett]

Hi Folks,

A while back I suffered through a fire on my boat. Common sense would have dictated that I scrap the boat and find something new but after owning her for 20 years I just couldn't do it. Well, though I still have plenty of work to do this week marked a big milestone in her rebuild. I have all the structural pieces back together and in primer. I thought I'd share my before and current pictures. As you can see I took the rebuild as an opportunity to update the cockpit to what is my version of the mezzanine deck. I've done most of the work myself but did hire a local fiberglass guy to pitch in where I could use an extra hand. The unprimed hatch in the center is my engine room access. It will hinge up like the new models do. It was a big day for me to see her back all white again even if it is only primer. I don't post often but I read the site every day and wanted to say, you guys have been inspirational. Your enthusiasm has for these old boats have keep me moving forward when at time it seemed pointless.

Thanks,

Barry

 

[Avenger]

WOW that takes a lot of inspiration! Good luck with the rebuild and please keep sharing the pictures.

 

[rsmith]

I take it the fire was from the twist lock plug. I think a lot of us can say "there but for the sake of God go I" Looks great,the 53c IMHO was one of the best looking Hatt ever made. If you can do the work yourself and have a place to do it the costs are no where near what some of the jokers on here throw out.

 

[Jaxfishgyd]

Kinda makes me feel a lot better... Just replaced both 30amp cords with smartcords and both boat power inlets last week

 

[Cricket]

Harnett, that's an awsome job. With the addition of the mezzanine you will think you got a new boat. You will be amazed how much more people enjoy the boat out on the water and at the dock.

 

[34Hatt]

Barry she is looking great nice job nice layout!
Engine room access real nice was the bulkhead in the way?

Please do post more stuff like this will make it Much better of a site.

I also want to say to Cricket were the hell have you been hiding joined in 06 and just saw your boat now
Check out crickets gallery his cockpit of that old Hat is SWEET.

Both of you thanks and post up some more pictures

 

[Cricket]

Harnett, did you move your aft tank towards the stern or remove it completely? When we did our mezzanine I didn't want to mess with the aft tank so we didn't do the engine room cockpit access. Was almost tempted especially since we cut the deck out where the mezz sits to be able to have the storage boxes deeper, picked up like 4-5 extra inches.
Also, love your bridge ladder, wanted to do it that way and it was just to tight walking behind it so we landed it on the bench which I was trying to avoid.

34hatt, have very few digital pix of the boat. Will take some and throw them on here when I can.

 

[harnett]

Thank you for all the kind comments. I’ll try to describe what I did in a little more detail to answer some of the questions. The fire did come from the shore power connection. I addition to what you can see, half of the underside to the cockpit deck was burned and fire burnt through a small place in the engine room bulkhead. A little damage in the port rear corner and a mess from the smoke but not to much damage in the engine room and nothing really inside. I’ll post a few picture of the parts I made. I made the cockpit deck in two pieces. The deck and the step up piece the mezzanine seats sit on. The seats were also a separate piece. Since I had to make a new deck I was able to move the lazzerette hatches back. This allows the ladder to curve back far enough that I can walk behind it with no inference from the ladder. I did move the rear tank back for the engine room access. I also boxed in a small section in the salon that is now behind a cabinet. This allow me to cut out a 30”x 7’ tall section of the aft engine room bulkhead. So basically I climb down a ladder in the mezzanine, walk upright through the bulkhead before I have to bend down into the engine room.

 

[kwerges]

Truly inspirational. Once again confirms our emotional bond to these old girls...

 

[jim rosenthal]

Beautiful work!!! good for you that you did not give up on her. Is that deck made of Coosa board, I wonder? Did you do all that yourself?

 

[RT46]

WOW, more pictures please!!!!

 

[harnett]

Yes the deck is made from coosa board. I built a form to bend it over to get the crown. I molded all the hatch gutters. Then I broke the form down and took it to my fiberglass guy. I just didn't have a place inside big enough to mold the deck. We set the form up in his shop and fastened the coosa to it. Laid glass on each side then cut in my hatches and glassed them in. He faired and primed it. All the other parts I made and let my fiberglass guy fair and prime them before we put them on the boat. We put them all together on the boat and only had to glass and fair the seams. The deck and mezzanine was pretty easy. The big work was cutting out all the burnt stuff and getting back to clean glass. Man was that nasty. I was lucky in that the hull and house side didn't really burn through. They are so thick that a couple of layers were burned off but that still maintained the shape. I cleaned them up and laid up new layers of glass. The trickiest part I had to make was the gunnel cap. That was bear to do. I basically made a pattern from the other side. Shaped it in foam core and glassed it up. It's not perfect but I think once it's painted no one will notice but me. A ways to go but it's come a long ways to. I'll pull together some pictures of the various steps since some of you have ask for them.

 

[harnett]

More Pictures.

 

[harnett]

more pictures

 

[Tinker]

Absolutely inspirational. You have done a beautiful job. To return from helping my cousin jim build a 8v92 in Fort Pierce for his dad and see this as the first post i read really helps. To see somebody else bring the old girl back after that kind of damage is truly inspirational for me. I too am bringing one back that had the shore power cord catch fire and fully understand where you were and the amazing ammount of work you have put in. you are a bad ass. Ps. did you have any interior damage. Smoke etc.

 

[Man Hatt'n']

X 2!!! Great work Barry and thanks for posting! Very cool thread! Do you have any prior experience working with fiberglass? Howard in beautiful west Michigan

 

[harnett]

You guys are very kind. You're going to make my head swell. I didn't really have any interior damage to amount to anything. Smoked up the engine room and some damage there. Damaged wasn't to bad but I hadn't been long completed cleaning and painting bright white of the entire engine room. The smoke turned it all dull yellow. That really sucked because you all know how much work it take to really detail an engine room. I wouldn't say I had a ton of fiberglass experience. I have own the boat for 20 years and prior to having her painted a few years back I had done some glass work. Self taught but I did a few projects such as glassing in the port lights, repaired some rotted core, installed Slane air boxes, built a new console. built a transom fishbox, built cockpit cabinets, and modified the flybridge. Well now that I look at the list I guess I have learned a few things about fiberglass over the years working on this boat Trial by fire as they say. It doesn't take but one time getting estimates from boat yards on custom fiberglass work and you will decide quick that you had better learn to do it yourself or pick a new hobby.

 

[michaelI]

Barry, I am very proud of you and the work that you have done on my dad's boat. I wrote to you about twelve years ago. My father was the original owner of hull #338.I am so glad that the boat is in such capable hands, and has been loved so well since it's been yours.

Mike Innerfield
West Nyack, N.Y.