GmikeHall Posted June 18, 2022 Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 I picked this boat up before I even knew what it was. I exhausted google trying to figure out who would have possible made this hull back in 1979 and finally I looked at the Coast Guard plaque which clearly stated Berg Boats at the bottom. The HIN Started with SPB which I could not find a connection with these boats but apparently Lenny Berg may have had various builders make the hull for him during that time period? Now that I see that it is a Berg hull and not some knock off I am going to take the time to completely rebuild it. The floor is totally rotten but that makes it super easy to remove. The transom has serious delimitation but not as rotten as I would like to see as it sure makes it easy to remove the wood when it falls apart. The stringers seem solid but I have not investigated them too far yet so they may need rebuilding as well. I did however notice that the stringers and hull bottom have a lot of what I thought was Kevlar. Maybe it is just yellowed fiberglass as someone else had stated but I have never seen bright yellow fiberglass before. The boat was built very light, the hull bottom is thin and the top cap was cored with balsa so clearly the boat was built light weight. I am not sure if they would have used kevlar in a hull like this but it sure looks like kevlar to me. If it is kevlar that may prove to be a problem with doing repairs as am not all that sure how to go about sanding it and prepping it for new glass. I will be looking into the kevlar issue if this is even kevlar at all. On a different note with this hull. Being it needs a complete rebuild I was considering moving the transom back like the later Master angler hulls. It would involve moving the splash well back too but that is not a big deal being it would all be cut out for repairs anyhow. I figure there had to be a reason that the motor was moved back on the hulls and may explore making that modification while doing this rebuild. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 18, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 Picture does no justice but the fabric on the stringers and the tabbing or the stringers is bright yellow. Maybe its not kevlar maybe it is? There are some dry loose ends that I tried to cut with my pocket knife and it wouldn't even think about cutting it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoneyB Posted June 18, 2022 Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 I do not know anything about the use of Kevlar in the first berg boats but I would be very surprised to hear it was used that early on. Either way still a cool find and I’m sure you will enjoy the restored classic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 18, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 I was told to burn a section of the fabric to see what it does and the results kind of have me believing it is kevlar. Using only a lighter the fabric is consumed and turns to ash where as glass should stay in tact for the most part. Its not a big deal if this is kevlar or not but I do want to make sure whatever modifications I make are compatible with the kevlar and I need to see how to prep the surface for further laminations if added. Maybe this is just yellow fiberglass but sure looking like its kevlar to me.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted June 18, 2022 Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 3 hours ago, GmikeHall said: On a different note with this hull. Being it needs a complete rebuild I was considering moving the transom back like the later Master angler hulls. the boat has the sponsons - the two areas that are behind the splash well....the hull was designed so this would have floatation on the stern. I wouldn't do anything where the engine is located other than rebuild what it is there....the Berg's had wooden transom so it must be replaced...you'll need to install some thick knee brackets - L's to reinforce the transom and make some fiberglass as well. great project. dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 18, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2022 I think I am going to leave the sponsons alone and just rebuild it back exactly how it was other than just using more modern materials. I need to do some research on working with kevlar and how to prepare it for new lamination. the stringers are solid but they sound hollow so I may laminate foam core to both sides and encapsulate them to pretty much make a new stringer around the old ones. I would only do this because the hull is ultra straight with no dips or sags from lack of support so I do not want to cut them out. The hull itself is pretty thin and if you step on it between the stringers you can tell it flexes. I may go over the entire hull with one layer of 1708 and I am leaning towards just using epoxy for this whole build to make sure I get good adhesion. I got the fuel tank removed and believe it or not there were no holes from corrosion. This is the original tank made in 1978... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 19, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2022 I have the top cap almost ready to pull. There are some hidden fasteners in the rear hatch areas that I am going to have to figure out how to get it. There also seems to be some glass bonding the cap to the rear hatch section as well but it looks like only a single layer. I started chipping away the gelcoat putty that was used over the top of the transom, I am pleased to find that the transom wood is nicely rotted so it will make removing it so much easier. I am also considering extending rear middle hatches back to that parting line to eliminate that joint which on this hull was just filled with gelcoat putty or something. I do not think the simple mod to those hatches and the gutters will be much of an issue and will make more sense to me in how its all put together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted June 19, 2022 Report Share Posted June 19, 2022 15 hours ago, GmikeHall said: I got the fuel tank removed and believe it or not there were no holes from corrosion. This is the original tank made in 1978. I am sure if you pressure tested it you would find some....on my 1995...there were signs of pinholes forming. Great work.......how many gallons is it? Are you gong to make it larger? dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 19, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2022 It may have some pin holes but man I have seen some tanks that had big old holes in it. The foam around the tank was soaking wet so I an surprised it didnt have big holes all in it but didn't see a one. This is 32 gallons and I am going to look into possible moving the tank a touch forward and using a belly style tank to get it sitting lower or let the tank drop lower into the hull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted June 19, 2022 Report Share Posted June 19, 2022 On my my MA that had a 27... that was in the boat...I added 1 inch in width and 3 in length and we got close to 42-45 if I recall...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 19, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2022 It doesn't take much to gain a lot of fuel capacity. 1 CuFt is over 7 gallons so its adds up fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 I was up in the air on if this was a 1978 or 1979 and after using the rubbing a pencil on paper over the raised HIN I could more clearly see that the boat is actually a 1979. That kind of *** as I thought it was neat that the boat was built my birth year 1978 but its still neat that is so close. I also found NADA listed these hulls from 1978-1983 and only in 1983 was a kevlar hull listed as available so I wonder if this boat was a special build for someone or something because it sure is made out of kevlar. Not too much info on these hulls but I have noticed that the 1978 that was restored had a different stringer layout than this hull which I could see changes like that take place from each built to the next until they found what they were happy with. The bottom of this boat is rock solid other than behind the fuel tank where the bottom sure seems very thin and flexs a lot if you step on it. I am going to at a minimum add a layer of 1708 and possible add some foam strips to make ribs because that seems to me to be a high impact area that needs to be stronger than it seems to be. Although this is a 43 year old boat and I do not see any major cracks of any kind so maybe I am consider all this for no reason. At the moment I am trying to see how I can get to all the hidden fasteners that have been glassed over holding the top cap to the rear hatch area. There is just no good way to get in there to cut them so I may have to cut things up a little more than I like to get it apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TURN ME LOOSE Posted June 20, 2022 Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 As far as stringers; have you thought about cutting the tops off, digging out whatever is in there, sand/grind/whatever it's called, refill with foam, glass the tops? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 If the stringers prove to need work I have considered cutting the tops off but apparently kevlar is not the easiest stuff to be cutting on. I think worst case if needed I will just use foam core on both sides of the stringer and encapsulate them with glass which would make things stupid strong. The way the stringers are not they are very strong so I do not think I am going to run into any issues with them. I noticed that newer Maverick hulls had wide foam filled stringers which I may look into doing just for the heck of it. It wouldnt hurt to have some foam in the bottom of the hull to help with some floatation just in case anyhow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted June 20, 2022 Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 Did you find the rebuild pics? dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 Got some of the paint stripped off. I did some by sanding with a orbital sander which works fine but the bottom paint takes a while to sand through. Other areas I covered with Citristrip and plastic and let sit a few hours and I was able to pressure wash most of the paint off. I really need to flip the hull over and strip all the bottom paint to inspect for cracks or damage. I have uncovered some minor repairs to the keel and strakes up on the bow of the boat. I do not really see anything wrong with the repairs but I want to make sure they are do well and I can tidy up some of the work a bit making it look like it never was there. While I was stripping the sides I noticed some text which at first I thought was just Maverick but then I noticed it was not spelling Maverik and almost thought it was going to spell Mike which would be hilarious because I go by Mike. Anyhow the Text on the side of the hull below paint was Mikitu which I have no clue what would mean or stand for but that is what is on both sides of the hull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2022 I also am liking the contrast with dark on the bottom and light on the top and may go with something like offwhite top and dark navy blue or a dark blue bottom. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whichwaysup Posted June 21, 2022 Report Share Posted June 21, 2022 Man, I am already enjoying this journey! Keep the progress reports coming!! Two things to keep in mind with the dark blue bottom, off white top color scheme: 1) From a distance, it will look like it has bottom paint, which may ruin the effect 2) you are putting a dark color where there is the highest likelihood of scratches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2022 I had thought about the scratching issues, I owned a 1997 Back country Proguide 201 years ago that was solid blue and it did show scratches pretty bad. Good things scratches didnt slow that boat down nor did it detract to the awesomeness it still possessed. haha I should have never sold that boat but oh well. This Maverick may be something I hang onto or pass down to my son someday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2022 Going a little further back, here is how the boat sat when I went and bought it. You have to have an imagination to see the finished product when you go look at something like this. hahaha 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2022 I contacted a local dustless blasting company and they suggested they could blast the bottom of the hull and touch up everywhere I had missed else were for $300 or less. I think I am going to take that offer and run with it. The Citristrip works but it would take 3 applications to remove the bottom paint then I would still have to do a lot of heavy sanding because it does not all come off. I flipped the hull over which was fun by myself but I managed and then put it back on the trailer as it may stay upside down for a bit while I do some work on the bottom. There are some cracks on the rear half of the bottom where the hull flexes a lot due to very little support. I am going to fix that with some additional layers of glass on the bottom and some ribs or micro stringers or some bulkheads. Even though there are some cracks I have seen 10 year old high end hulls with far more cracks so that sure says something about how it was built. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GmikeHall Posted June 23, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2022 I have been looking into what all I am going to do to stiffen up this hull a bit in some areas. I actually was thinking of extending the center lift strakes all the way back to the transom to help add some stiffness and of course a little more lift to boot. I just noticed that the 1978 Berg Maverick that was restored already had the lift strakes going all the way back to the transom. I wonder why this was changed for this hull which is a 1979? Anyone want to share their input on this? The strakes themselves would have added a bit more strength of the flat area of the bottom of the hull which behind where the strakes end is very flexible and there are some hairline cracks along the stringers which I am going to have to address. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted June 23, 2022 Report Share Posted June 23, 2022 quick progress..... dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whichwaysup Posted June 23, 2022 Report Share Posted June 23, 2022 I would be curious what the hull was used for. Wasn’t it a racing hull originally? If so, may have had to do with performance related to those requirements. Alternatively, it the boat was used for flats fishing at the time, a flat bottom draws less water and gets over sand and oysters better. Performance under power would be less important, and I doubt that seeing the boat still in use 50yrs later was a high design priority. It is odd not to see the strakes all the way back, and I would imagine she will slide in tight turns without them. Taking wakes at high speed with the bow high is going to wake you up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoneyB Posted June 23, 2022 Report Share Posted June 23, 2022 I would venture a guess to say the lifting strokes did not run aft because it was assumed the boat would be on plane and not require lifting beyond the point that the strakes were carried aft. A lot of boats have a smooth running surface or “pad” in the stern. Bass boats and flats boats come to mind. Cool build for sure keep the picks coming. edit: not my project just something I saw a while back on the Internet 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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