Riveted Boat Question

Heelo All, been quite awhile since I have been on here. Got out of fishing and sold my boats for a bit but getting back into it now. I stop by here often to read but rarely post but was hoping someone could answer this question for me.

I am looking at a 1995 Sylvan 16ft boat to build into a catfishing boat. I haven't seen the boat in person but the guy sent me some pictures.

In this picture it appears to be some type of sealant on the riveted rib that runs the length of the boat, now is this a factory thing or does it look like a shotty repair? My brother in law thinks its some type of foam gasket the manufacturer put behind that rib before riveting it and it is jusy cracking due to age.

Does anyone know if this is the case and does this look like a issue?

Its nice to see the community has grown so large over the years, nice boats everyone has made.

Thanks again

I would guess factory
Tim

The sides of the boat are bent to mate to the bottom of the boat, then the rivets are all done at that seam. It looks like it cracked at the bend.

As far as sealant goes, some tin boat makers put a strip of 3M vinyl foam tape between adjoining plates before riveting. While I see that, it does look like that hull sustained damage.

It could have hit right on the end and the pieces 'sprung' at that point, or maybe the hull was left w/ the drain plug in and it filled with water and froze? Whereas the surface turns to ice first, that could explain why perhaps a seam that far up the hull 'popped'. I wouldn't say the hull is a goner, but I'd sure take a real good hands-on look at it before commiting.

Hey, duh (to me ... , not you ...) - did you ask him about it???

Oh and WELCOME BACK :mrgreen: !

What does the owner say about it?

That looks original - it's very evenly applied both sides, the rivets are all original, it appears to be symmetrical on each side, there is no sign of impact scrapes on the hull in the are of the seam in question. I know my 12' v-hull sea nymph had something similar in its keel too that made it impossible to braze because the sealant would melt or burn.