My first boat build 70's Mirrocraft 14'

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DiverJosh82

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Hi there,
My name is Josh. I have decided that it was time to make my first post. And what better way to start than in the projects section with my very first boat project!
I've lurked this site a bit since last October when my dad bought me my first boat. It's a 14 foot Mirrocraft that through the tin boats site I've narrowed it down to a 70's ish era deep fisherman. It came with a galvanized trailer that is in really good condition. Just needs to be rewired. The boat itself is in need of a hug. I decided to completely reno it and this weekend after it sat next to the shop since October I jumped into it.
I started by washing it out to get the gunk out. I then removed the seats which were in pretty bad shape. I was going to remove them anyways since I plan on changing the layout anyways. I also removed the rotten transom as well. Pretty much stripped the entire boat to start the sanding and prepping for paint phase. (I am going to leak test it this week).
How I got it back in October
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Sorry the pic isn't rotated correctly
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The transom that needs help
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The transom cap is split, seems to be a common problem
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Seats and transom wood removed, started scuffing interior
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Mild corrosion behind transom wood
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Another view after first day of demo and prep
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I'm going to post a few more in another post to break it up a bit. Don't know why the certain pics aren't oriented correctly. They're correct on my computer.
 
Here's a couple more with a few questions as well.
Any ideas how to fill/fix this? Previous owner had a thing to pull up lobster traps. Must have corroded it a bunch over the years.
I really don't want to have to have someone weld it. I know JB weld isn't recommended by some on here due to flex and all, but would it work in this location?
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So far this is how clean and scuffed I have it. Do I really need to go to bare aluminum? I've hit it with rough to medium sanding
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Here is a better pic of the corrosion on the gunwale
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I have a feeling this build is going to take a while so I will update it as soon and as often as I can. Any advice will be welcomed.
Thanks Josh
 

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You do have a lot of work ahead of you. If you email MirroCraft with your Hull number, they can narrow down the year and make for sure. They may even have a PDF of the Sales Brochure too.
 
FormerParatrooper said:
You do have a lot of work ahead of you. If you email MirroCraft with your Hull number, they can narrow down the year and make for sure. They may even have a PDF of the Sales Brochure too.

I emailed them tonight. Only problem is there is no number on the hull that I can find, and the placard that was on the boat's serial number appears to be possibly incomplete. It looks as though some of the serial number is stamped, and maybe some not? Or it was originally painted on and someone stamped it as it faded? I sent them a pic of it to see if they they can help.
And yes I sure do have a fair bit of work ahead of me lol. But unfortunately I do not have a motor yet for it so as I save up for one I will be working on it...

See how there looks like a 4 and then maybe another number before the stamped number?
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Here are some Mirrocraft Catalog pictures and a few of my 1968 14 footer. I am doing a restore and added pictures of the seat rework. Save the foam as it is likely in good shape and will save you some money. I would use JB Weld to repair rail damage(not JB Kwik).
 

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Al U Minium said:
Here are some Mirrocraft Catalog pictures and a few of my 1968 14 footer. I am doing a restore and added pictures of the seat rework. Save the foam as it is likely in good shape and will save you some money. I would use JB Weld to repair rail damage(not JB Kwik).

Thanks for the reply. Mirrocraft already emailed me back. Not 100% sure of the exact date due to serial number being somewhat incomplete but they said it is most likely a 70, 71 or 1972 model. As for the seat foam unfortunately it is in pretty poor shape. However I work in construction and I have access to a lot of foam scraps and my good friend is a spray foam guy so maybe that will come in handy. No work is getting done tonight as the girlfriend has the night off but I plan to get back at it tomorrow after work.
 
You should at least take it to a couple of welding shops and get some prices.
 
Josh - welcome aboard !!

how is your skill at fiberglass ??

In my world, If I had a metal issue such as the gunnel
that is split open, I would drill some holes on the under side
and shoot in high density spray foam the full length of the rail
and secure the holes to keep it all inside.........
then, fiberglass the cracks using the appropriate procedures.
The foam will give you the foundation you need in order to work the glass patch.
BUT - fiberglass is a stable product, aluminum will expand/contract with the temperatures
and will delaminate from the surface - making this a constant maintenance issue. (yes, I know this first-hand).
Option 2: if you are a woodworker, you could make some new gunnels out of white oak.
but, of course, the popular opinion would be to cut out the offending
areas and weld in a new patch and finish it out smooth.

your boat = your call



have fun - be safe !
 
DiverJosh82 said:
FormerParatrooper said:
You do have a lot of work ahead of you. If you email MirroCraft with your Hull number, they can narrow down the year and make for sure. They may even have a PDF of the Sales Brochure too.

I emailed them tonight. Only problem is there is no number on the hull that I can find, and the placard that was on the boat's serial number appears to be possibly incomplete. It looks as though some of the serial number is stamped, and maybe some not? Or it was originally painted on and someone stamped it as it faded? I sent them a pic of it to see if they they can help.
And yes I sure do have a fair bit of work ahead of me lol. But unfortunately I do not have a motor yet for it so as I save up for one I will be working on it...

See how there looks like a 4 and then maybe another number before the stamped number?

That is a bit hard to read, I found my number on the starboard side of my transom on a metal tag. I hear it is lucky for that still to be attached.

Did MirroCraft send you a catalog?
 
Yes Mirrocraft did send me a catalog. I decided to use those do it yourself aluminum brazing rods. It actually came out pretty good!
Work has been slow on the boat lately. I have been training hard for a Tough Mudder which was last Saturday, and then I got sick so it's been sitting by the wayside.. I did finish scuffing it up and then power washed it with tsp and after it dried I started to primer it. But there is where the problem lies. I cheated out and bought some product called XO Rust aluminum primer from the local hardware store. It's a primer made specifically for aluminum or galvanized metal. I started to put it on but man this stuff smells just like house paint.. I my mind something thats going to stick to aluminum should have a nice odor to it... I check the can and it says clean up with soap and water! I'm thinking I got waterborne stuff... So now do I need to try to pressure wash or sand or somehow remove what I've put on? **** it! I did also buy some XO Rust oil based enamel so I put some of that on the dried primer areas and some of the unprimered areas, which isn't bare aluminum. It's the original boat paint or whatever it is. It doesn't quite stick like I want it to. It actually does stick better on the on unprimered areas though. Now I'm not sure what to do. I'm not trying to make a brand new looking boat but I do want to paint it and not have it flake off in the next year... What do you guys think?
I stopped primering above the potential floor line..
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I do like the color!
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Also I did stop the primer application above the floor line so I could just leave it and do the visible areas differently. The transom area was done with rustoleums aluminum primer in a spray can and it stuck very well! I wish I had done the rest with that...
 
And I still don't now why the pictures aren't orientated correctly. They are correct on my computer and correct when I put them on Facebook. I even tried to rotate it into the "wrong" position just so they would be "right" when I post them here. Still doesn't work..
 
I'd contact the paint manufacturer and see if the paint is compatible with the primer.
 
lckstckn2smknbrls said:
I'd contact the paint manufacturer and see if the paint is compatible with the primer.

Good advice. I'm far from a professional painter. Generally, you want an oil-based primer for an oil-based paint and I think you might be stuck removing the water-based primer, but the manufacturer might have better news for you. I'm in the process of painting my boat now, and I used the RustOleum aluminum primer spray cans (note that RustOleum does make a water-based Aluminum Primer); thus far I'm very happy with the results.

Did you etch the surface before applying the primer? You can etch it with a 50% white vinegar and 50% water solution.
 
enginerd said:
lckstckn2smknbrls said:
I'd contact the paint manufacturer and see if the paint is compatible with the primer.

Good advice. I'm far from a professional painter. Generally, you want an oil-based primer for an oil-based paint and I think you might be stuck removing the water-based primer, but the manufacturer might have better news for you. I'm in the process of painting my boat now, and I used the RustOleum aluminum primer spray cans (note that RustOleum does make a water-based Aluminum Primer); thus far I'm very happy with the results.

Did you etch the surface before applying the primer? You can etch it with a 50% white vinegar and 50% water solution.

The two paints I bought are compatible with each other. However I do not know about the paint thats on the boat from the factory. Either way doesn't matter because I just looked at the primer from XO and it says to NOT paint over paint with it. Looks like I'm doing some stripping. At this point I'm just going to remove as much as I can from what is above the floor line and then just hit it with the rustoleum and go from there. The boat is a little to beat up to spend that much time on anyways. My luck she'll sink first time out anyways.

And does TSP count as an etch? I did that.. Keep in mind there isn't much bare aluminum. Most of the interior paint is intact and not peeling or flaking. The exterior paint is perfect, just needs a scuff and repaint.
 
Oh, if it's all painted you probably don't have to worry about the etch, but I believe that TSP will etch aluminum anyway, so you should be fine.

Sucks about the stripping, but at least you caught it now and not after painting the whole boat.
 
enginerd said:
Oh, if it's all painted you probably don't have to worry about the etch, but I believe that TSP will etch aluminum anyway, so you should be fine.

Sucks about the stripping, but at least you caught it now and not after painting the whole boat.
Yea, but also I'm glad that I only used the sucky primer on the floor and that will be covered. Apparently some guys don't even paint under the floor anyway so I think I'm not too far behind.. I may only strip the couple of areas that I spot tested the color on. I was really impressed with how well the rustoleum held up. I think I may try their topside paint and primer.
Thanks for the responses..
 
Ok..... So the inner "my dad in me" came out. Meaning he always does things the correct way. Well I decided to strip the paint down to the bare aluminum. My god what a chore that was! And I really only got the exterior done. Well actually I got the interior above the floor line done too. I'm still debating whether I should do the rest of it so that I can gluvit it. I probably should seeming how the only leak I have is very minor and I don't think it is coming from a rivet. Its from a spot on the keel? in the bow. Looks as though previous owner made one too many a beach landing on hard surfaces lol.. There is no visible hole from the interior but it comes in from where the two pieces of bow metal come and meet the rest of the boat. I had it in the pool a while back and in 10-15 mins it only had a few drops. There was a bit more than that when I had my pressure washer cleaning it yesterday. Me thinks doing 20+ on the water will introduce a lot. So I think I want to take care of it.

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So what do you guys think? Just suck it up and strip the rest of the hull (interior)?

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Thanks ahead for any responses!
 
Nice work getting down to bare aluminum; did you use chemical strippers or just mechanical removal?

That's a tough one. The inner perfectionist in me (I think we had similar fathers) would say strip it all down to bare aluminum and go from there. If you're going to Gluvit the seams, you probably want to strip it down to bare aluminum along all the seams anyway and that probably gets you about half way there. If I recall correctly, according to the directions on Gluvit you can apply it over a stable painted surface (e.g. not flaking off), but I wouldn't chance it. As my dad used to say, "put that down, it's expensive"...oh, no, I meant, "if you're going to do it, you might as well do it right in the first place."

On a side note, I have a trick to figure out if your painted surface is stable and can be painted over. You can just stick a piece of duck tape down, press it down really well, and then peel it up. If any paint comes up with it, then you need to strip it down, but if it comes up clean then more than likely the old paint is well enough bonded to the substrate that you can just overcoat it.
 
Thanks for the reply! I used a combination of chemical strippers and scraping/sanding and a pressure washer. It was not a fun time but I'm glad I did it. As far as the rest of the interior paint I probably will go at it this weekend. It's primer that I put on top of the original paint. I'm itching to start building but I don't even have a motor yet and probably wont be able to afford one until next summer so I've got plenty of time to do this correctly. I will also admit that the idea of polishing the exterior to a nice shine and waxing it or whatever is also starting to sound interesting...
 

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