Todays Boat Construction

chewiekw

New member
know most of the boats back in the day were wood, aluminum, and fiberglass. But how are today’s boat built? (MTI, Fountains, Mystics, Cigarettes, Skaters, Outerlimits, Platinum, etc)

Do they all use the same basic materials, what material do they use carbon fiber? I see that Platinum uses an Autoclave, how does this help?
 
know most of the boats back in the day were wood, aluminum, and fiberglass. But how are today’s boat built? (MTI, Fountains, Mystics, Cigarettes, Skaters, Outerlimits, Platinum, etc)

Do they all use the same basic materials, what material do they use carbon fiber? I see that Platinum uses an Autoclave, how does this help?


Some plastics (like epoxy) store Heat energy as Bonds Plus the Autoclave (Big Big Money) Pressures are much higher than can be obtained under a vacuum bag which is limited to the weight of the atmosphere @14.7 PSI at sea level.

The Autoclave meanwhile is capable of pressures 100’s of times greater than the simple bag can ever produce, Now with the Autoclave the elevated temperature (more bonds) along with the High pressure cure One can achieve the ultimate physicals of the laminate IE a tightly packed and low resin laminate is desired here.

Think of it as a Pressure oven or heated Vacuum chamber There are Also Hydroclaves which use liquid as the working fluid much safer Now for when they go only a end of the factory gets demolished insted of the city block
 
Kevlar is still widely used and now carbon fiber is being placed in key stress areas. There have been total carbon/epoxy boats constructed. They're very strong and they're light, but in an offshore boat that's not always a good thing. They're very stiff and when you toss light into the mix, that doesn't give you the best in rough-water handling charachteristics.

The issue with an autoclave-cured all-carbon boat is how do you repair it?
 
Kevlar is still widely used and now carbon fiber is being placed in key stress areas. There have been total carbon/epoxy boats constructed. They're very strong and they're light, but in an offshore boat that's not always a good thing. They're very stiff and when you toss light into the mix, that doesn't give you the best in rough-water handling charachteristics.

The issue with an autoclave-cured all-carbon boat is how do you repair it?

This allows you to put the weight where you want it.
 
Kevlar is still widely used and now carbon fiber is being placed in key stress areas. There have been total carbon/epoxy boats constructed. They're very strong and they're light, but in an offshore boat that's not always a good thing. They're very stiff and when you toss light into the mix, that doesn't give you the best in rough-water handling charachteristics.

The issue with an autoclave-cured all-carbon boat is how do you repair it?

Curing blanket and a simple bag talking small areas!
 
there a pics of it growing larger lap after lap then finally letting go, either a small impact or a spot started delaminating and then the water pressure got to it.
 
there a pics of it growing larger lap after lap then finally letting go, either a small impact or a spot started delaminating and then the water pressure got to it.

That is a big dollar operation and some smart people involved.They may have hit something to start the failure.
 
materials , Epoxy, core , kevlar, carbon fiber , S or E , glass and these materials are only used where needed along with vacume bagging and i agree with Steve , that a repair can be fixed either the old fashion way or with a splash and yes money is an amazing thing . I think years ago tencara was using a male mold but i could be wrong . I remember many years ago when working at Skater when we were in the transition of using epoxy from vinyl and having boats comeing back because the jell was peeling of the sides of the boat and then starting to throw cotton flock into a fan that went into the mold after the jell was sprayed so we could get the jell to adhere to the epoxy and then we discovered Poly Bond which could be sprayed .:):)
 
Not all boats are created equal !!! :sifone:

Take a crawl through this one:

http://sharkeyimages.zenfolio.com/p717714162/slideshow



p1024334956-4.jpg
 
I have to say that i have done repairs far worse then that , like the old CARLOS N CHARLIES X-TREME and JELLY BELLY GONE AGAIN , just to name a few ! :)
 
Sure I do !

But I just sold them ! :)

Stay tuned...... :sifone:
 
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