F26 Trojan-Rotten Stringers

[diesel]

How big and difficult will be replacing sections of stringers on 1975 F26 Trojan.
There are bad section in the middle of cabin(floor rotten as well)and in the engine room,under the engine.
Is there easy access to do this repair.I have some experience with fiberglass and epoxies.
Anybody has done this on F26 ,please advice.
Maybe there are available F26 Trojan structural schematics or photos with stripped floors etc.

[Paul]

I've done this on my F-26. Its not that difficult however it is a big job. First thing is to determine whether you will need or replace the entire stringer or only a section of it. Then you'll have to clear a path for the job. If its the cabin and under the engine, then the engine & trans should come out as well as the cabin floor. I've seen people support the engine from an "A" frame and remove the exhaust manifold and motor mounts only to replace the stringer on one side. I can assure you that this is not he way to do it. This method makes the job much more difficult.

When I did mine, with the engine bay empty, I replaced an 8 foot section under the engine. A quick description of how this was done can be found in this post http://www.trojanboats.net/wforum/viewt ... f=1&t=7517. I also had a small section of stringer under the cabin floor that was soft. Instead of cutting this section out, I drilled a series of holes into it and injected it with slightly thickened epoxy. The wood however must be dry for this to work well.

I also eliminated the causes of the water soaked stringer. When this boat is at rest, water runs forward in the hull and unless the bilge pump is automatic water can get up to the wood in the stringer when the boat is left unattended. I added a bilge pump with a float switch. The previous owner of my boat also ran the engine for a long time with a cracked exhaust manifold which leaked directly onto the motor mount portions of the stringer and rotted the wood. I replaced the manifolds.

After reading the attached topic, if you decide to do this job I'm sure that you can get allot of guidance from this forum.

[diesel]

Thank you Paul for valuable information,once I start this project ,may have more questions.
I am in Turkey Point-Lake Erie.
Thank you.
Rob.

[32pacemaker]

also you can cut the top off the stringer fiberglass box section and lift out the rotten stringer cut a new one out of fir and epoxy it in and glass over the top thats the way I did mine in my f 26 it was the starboard outboard stringer