82 Carver 3607 Aft Cabin - Stringer replacement

[kamakazerc]

HI. Well, my wife and I just bought a 1988 3607 in august of last year, love it of course, and in the time while we were shopping, i came across one that the broker said it had the same issues. so to determine on a negotiated price, i called Carver directly and asked about the stringer construction.we didnt buy that one only because the proper price could not be agreed apon.So I foundout that the only criticle area for the wood inside the fiberglass incapsulated stringers is the area that the power train is mounted to. that should be solid. all other areas through out the hull, plywood was used JUST for a mold. the plywood is not intended to carry any strength or load. the fiberglass chanel itself, carries the loads.So I agree that you should take it apon yourself to do a core sample test, but as I said the only area to be concerned about is engine area below the salon. if it was found that you needed repairs which actually I dought, it will be a lot less expensive than pulling the coplete interior out to do the whole length of the hull. yes pulling the engines, one at a time would be the way to do it. and you may only have one or two areas that need attention. So take your time to find the true condition before pulling the trigger on any repairs. And good luck with a quik sale once all is taken care of.

[Lovemyboat2]

Thank you Tom. Great input. Much appreciated.

[Viper]

Source of the post.... I foundout that the only criticle area for the wood inside the fiberglass incapsulated stringers is the area that the power train is mounted to. that should be solid. all other areas through out the hull, plywood was used JUST for a mold. the plywood is not intended to carry any strength or load. the fiberglass chanel itself, carries the loads......the only area to be concerned about is engine area below the salon......

Welcome to the forum
Here's what I know from my experience:
- Often what seems fine on paper is not how it performs in the field
- Boat production is all about being efficient and minimizing costs. If the core were simply for molding the fiberglass casing, why use more expensive marine ply rather than foam board which is cheaper and easier/faster to work with?
- While I agree structural integrity is critical for power plant supporting stringers, in my experience rotted stringers in other areas of the hull are just as bad. I've seen major failures of rotted stringers encapsulated in just a few layers of glass from simply blocking or being pounded by rough seas so I have a problem with them saying those other areas are of no concern. Sometimes what leads you to suspect core problems are the cracks that show up in the glass, it's a sign of instability. If that's the case, the glass isn't holding up on its own. I've also seen engine alignments next to impossible to maintain with poor stringers even when they're fine right under the engines but bad just fore and aft of them. No core is fine as long as the stringer system is designed that way such as Carver's Top Hat design, but that's a completely different build.

I'll have to call my guy at Carver and ask how they came up with that one, it can't be based on feedback from the field.

[kamakazerc]

To respond to Viper:..... this is not to put down any of your experiences, so I will say, please do call Carver to verify my statements. This particular info was only directed to the 3607. And I assume many other boats may fall in the category of your statements!. I guess from my aspect, my advice was to do his own research , call Carver to verify, and put all this together as to, "not get taken" for unnecessary repairs just to sell it. But I also would not want him to sell a boat with weak bones, to an unsuspecting buyer. I have also had a boat with bad stringers. And ended up selling it for parts because I didnt want someone to end up with a cluster f@#k. So the moral of the story is , Research, research, research !!!!!!!!

[km1125]

Wondering if the OP has any updates on this?

[Viper]

Yes, inquiring minds want to know!