Hi all,
I acquired an old SIB Achilles 14' this summer and I knew the floor would be a challenge. The two sections that form the bow are hideously warped while the plywood on the rest of the 3 sections is beyond hope (to sand them smooth would probably require removing several layers of ply.
I plan on replacing the plywood with a 6mm composite (read waterproof board) while thinner than the plywood by approx. 3mm this stuff is amazingly strong with a beautiful faux wood grain finish on both sides. I cut a 2" strip x 30" strip off and deflected it almost 140 degrees before it broke.
While I'm confident it will work, I have one glaring issue, the removal of the surrounding aluminum extrusions on the plywood sections. (These are the extrusions used to interlock the panels as well as seating the stiffening stringers).
It looks like the plywood sections were 'press fit into the extrusions with no visible means of mechanical attachment. Is there a way of removing the extrusion without damaging the aluminum but also keep the plywood somewhat intact to use as templates.
I also intend to fill the gaps caused by using the thinner 6mm composite board when reattaching the extrusions with aluminum shim strips.
Hoping someone has gone through this process before, your help is most appreciated, in advance
Thanks 909, I decided to repair the plywood sections with system 3 and replace only the bow sections with the composite board. I simply pried off the aluminum tongue and groove sections with prybars and chisels.
