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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 12:15 pm 
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Joined: Sun Aug 16, 2009 3:24 pm
Posts: 100
Location: Waverley,Nova Scotia,Canada
VERY IMPRESSIVE!!!

Regards....


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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 2:05 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
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Location: Rolla, Missouri
Ok. Back at it. Fill welded the other forward bungee hole.

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Welded two pieces together for the rear section in front of the seat. This will serve a couple purposes. It will once again make the floor water tight and also cover the rear threaded bungee holes.

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Bungee hole sanded.

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Rear piece sanded.

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Last edited by ckossuth on Fri Feb 22, 2013 12:05 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 5:13 pm 
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Location: Rolla, Missouri
A little more cutting. I had to cut a recess into the bungee wells for the new back piece to go (The bottom of the bungee wells will be removed later). This will allow it to equal the level of the existing floor and create a smooth transition.

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I used my heat gun to bend the piece into a 90 degree angle. Clamped it in place and hosed it down with cold water.

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The result.

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Spent a lot of time getting it just right.

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Ready for the back piece.

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Nice fit. Ready to be welded.

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Last edited by ckossuth on Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:53 am, edited 2 times in total.

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 6:30 pm 
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2005 6:29 pm
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Location: High Point, NC
Outstanding.


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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 9:26 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
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Location: Rolla, Missouri
The hard part is almost over. Here's the back piece tacked in.

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My "high tech welder".

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Welding finished.

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Sanded and smoothed. I used the adjustable low heat setting on my heat gun to rewarm the area after sanding. As the material heats up, any imperfections in the sanding glaze over and blend into the rest of the piece. This gives it a near factory finish.

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Thanks for all of the kind comments and encouragement. After I work around the scupper holes and fill weld them this should be a done deal!


Last edited by ckossuth on Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:59 am, edited 2 times in total.

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 9:35 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
Posts: 87
Location: Rolla, Missouri
The new hatch is supposed to arrive tomorrow (providing we don't get iced in over the next 24 hours). The Hobie hatch, with its two piece frame looks like it's built like a tank. This should only help tie in all four sides of the hole opening once it's gooped and screwed into place. If I feel the floor needs more support I'll modify it accordingly.

Once again, thanks for the support. I love being part of this community!

Carl


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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 7:44 am 
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Joined: Sat Feb 16, 2013 6:28 am
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Very impressive work.


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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 8:17 am 
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Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2012 12:58 pm
Posts: 197
If all of this works and holds up you need to look at going into business!!! That's some serious mod work and makes it look like ANYTHING is capable with a plastic welder and "a little bit" of skills!!

Looks fantastic so far and I can't wait to see the next installment. I'd love to have a flat floor in my 2012 PA14 but there's no way I would ever try this one personally!!


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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 6:29 pm 
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Joined: Sun Jan 20, 2013 12:11 pm
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Shimanoman wrote:
VERY IMPRESSIVE!!!


+100 - Great work


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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:35 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
Posts: 87
Location: Rolla, Missouri
Here comes the home stretch. The hatch arrived.

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Traced the cut out. The hatch is going to get into the scuppers a little. I'm not worried. I have a solid plan.

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These are the bottom of the rear bungee wells. Since the new hatch has a bottom flange these gotta go.

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The Dremel Multimax takes care of them nicely.

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The inside lip of the hatch sets 1" below the top of the floor. I've made cuts to the scuppers to allow for this.

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Last edited by ckossuth on Sun Feb 24, 2013 12:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:41 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
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Location: Rolla, Missouri
Remember these...

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They just found a new home.

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Tacked in.

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Welded.

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This part took some time. I filler welded both scuppers. This gave back some strength and gave the inside lip of the hatch a strong vertical spot to sit.

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I had to cut the bottom hatch flange into two seperate pieces. This could not be avoided due to the scuppers. After everything is gooped and through bolted with fender washers it will be very strong. Check out how beefy this part is built.

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Almost time!

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Last edited by ckossuth on Fri Feb 22, 2013 1:12 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:47 pm 
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Location: Rolla, Missouri
And there you go!

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Inside.

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Here's a good view of the inside lip sitting on top of the scupper. This thing is crazy solid!

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Bet you've never seen this model PA before...

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Here's my old foot pads. They came off clean and the adhesive was in real good shape. I put them on waxed freezer paper so they'll peel right off when I'm ready to put them back on.

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Last edited by ckossuth on Fri Feb 22, 2013 12:14 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 11:01 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:43 pm
Posts: 87
Location: Rolla, Missouri
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After recutting the pads. I cleaned the floor with alcohol. I used my heat gun to warm up the area. This really helps the adhesive re adhere.

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I cut a piece of the rubber workout mat into a rectangle and made cuts at all four corners so when you fold it up it's basically a flexible box. It's good size. It follows the inside path of the front 6 scuppers. I put this in the hold so it keeps everything in place. Right now I have 5 plano boxes and other misc. gear. It will hold more.

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I've got plenty of material left just in case I pull a Titanic and hit an iceberg! :lol:

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I've really enjoyed doing this project. I hope you guys enjoyed it too. The floor of my PA is stronger now than originally. It's gonna be great!

A little tip on welding plastic. I prefer this method but whatever method you choose, the weld MUST penetrate the entire thickness of the material in order to create a durable weld. You can make a weld look pretty on the surface, but if it doesn't go all the way through you can't achieve maximum strength. After you run a weld feel the underside. If it's smooth, you have not gone deep enough. You should feel some slight distortion where the plastic melted all the way through. Practice on scrap pieces (say a 5 gallon bucket) to get the feel for it. Then when you weld an area where you can't reach the backside you'll know it's good. Let your heat source do the work for you. Don't force it. Good Luck!

To everyone who said this was impossible, thanks for the challenge! :D

Carl


Last edited by ckossuth on Sun Feb 24, 2013 12:12 pm, edited 6 times in total.

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PostPosted: Fri Feb 22, 2013 12:28 am 
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Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2012 8:26 pm
Posts: 30
What an amazing project. You are very talented and creative. Thank you for sharing.


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PostPosted: Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:30 am 
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Joined: Sat Feb 16, 2013 6:28 am
Posts: 4
I can tell you we are going to be talking when I start doing mods. Need to learn a bit more about that plastic welding. Nice work sir.


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