How to repair a rusty steel boat

[@lpd1snipe]

Stu, as a retired marine Engineer, I thought it was a great layout and presentation of all the different ways of solving the various repair problems on your vessel.

[@lpd1snipe]

@@craigkaschan4822 Well, I am not sure what your professor means by too many zincs on a vessel? You need them on the hull, you need them in all your heat exchangers, anytime you are dealing with a saltwater cooling medium. When they get to 50% or less you change them out, as without them electrolysis will definitely attack and destroy your metal over time.

[@lpd1snipe]

@@craigkaschan4822 if you want a little more definitive explanation, see if you can find Boat Owners Illustrated Handbook of Wiring by Charlie Wing. It came out about 25 years ago or so and it has pretty good simple examples of cathodic protection and discussions of corrosion in it. This may help you in your studies.

[@petercarlson9463]

Stu has a video on checking Renko for enough zincs to counter galvanic reaction. Also e xplained the effects of too little or too much zinc

[@randomuser778]

"A spray can of 'Deck-Be-Gone'" and the "Heineken Uncertainty Principle" jokes cracked me up. I really enjoy your sense of humour!

[@amascia8327]

Heisenberg would drink to that, I'm sure.

[@seanwalsh999]

Holy crap, this looks like a scene out of Mad Max, you Ausies is some tough hombres.

[@timothyobrien1850]

I do own a steel sail boat. This video has been a god send. Thank you. So my take away is to fill the boat with good American craft beer, put the boat in a container cradle and ship it down to your place as a prudent first step.

[@jonathanrabbitt]

Is the craft beer what you drink while you watch someone else do the work?

[@grasshopperhawk]

Deck-Be-Gone! Annoying deck getting in your way by supporting your weight? Feel like just standing in your bilge? No worries, mate! Get that critical, structural, supportive material the hull out of there with new and improved Deck-Be-Gone! No deck too big; no deck to small; always just the right size deck! Don't be a deck! Get Deck-Be-Gone, today! Great video, Stu--thanks.

[@littlehedchog123]

The safety bare feet always gets me with metal shards all around 😉

[@jarnosaarinen4583]

Good to see Stu's new work boots? Are still in the box at home!

[@ThePaulv12]

Stu I really enjoyed this episode. Of course I look forward to all of them but this was particularly good. Re T-Rex waterproof tape, I have to say I bought a roll based on your findings and I have found a limitation. It won't stick at all when it's cold say less than 5deg C, and the surface you're sticking it to is cold and there's high humidity - even when the surface is prepped with isopropyl alcohol and wiped with a clean cloth. It just doesn't adhere at all - not even a bit. It's like the adhesive surface of the tape is inert. Of course it stays attached in cold weather if applied in warmer weather but my roll (bought from wesfarmer's whorehouse) is as described. Considering where I bought it from I can't imagine it being counterfeit or old. Apart from that it is pretty good I suppose but I am hard to impress. I was disappointed that it failed when I needed it most and that's the impression that 'sticks' (pardon the pun).

[@robertshelton3796]

The badges between the segments is a good addition, keep it up

[@experienceoutdoors6279]

When you dog and wedge, put the wedge so it cross both sheet that way it will always level the sheets

[@marktanska6331]

I like the safety boots you are wearing

[@reddpanda7343]

I'll have to give that bare-foot welding a go and the kneeling in the rust chips with no trousers. looks like great fun.

[@jonathanrabbitt]

Barefoot is the only way to avoid slag dripping into your boots.

[@ruby055]

Great Advice Stu...I had a steel boat in the late 90s, it had been neglected, I too replaced steel where needed, then sand blasted then primed and then epoxy coated as directed and painted. It was a 18 mo out of water rehab. However, I then meticulously kept after it for the next 20 years each season in cycles that then required only minimal wire brushing primer and epoxy paint until I sold her in 2018.The main thing for me was bringing the entire boat to a stage of stability with regard to steel chasing after it peacemeal for the 1st 5 years I owned her was a frivolous affair..in the end I bit the bullet and spent the time and Benjamins to get the entire hull and deck to restored condition and was upon completion as good as and perhaps better than new...cheers from Boston

[@jeremykamel9655]

Re welding fuel tanks. I used to weld on aluminum diesel tanks all the time. Get the tank as full as possible then run some argon into it for a while to remove the oxygen. Then go for it.

[@fonhollohan2908]

Here's a tip for you, Stu next time you need to align two sheets of steel. Instead of using weight or a wedge lets say for a 1/8 or less misalignment of the plates that need to be tacked, just tack it while its misaligned and hit the tack with a hammer, good and hard, as it cools down. What will happen is after you hit it with a hammer it will cool in time to align both sheets to were you desire it to align. Its a trick of the trade as a welder fitter and it saves you massive amounts of time, instead of resorting to using a dog all the time to align plates of steel. btw Stu you did a good job for a man that is not a welder fitter by trade, on that deck repair. I've been watching your videos for some time and I've noticed your welding skills have improved quite a bit. That deck is looking good. cheers bro..

[@peterg219]

I don't own a steel boat or a welder. Regardless, I like to watch, tinker & empathize. Right now, I'd settle for a beer here, so cheers & thanks Stu.

[@peternewnes1847]

I love it cutting, grinding,welding NO foot ware .

[@2secondslater]

Shortcut for doing a patch, make your patch bigger than needed, tack it over the work area and then cut through both the patch and the work area at the same time, it makes a patch that fits the hole perfectly every time.

[@JasonMcCourt118]

Hey Stu, excellent, informative video, really good. Please for the love of safety wear some foot protection… seriously, yesterday I was using the same AEG 125mm grinder, it grabbed the surface and it slipped out of my hand and chased me around like the D Squad looking for food, hit me on the ankle almost cut me to the bone, not a pleasant experience and that’s with shoes on. Get some 🥾🥾 mate. Or tell me what size and type and I’ll send you a pair. Stay safe

[@alfredsamperi9776]

Dog and Wedge. Good name for a pub!

[@bradlusk4531]

Oh we need to buy you some shoes while welding, grinding, plasma cutting!!! Best video yet….. amazingly informative and thorough

[@philbox4566]

Meh, shoes are over rated. This is tropical Queensland after all.

[@sabrinataw5806]

For goodness sake wear boots while welding plus gloves plus cover up all exposed skin, welcome to UV and the skin cancer ward. But boots seriously

[@amossnowdaharleyman9179]

I've got an assortment of welders: 30+ year old Lincoln AC/DC cracker box,miller gas driven stick, electric input miller MIG,and a military surplus electric input Lincoln that has more features than I can figure out. Go to is always a stick machine.Old and shaky now (and half blind it seems) but when I weld steel it stays stuck together.Firm believer in cutting out rusty crusty steel and replacing with new.And, finally bought a miller plasma cutter a couple of years ago.Oh My God! Love that thing!

[@COYOTE5053]

Great video Stu, you are one hard working bloke, looking forward to seeing you back on the water 👍

[@hoverhead047]

Have to say how impressed I was to know the family jewels were in such close proximity to an unguarded grinding disk. Such bravery.

[@michaelsimpson9779]

Brand new spray tip of "deck be gone". Imagine this, Imagine that. You're a legend. Keep on keeping on and don't get to stressed. Your health is far more important than a deadline. Also, quite cheaply, you can purchase a 300mm blower and hose from the big green box and have some positive ventilation into the hull. Makes life much more pleasant.... An absolute godsend in summer when refinishing inside a timber hull, I can tell you.

[@OldSkoolF]

Needle Scaler is one of my favorite tools... It's so satisfying to see the scale fall off

[@glbaker5595]

Yes, lots of other folks out there redoing boats, but none doing it barefooted,, ha,, thxs for the smiles and info,,

[@mdwdirect]

I learn more about welding from Stu than I do from welding channels.

[@IrenESorius]

"The Heinecken unsertenity principle,, 👍‍‍😅👍‍‍!!! Cheers Stu,, 🍻😎👍‍‍!

[@jaquigreenlees]

I think the biggest advantage stick welding has for on a boat, space used. You can buy stick welding units ( or even use a battery direct with jumper cables ) that are fairly small and easy to store. A MIG or TIG setup needs a fairly large tank of Inert Gas you have to find space to store. With space being a premium on any boat, the less needed to store the welding supplies the better. Mig and Tig do tend to give cleaner welds, no inclusions of slag which you can often get with stick. KZbin channel Sailing Britaly has a video where Brian uses one of the starter batteries for the sailing yacht and jumper cables to do a temporary patch type weld, really just to show the technique. This means you only need to store the sticks and a set of jumper cables to have emergency patch welding.

[@dondraper2488]

Dangler Stu still putting the work in....

[@andrewanderson5297]

Heineken Uncertainty Principle - Love it! I think I may have to use that one myself. Your Safety Shoes look quite lifelike.

[@jimlong527]

Better & Better each day. Looking good , take time out for a cold one. A big hello from the Florida Gulf (Rotonda West)

[@deweylee2449]

Stu I just can't get over how your able to weld and cut like you do in shorts.

[@Seahorn_]

If the Heineken uncertanty principle starts to play havoc on you, you must use the Grolsch compensator for adjustment. (Heineken is the bad stuff which we export so that we dont have to drink it)

[@randycollins9698]

Ah! A good ol' Grolsh ! Thank you for bringing back some good memories !

[@KitLaughlin]

So obvious now you mention it!

[@jonathanrabbitt]

Do we swap our Foster's for your Heineken, or is there some triangular trade happening?

[@darrensimpson6555]

Oh Stu, will you please go buy a nice comfy cheap pair of runners for the videos of you with the 9" and welding ?? My young bloke is abhored ! We don't wear shoes either unless we have too... I'm still picking concrete out of my toes from last weekends concrete step pour. Long live the Coopers uncertainty principal..... Top job dude !!

[@calvarybuilders5689]

Every video I've seen, I've always wanted you to paint that boat, now you're not only painting it, but you're getting it done right!!!! can't wait to see her shine 👍

[@peternicholsonu6090]

Built my first caravan from floor up. Curved 10 sheets 1.5mm aluminium to closely replicate Airstream Basecamp. Got a ding dead centre of roof 600mm from front! Any repair to a mirror polish on the vans “forehead” would show glaringly. Went down the road and purchased one of those small shark fin aerials and glued it on!

[@stephencroft761]

Dude! I love that you’re working bare footed. I’m a safety sally at work but at home all bets are off. Great channel I’m so jealous of y’all’s “winter.”

[@bigfilsing]

Hope there's an A&E dept close by . Metal working barefoot is just asking for trouble

[@jeremykamel9655]

@@bigfilsing what is “A&E” I’m guessing a hospital emergency department but I’m curious what the acronym is actually?

[@bigfilsing]

@@jeremykamel9655 Accident & Emergency

[@mb97355]

I worked on a floating dry dock in the navy. Submarines are so densely packed with equipment and machinery that the only way to get at it was cut a plate out of the hull, do the repair and weld it back up. Grind, sandblast and repaint, just like you showed. Of course lots of testing of welds, certified welders, lots of check boxes and signatures.

[@johnmonkey1874]

Man, how you do any of that without knee pads and foot wear is beyond me. My 50-year-old ass is envious to be honest. These days I almost have to use pads to clean a bathroom shower.

[@experienceoutdoors6279]

I'm only 28 and I boggles my mind!

[@nytrocircus]

Knee pads or shoes for that matter. I'd have lost multiple toes by know. And why is Damion welding while wearing a pink button down shirt? Are they working or working? Can't tell.

[@JamesJ7851]

I agree. I see these video with Stu, working right away in rust and steel, and NO SHOES! He must have feet of steel.

[@MiniLuv-1984]

Yep, and what about the shit he is breathing below deck...the needle gun, the welding...next it will be epoxy undercoat (I expect the will wear breathing gear for that 🤞 at least). None the less, great info and entertaining to watch.

[@meatloaf666999]

Shout out to welding tips and tricks! Love that guy! His videos helped me a TON when I was getting started welding! Absolute legend!

[@dennisflemming826]

Small observation , based on sound and slag , stick weld good ! Chinese rod’s suck ! Start weld on one plate move to joint, finish weld on other plate . If you start and finish on the seem you will get porosity ( burnt boiled weld ) if you use Chinese rods porosity is always present, take a look with a strong lens . Cheers buddy

[@stephencroft761]

27:29 “let’s finish these ribs off.” Here in the Deep South in the states that phrase means something completely different mate. Looking good.

[@wallyfirkins1664]

WOW! You are a wealth of knowledge Stu. I don't own a steel boat or any boat for that matter but I love your videos and live vicariously through them. Your sense of humor is marvelous. Thanks Stu.

[@mikedudley3053]

Like the Safety Welding boots! !

[@michaelekberg2661]

Hi Stu, Love your video as Always. Fun to see your neighbour to port Side is swedish, the boat name means "Summer Breeze" in Swedish. Thank you for a good moment in the last hours of my summer vacation, now rushing towards winter. 😭

[@MrSnmpsniffer]

Man.. A literal wealth of information this is. I have watched it a coupe time and want to let you know how much I appreciate you putting the effort into creating this content. Thank you sir!!

[@heinstrydom864]

Done well original and real world work very satisfying without artificial content the real thing. Thanks

[@0YouCanCallMeAl0]

Love the "BAD SIDE" note on the grinder, I'll borrow that :)

[@Ratty_Rex]

Great welding advice for anything..... cars included I feel.

[@ChrisSchroth]

The cutting out principle is great for fibreglass boats, too. I was way too careful and wanted to preserve as much as possible when I first started restoring it, now I know that it takes way longer that way and have changed my approach, too. Thank you, Stu, great video.

[@MCP53]

Hi Stu, In the steel narrowboat world there is a lot of debate on overplating, simple welding a new plate over an iffy area, but my vessel was given an entirely new bottom plate before I bought her. Being flat-bottomed, you just order the plate, lift out the boat and lower her down onto the new plate, weld all the way round and Bob's your uncle ;-) My boat is literally a ton heavier, and I just don't think about what's between the two bottoms. To date, my bilge is bone dry - I'm happy with that.

[@mitchellstadnik752]

One of your best ,great info as a welder who in my younger day was a fire watch in the pearl harbor shipyard as a young sailor on a submarine your spot on

[@ervinbeci728]

We hope to see more video of you with so much job ..thank you for your episods..

[@StonyRC]

Your self-discipline and work schedule are awe-inspiring. Bloody good work Mate.

[@janjaapklomp1364]

I am amazed by your use of safety gear…..

[@robdeaton9910]

haha I love the Heineken principle quote that made me roar love your vid and have been a fan for some time keep up the great work.

[@jossmaxwell00]

Great tutorial video Stu. It will all be worth while when is all done and painted,

[@rhodysweet]

Super interesting and informative Stu, thanks very much for sharing! Dave in RI (USA)

[@stevemarr9295]

Loving Stu's PPE!

[@daleskidmore1685]

Great stuff Stu. All the ways and tips were easy to understand and made perfect sense. I also know now why the welders kept chucking my pasties away......

[@topcabdriver50]

It's a new boat,lol my feet are hurting watching you working bare foot, I noticed a Queensland tan cheers

[@garyjowsey155]

Im a welder and i find wrap the welder cable round your forearm once and you control the welding better.i hope your going to get rid of the surface rust before painting.good vid.

[@earthwizz]

Excellent to see proper Occupational Cakes and Pastry approved safety feet being used. Some boat makers/repairers use strips of ply and hot glue to make perimeter templates. As they say, whatever floats your boat. Good stuff Stu.

[@desolatemetro]

That rust converter is different than some phosphoric acid based stuff I use. It actually looks easier to work with. I don't envy this job, I'm battling rust on the frame of my truck and it's a dirty, difficult, tiring, hot job. Good job! You might try a red scotch Brite bad for the angle grinder. I had one sitting around I never used...finally tried it and it is really really good. Got some sandblasting set up at home which is the best thing ever. Need to learn to weld next. Great video. Very helpful!

[@glennfryer1539]

Loved the video.. reminds me of repainting my tug back in the nineties.. cut, grind, needle and weld .. took months..

[@sindrome303]

100% with you on the stick welding Finally a video explaining dogs and Wedges. The amount of times i have shaken my head at Damo, welding plates in without them has been a nightmare to watch. also would like to note that when joining Mild steel to Stainless You should use a stainless electrode, For the best results. Damion should watch this video and practice with the stick welder. If he did this his mig skills would improve for sure. LOL Stick offers you FAR more options, in most weather situations. Migs are good for indoor workshops lol.

[@joecucch8261]

LOL !!! Some ending...Thanks I have been waiting a long time to see how you replace those rotted deck plates.

[@chadwoody3719]

Love the proper ppe the steel toe toes lol. As far as welding process what ever your most comfortable with, I've worked with pro welders that say migging will work your butt off and others that say stick will work your butt off. Great video keep the great content coming.

[@symoonflow7634]

Great vid. Great ideas and info. Just need a mast. I think we will go to Bundy for our next big welding/grinding project.

[@cornrichard]

One of your best videos. Thanks.

[@charlie6751]

Stu I hope you got that boat for free it's a hell of a lot of hard work to maintain, poor bugger you never stop grafting

[@richardmorley7439]

Your taking our boat apart lol doing will mate I'm excited how our boat will turn out love nz

[@randynovick7972]

How wonderful! This was the large-scale kind of smashing progress I was looking forward to for all those weeks you were motoring up there! Thanks!

[@rolanddunk5054]

Hi Stu, great tutorial thanks a lot.Roly 🇬🇧

[@drewd1726]

Absolutely awesome and informative video. A+ my friend. Waving from Oregon.

[@kristianvarberg]

Cool to find others on youtube doing this type of project, Just started my own youtube boat project :D

[@dongill8769]

Yep, dogs, wedges, hair pins, and steel half clamps work wonders. I have deck work to do on my old steel boat next spring, can't beat a steel boat!

[@easemailboxes]

Such a gold mine of info (especially the tip for welding in shorts and bare feet :D ). Thanks for everything.

[@simong9657]

Thanks heaps Stu. Fantastic well thought out informative video. 10/10.

[@sabrekai8706]

Sabre Dance thanks you. Had to replace a 6 foot by 6 inch strip along one chine but otherwise, she's not too bad. Mostly surface rust but they get right pissy if I start up the compressor and use the sand blaster or needle gun so I'll have a go with the wire wheel and converter. I do have to say, seeing you wander around a rusty steel boat in bare feet boggles the mind. Gotta love the Heineken uncertainty principle. Hits me all the time :)

[@wayne1959]

Good stuff mate...i sure dont miss those inverted under welding sparks days..feel good when you look back on the job you just completed well but..

[@AndreasStuben]

Welding barefoot is the easiest way to avoid the anguish caused by hot splatter getting in to your shoes. I totally agree with using a needle gun to probe for rust. It will help to locate damages that you would miss using just a wire brush. The “if in doubt cut” method is something I should adopt myself.

[@svendholme3627]

Thank you Stu, this episode was very educational. I never could understand the love for small steel boats being raised around classic wooden boats. However, You and Damian have shown me a whole new way of thinking. I still think of steel=rust but you guys have shown me a different world. It is good to see the two of you working together bouncing ideas off each other.

[@AM-ni3sz]

You are always truthful.

[@MusicMike939]

Brupegs new dingy is looking good. 😂

[@scottbeattie6645]

Another great effort Stu. Absolutely love the banter between you and Damo. Great information and techniques clearly presented in an easy to follow format. And the more important upside is relief for those of us in lockdown. Thanks

[@iain1969]

This is a big call but I think this is your best video yet Stu. Outstanding mate - well done and thank you.

[@someotherdude]

Wet blasting and cutting in bare feet....LOL! Not me. What a cool project, now I want to binge watch some Diesel Duck builds.

[@Thomas-ts2gl]

Great job fitting those deck plates..

[@matthewdixon5564]

This video reminds me of ship shutdowns at forgacs in Brisbane in years gone by. I remember an old boily there said to me "ship building 101 Matty! Radiused edges on every hole" Also good to see you stepping up to the speedglas gear stu, Treat yourself!

[@daved6708]

One of your best videos yet!

[@rodgeorge7244]

Great Vid Stu very informative I'm glad to see you were wearing all the appropriate oh&s safety gear during the video as a former interstate truck driver I always complied with shorts and thongs as our safety equipment

[@James-eg7jd]

This video is a master piece. Ive watched it several times. Well done, Stu!

[@nevillekernke1844]

Hey Stu when you use a wedge with a dog put the wedge in from the welded side it is safer that way ,goin good there mate

[@micknoname6466]

Super fascinating and informative, Stu 🤙 I’m not going to be doing anything like this ever 😉 but it’s still really cool to see how things are done 🤙🤙

[@mongomay1]

Good work Stu and Damien.

[@eros20V]

I try to use work boots and pretective gear when welding and I still get molten slag down my sock. 🤣 Stepping on my sons legos is painfull .. i cant imagine stepping on metalwork scrap bits ! Great work Stu! Cheers from Athens Greece 😁

[@etsonbarentine1223]

I love the Stu Toe Shoes man