Graupner Systems Cat

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Cuppy

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Hey everyone I just brought my old boat out of the dust hole its been sitting in for the last 20 years. Yesterday I took the entire hull and components apart and I'm thinking about getting her back on the water. Several cracks in the hull have me considering trying to find a blank slate hull but I'm having trouble finding anything even remotely related to this ancient being. I could fiber glass and repair...pretty sure that would work as well as strengthen. Also is there anyway to combat the old glue? I want to pull the balsa pieces out and fiberglass those as well but its a no go so far...can provide pics if needed. Body first then components...HELP!!! lol
 

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Looks like a big no on the hull but definitely will help when I start on the parts list! Thanks!! Just wish I could find a blank slate hull
 
Lol...I knew from the start it was gonna be tough to find. Maybe fiberglass is the best idea
 
Id stay clear of fiberglass.. Id go with a 2 part marine epoxy also pulling balsa wood out is gonna be a no go...like the jb weld marine weld for cracks and theres many wood seal epoxy resins working time will vary.I did a Miss Budweiser twin 2 years back and Up dates all electronics to 2016 age...twin 560 brushless 900kv with twin new tubes with stainless steel props. 4 cell lipo and new servo 1/2 second speed 500oz torque.put new foam in it 8lb carved out where I needed to place stuff
 
Yeah I kind of already figured out that the balsa wood coming out wasn't going to work. It sucks and I wish I had known all those years ago. This stuff is like concrete. If only I could find someone with a lower half or body

Truthfully looking at this thing I could probably cut out the old balsa wood and just glue in new pieces... It would strengthen it and look better on the same run. E

I may have just bitten the dust on the entire thing now...very disappointed :(
 

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wow that is rough.. dint know you had such a burnt n jagged top edge. fiberglass might be the way to go...
 
That's actually mostly caulk...I was 14 orc15 when I built it originally and had no idea what I was doing. I was in the process of removing said caulk when this happened
 
I thought I could just clean my old one up but I put a hole in her...disappointed but not giving up. Looking to purchase a blank slate hull or buttom. I know this is a long shot but I gotta try.
 
I meant to say thank you for the help But this is a really old boat that they don't manufacture anymore. Maybe Monday I'll call them
 
Tough call on that boat. Age alone will break down some of the old materials in that hull. Sad to say, but I think the balsa is the strongest part there. You might consider re-sheeting it with 1/16" polystyrene and epoxying it to the existing hull.
 
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Yeah...she's about 30+ years old. ABS just gets more and more brittle as time goes on. I think I'm going to fiberglass the entire inside to try to strengthen it back up. Also gonna rebuild the balsa wood and floor. It's a big project...bigger than I ever thought but I think that's my plan and only option

Administration please un-merge my two posts! I needed the other one to find another hull if possible. This is a repair/fix post and that was a looking for a new hull post...thank you

Tough call on that boat. Age alone will break down some of the old materials in that hull. Sad to say, but I think the balsa is the strongest part there. You might consider re-sheeting it with 1/16" polystyrene and epoxying it to the existing hull.
You think that would be better than an epoxy fiberglass?

Ugh!! Another tiny slip...another giant hole! I'm fighting a losing battle here :(. Maybe I should just stop what I'm doing and chalk it up. This thing is so fragile that if I were to even try to get it to the water it would hit one wave and bust apart.

I just always had a dream of seeing this boat work correctly...it never really has since the beginning. Sigh...feeling overwhelmed now.

I figured it out...I'm gonna do a thin fiberglass on the entire outside hull. Hopefully that will give me the strength and water proof I need to keep her afloat.
 
Sadly making a mold of my existing hull seems to be my only option at this point. I know how to do it all but man...that fear of melting my existing hull is real!! It will probably just crumble apart when I pull it out of the mold anyway. Really hoping that a gelcoat mold will save most if not all parts involved
 
I have the same Graupner Systems Cat and am looking to convert to brushless! Do you think the 606 gearbox will hold up if i swap out the 2 brushed motors with 2 brushless?
 

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