# '97 Tracker Pro Deep V From Carpet to Vinyl.



## jigngrub (Aug 21, 2011)

I've been taking my Tracker apart and ripping carpet off of decking for the past few day and thought I'd post some pics.

I did this about 6 years ago and it kinda irks me to have to do it again, but it's my own fault for not using the right materials. I used the Home Depot "marine" carpet and the indoor outdoor adhesive that was supposed to be good for boats too... *NOT!!!* The adhesive held ok for about 3 years then it started letting go of the carpet causing it to pucker, mainly on the horizontal surfaces while the vertical surfaces held pretty well... but it's all coming out, no more carpet!

I'll be putting Nautolex marine vinyl back in and using the Nautolex adhesive and should get much better service out of it.

Now for some pics.

Fore with fore, aft decks, side panels removed.






Aft





The puckered bunghole.





Fore with all decking and carpet removed.





Aft





I really like the way they did the foam in this boat and there's no shortage of it.






I'll update this thread as work progresses.


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## Ictalurus (Aug 22, 2011)

Lookin' good, I like the vinyl. You going with the new treated wood :wink: I also use the marine backed carpet from the big box, hope I don't have any issues down the road.


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## jigngrub (Aug 22, 2011)

Ictalurus said:


> Lookin' good, I like the vinyl. You going with the new treated wood :wink: I also use the marine backed carpet from the big box, hope I don't have any issues down the road.



The boat came from the factory with the CCA treated plywood and it's still good, I've just got to sand the glue and carpet backing off of it with the belt sander... hope I don't die! :roll: :mrgreen:


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## jigngrub (Nov 4, 2012)

I've been meaning to finish this thread, but keep forgetting until someone recently asked about it.

Here it is:

Once I had all the decking removed I ripped the old carpet off, it came off easily by hand... but as usual, it left carpet backing and glue on the plywood:





I removed that junk with a belt sander and a 30 grit belt. This is the plywood all cleaned up and with the first coat of epoxy:





The plywood is CCA pressure treated, so it will never rot... and that's why I reused it.

This is the plywood after 4 coats of epoxt resin:





This is what I used to apply the resin:




Disposable plastic cups, chip brush, and a wallpaper tool. I used the wallpaper tool to spread the epoxy around on the plywood, then back brushed it with the chip brush. Chip brushes were thrown away when the epoxy set.

I removed all the glue from the metal pieces with citrusstrip stripper, a 2" wood chisel, and then a wire cup brush on a grinder for residue.

Once the glue was all removed and the epoxy was applied I started wrapping each individual piece with the vinyl.

The aluminum hatches:





The console:









And the deck pieces:





These rollers are a "must have" for a quality vinyl or carpet installation job:




They embed the material backing into the glue for 100% adhesion and roll out any air bubbles.

I installed the decking with these rivets exposed for easy deck removal later if I ever need to make below deck repairs or modifications:





I lined my hatches with closed cell camping pad foam for sound deadening:









... and, the finished product:


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## bigwave (Nov 4, 2012)

That looks great. How much does it cost to do a boat of your size? =D>


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## rickybobbybend (Nov 4, 2012)

Clean, neat and well thought out...VERY nice job. Vinyl looks terrific.


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## jigngrub (Nov 4, 2012)

bigwave said:


> That looks great. How much does it cost to do a boat of your size? =D>



My boat is a 17' deep V, and the vinyl was about $200 including shipping. Spent about another $100 on adhesive, and the epoxy resin was about $50.

Spent about another $200 on aluminum angle, rivets, and the foam hatch liner.


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## Scout27 (Nov 4, 2012)

Looks brand new. You did a super job.

Interested in cost also for a boat of your size. Thanks.


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## fool4fish1226 (Nov 5, 2012)

:beer: looks Great :beer:


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## BYOB Fishing (Nov 7, 2012)

Nice job!


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