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CVX-20s info ... (And other Glastrons)

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Hyperacme:
Making a new (And improved) rear seat for CVX-20s

When I bought my CVX-20 Jet in 1999, it was in bad shape- missing windshield, had been painted and the floor was (Soon) to collapse. The seats were in really bad shape also.

The second year the floor collapsed and while replacing it I bought some Todd plastic-frame seats for up front, but while I mounted the passenger seat to swivel, I wanted the driver seat to slide fore and aft (I did not like it swivelling)

The back seat was going to be a problem; It is VERY specific to the boat (I warn you right here and now- You must measure and be as accurate as possible)

I started by measuring the old seat and where it fit in the boat then drew up a diagram.....A week later I re-measured everything and corrected the diagram. I also wrote up what problems I saw with the original seat;

1) The rear shelf that supports the back edge of the seat bottom was only (Barely) strengthened with a couple of narrow wedges of wood (It was sagging badly)

2) The lower edge of the seat back-board was rotting out- obviously soaked over and over with water.

3) When I removed the seat from the boat the back flexed badly because of the piss-poor design of the ski-pole cut-out

I started cutting the plywood for the seat frame, using templates to get the shapes and sizes right...Then I put the parts together with screws- Stainless screws (No staples at all) This would allow me to take it back apart for adjustments- but actually, I came out pretty close and the seat fit the first time (Amazing! (Hey...!)

To solve the three major problems I came up with 4 fixes;

1) To better support that rear self, I installed FIVE triangular brackets (Made of Plywood) that went from the bottom edge of the seat back to the outer edge of the self- The shelf is SOLID!) (I was worried that the triangular brackets would cause problems for Skis and such in the under-seat storage- Never has been an issue)

2) The lower edge of the seat back; A) I cut that edge approx' 1/2" short and then installed Plastic Furniture glides which keep the seat back above most of the water from Skis, etc- B) I soaked the plywood (Of the whole seat structure) with fiberglass resin- Water simply can NOT get to the wood anymore!

3) The Ski-pole cut-out; Instead of small pieces of 1/2" plywood making a box, I used 1" plywood mounted flat and then 1/2" ply mounted on top, having cut the edges at an angle so anyone digging into the back cushion would not have a sharp (Square) edge to run into- using screws and T-nuts made this rock solid.

I used aluminum angle (2" x 2" x1/8") to go between the seat back and the engine compartment bulkheads, and a 1/4" piece up at the top that takes the stress of the Ski-pole cross-brace, and T-nuts to attach everything to the seat.

The seat bottom cushion was originally tabbed in and fully removable- but later, I modified it so that it has hinges at the front edge and flips up and forward for access to the ski-locker underneath.

Also, I did most of the work starting at the end of summer and continuing thru fall-Winter-spring....in my (Separate) Garage...although I live in (Sunny!) California, the garage would still be down to 40-50 degrees......Resin needs temperatures above 60 to work. I picked up a refrigerator box, then cut one side off completely....I would set the seat on that, then place the box over it...having cut two holes in it- one on each end. I then slid an old hair drier in one hole and pre-heated the wood seat for an hour.

After resining the seat, I would then place the box back over it and heat it for another hour or so.....The resin would cure perfectly!

Hyperacme:
Mounting Center rise exhaust manifolds in CVX-20s

Mounting the Center rise manifolds on CVX-20 Jets is difficult- not a lot of room and you have to stand on your head to do it. After a bit of thought (Do I smell smoke?) I came up with a very easy way to mount them.

First, I grabbed a couple of bungee cords and hung them up on the rafter above the engine compartment. Then I used some strong string and made a loop approx' 5 feet in circumference, and looped it thru the exhaust manifold between 1-2 and 3-4 from the outside up on the inside, and then hooked the bungee to it so that the manifold hung just barely laying on the pad over the storage compartment on the side that I was installing the manifold on.

Next, I bought two LONGER bolts same thread/diameter as the mounting bolts, and then cut off the heads, after which I screwed them into the two outer bolt-holes in the head (Of the ones to be used)

Now I was (Basically) ready to actually install the manifold. Step one, I applied some Red high-temp RTV around each exhaust port on the manifold. Step two was taking the manifold and lowering it into the gap between the head/engine and the side of the engine compartment, and then hooking it on those two studs. The bungee then pulled it up against the head. Step three I had to reach under the manifold and install the bolts in the inner holes. Step four was then to remove each stud and replace with the remaining two mounting bolts.

Snug all four bolts slightly but not so tight as to squeeze out the RTV......Wait approx' 20-30 minutes and then snug them a bit tighter so that the manifold takes a proper set against the head. Then wait until 24 hours and at that point torque them properly,

Hyperacme:
Making the kick-panel removable

When I first bought my CVX-20 jet, I noticed immediately that it had the Italian exotic car "Simian driving position" (Old italian sports cars all had this) There was very little leg room with the steering wheel way out there.

While replacing the rotted floor (Use those drain plugs in the bilge for under the floor!) I decided to fix this problem. I cut out the old kick panel and made a new one out of 1/2" marine plywood, then had the brilliant idea to BOLT it in so it is removable. So I bought some of those stainless T-nuts and then had to figure out how the MOUNTS were going to go in the boat.

The center wasn't that difficult; I made some plywood brackets that mounted to the runners that hold the fuel tank platform, and then a plywood board ran between them- actually extending beyond them enough to have one bolt per side outboard of the vertical brackets(Plus three in the middle).

But the outer ends of the kickpanel, where it mounts to the hull would be difficult- I made wood blocks that fit the contour of the hull, with a piece of plywood for the bolt to run thru...This took time but I made them fit well, then bonded them to the hull using 2-part epoxy, after which I tabbed them into place with strips of fiberglass.

I installed the T-nuts in the kickpanel, so that the bolts come thru the mounting boards and screw into the kickpanel, then I covered the kickpanel with carpet.

I ended up moving the kickpanel forward approx' 5-6 inches, and, along with making the driver seat a slider rather than a swivel, I now have the seat farther forward, closer to the steering wheel, while I still have leg room- AND I have more room between the driver seat and the back seat.

As far as how solid it is, when I pound on the kick panel (Even 20 years later) it sounds like a piece if plywood glued down to cement...Rock solid! When I first completed this back in 2000, I showed it to my Father (Who had built his own Jetcat in 1961) and he was really impressed.

Hyperacme:
Page # 2

Yes, that Simian driving position is just bizarre......I own a Fiero, which is comfortable, but what got me into cars (Originally) was my dentist's Pantera...He probably could have pulled a tooth without novocaine with me looking at that car! But later, I had a chance to buy a Pantera(1984).... after sitting in it I walked away...all of those old Italian mid-engined cars have that set-up...The first mid-engine car with normal seating position was the BMW M1 and then the Fiero and after that the NSX....

I like that your (Bigger) tank is fore-aft rather than cross-wise like mine...I would have done that but didn't want to reposition the filler cap in the deck...

Here are some diagrams of the kick-panel supports....

Hyperacme:
Water leaking under floor in Glastrons and Glastron-Carlsons

I bought my 1977 CVX-20 Jet in May 1999.....Started going out with it, enjoying it. Took my Father out on his 72 BD(Sept 2000) to get a Ski ride but a bunch of Jet skiers cut in front just as I was going to hit it (Step-Start) and after he didn't want to try again. When I got home I was cleaning the boat and the floor collapsed under me...
Spent the winter replacing the floor and installing new front seats.....Sealed the marine plywood floor with cloth and resin (Carefully!), and had also installed clean-out holes under the back seat so I could check under the floor for water.
On my Trinity lake trip next June, I checked on the third day- WATER! I had noticed that the engine mount area had what I thought was a manufacturing mistake; The engine mounts are THROUGH-Bolted through the Stringers- Glastron had taken the extra time to BOX the areas in around the cut-out for bolt access- but....
The stringers are not positioned against the vertical wall created by the strakes inside the hull- they are inward approx' 1 inch, leaving a gap, so when they boxed that area in there was a small gap left.....Also, there is a drain hole drilled through the stringer- but it is approx' 1 inch above the mounting point of the stringer, so water can build up and then slip under the flooring. The water is (Mainly) coming from the two storage pockets on either side of the engine bay; Ski lines and anchor lines, plus water from swimmers/Skiers standing on the pads dripping.
When I started the rebuild on my engine, I took a closer look at those gaps, and then decided to do something about them. I bought some FLEXIBLE Isophthalic Resin from the local Tap Plastics, and then mixed in some Micro-balloons (Hollow glass beads- looks like flour) and filled that area, tilting the boat up on each side to give it a surface tilted towards the drain hole. Before doing this I found that Tap also sells pre-made fiberglass tubes in a 1/2" size, so I cut a section and stuck it down there in the groove to allow any water build up (Behind the engine-mount area) to drain forward so it would reach the area under the clean-out holes after circling around the front of the stringers, which stop up under the bow.
Since doing this my under-floor area has remained dry- I even stuck a paper towel in there to see if any moisture ever penetrated- It has been 15-16 years since I did this mod and NO water!

Also, since I have a Berkeley JE-Style jet drive, the pump traps water on the right side at the back of the bilge- the drain plug and bilge pump are on the left side of the jet drive....So I filled the area on the right side with more of the resin and micro-balloons- tilting the boat Bow-up and to the left to create a slope so the water runs over to the pump and drain.

I believe you can purchase the Flexible Isophthalic resin and tubes online....

NOTE/EDIT; Improved the last picture (And no the marbles did not fall out of my ears!)

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