Swim Platform - Teak -> Fiberglass - 2002 Wakesetter VLX

[kmad]

Long time lurker and this is my first post!

I have a 2002 Malibu Wakesetter 21 VLX with a teak platform. I found a fiberglass platform on Facebook Marketplace from an 03 or 04 that matches my red gelcoat for $100. The shape of the platforms are identical:

But... it appears the bracket mounts are not in the same location. The fiberglass platform is reinforced with some type of backing / support where the brackets mount but to fit my boat, I am going to need to install the brackets between that and the edge of the platform. The area is flat enough to install the brackets, but I am wondering if I should install some type of supporting or backing material there, perhaps extending what already exists to the edge of platform to make one flush mounting area. The existing mounting area is raised about a 1/2 inch from the bottom of the platform so I am curious what type of supporting material is under there and what the black coating material is everywhere - maybe I can replicate it. Anyway, does anyone have any ideas on what I could do to expand the mounting area there?

I also need a door for the wedge...for some reason it took off and ran from the platform I bought! I've tried calling a few of the local dealers in SE Michigan but haven't had any luck finding one yet. I might try and make this work though: https://www.malibuparts.com/products/axis-swimdeck-access-door. 

Any suggestions or help is appreciated! TIA!

Edited September 16, 2023 by kmad

[justgary]

The black is gelcoat.  You can buy relatively small quantities if you need to.

I would consider moving the brackets on the boat to the locations of the new platform.  You can see the holes from the previous brackets, and they should be the same as your brackets.  Doing that means that you only need to buy one color of gelcoat (red) to patch the holes in your boat and any dings in the boat or platform.

You can make a new trap door out of wood or have a blast creating a new one out of fiberglass over a foam or wood core.  Make it just a bit undersize to allow for gelcoat buildup, sand it smooth, and then use your red gelcoat to cover it (basically the bottom and the edges if you plan to put foam on top).  You can apply the gelcoat with a brush and sand it smooth with very fine paper, then wet sand down to 1500 or so paper to get it shiny.

[ROFF]

I did a similar install a few years ago.    I could not relocate the brackets on the hull so I used some scrap coosa board the make new pads on the platform.    I used 5200 to attach to the platform, beveled the exposed edges and glassed over.    

[kmad]

On 9/16/2023 at 9:46 AM, justgary said:

The black is gelcoat.  You can buy relatively small quantities if you need to.

I would consider moving the brackets on the boat to the locations of the new platform.  You can see the holes from the previous brackets, and they should be the same as your brackets.  Doing that means that you only need to buy one color of gelcoat (red) to patch the holes in your boat and any dings in the boat or platform.

You can make a new trap door out of wood or have a blast creating a new one out of fiberglass over a foam or wood core.  Make it just a bit undersize to allow for gelcoat buildup, sand it smooth, and then use your red gelcoat to cover it (basically the bottom and the edges if you plan to put foam on top).  You can apply the gelcoat with a brush and sand it smooth with very fine paper, then wet sand down to 1500 or so paper to get it shiny.

Thank you for the advice! Below are pics of my transom. It looks like the transom has some areas that are dedicated to hold the bracket. To be honest, with my skillset, I don't think I'm comfortable with abandoning these areas and trying to create new / flat surfaces to mount the brackets to so I would prefer to retrofit the new swim platform to accommodate existing brackets on my transom. In other words, I would rather screw up the $100 second-hand platform that I bought and scrap the project entirely vs. damage my boat.

Great suggestions about the trap door! I will keep that in mind. The original trap door from the factory is actually black so I would not even feel compelled to paint it red.

[kmad]

On 9/17/2023 at 8:38 AM, ROFF said:

I did a similar install a few years ago.    I could not relocate the brackets on the hull so I used some scrap coosa board the make new pads on the platform.    I used 5200 to attach to the platform, beveled the exposed edges and glassed over.    

Awesome, this is the advice I was looking for. To clarify, you used the 5200 adhesive to attach the coosa board to the back of the platform? You didn't fasten it with screws or anything like that? And then apply fiberglass over the expanded area and probably to blend in with the existing pads? I am not familiar with fiberglassing - can you suggest products for this project? I can probably find YouTube videos on how to do the application.  

Also, was your project successful? 

Thanks!

[cowwboy]

I am so jealous of your $100 fiberglass platform find. 
Can't wait to see the results. 

[kmad]

13 minutes ago, cowwboy said:

I am so jealous of your $100 fiberglass platform find. 
Can't wait to see the results. 

what color is your Bu? The guy I bought it from has a few other platforms but some are damaged, for $75-$100, and he doesn't have any documentation on what model year it came from. I had the benefit of looking at them in-person to evaluate fit requirements. I can check for you if you want and provide his contact info. 

[cowwboy]

13 minutes ago, kmad said:

what color is your Bu? The guy I bought it from has a few other platforms but some are damaged, for $75-$100, and he doesn't have any documentation on what model year it came from. I had the benefit of looking at them in-person to evaluate fit requirements. I can check for you if you want and provide his contact info. 

I have the same year and hull as you. 
What might get me is shipping to Oklahoma. 
Interestingly there is someone local to me selling one. But they want 1500 for one that needs gelcoat work. 

Edited September 18, 2023 by cowwboy

[kmad]

3 minutes ago, cowwboy said:

I have the same year and hull as you. 
What might get me is shipping to Oklahoma. 
Interestingly there is someone local to me selling one. But they want 1500 for one that needs gelcoat work. 

ok. I did take the last red platform the guy had. good luck with your project - $1,500 seems ridiculous. maybe you can use my story to haggle him down to something more reasonable.

I think I saw that in previous posts that you were involved with a tower upgrade too.. I am jealous you've gotten to do that. I have the Titan tower that has the four attachment points and I would like to upgrade to an Illusion or G3 tower that is arch-shaped.

[JasonK]

That black rubber pad starts to get everything it touches black. You're going to want to replace it. Pull it off before you do the platform, then use through bolts to attach your brackets. Then apply the new padding over your bolts.

Might as well add a ladder to it too. You can barely see my ladder in this pic. I've added a wedge since then.

[YeloBlammo]

I have a piece of plastic rough cut to the size of the trap door. It has the outline already marked on it, just needs to be sanded to the exact size.

I have the latch to go with it too.

 

It'll be cheaper than what you have to buy if you don't mind a little work.

 

 

[kmad]

On 9/18/2023 at 12:16 PM, JasonK said:

That black rubber pad starts to get everything it touches black. You're going to want to replace it. Pull it off before you do the platform, then use through bolts to attach your brackets. Then apply the new padding over your bolts.

Might as well add a ladder to it too. You can barely see my ladder in this pic. I've added a wedge since then.

Those are some good ideas. I definitely want to go with a foam / pad top - the black stuff is hard as a rock.

Do you remember where you got your padding and ladder? I've seen a lot of pads on eBay and stuff but I don't have high confidence that they are shaped properly. 

[JasonK]

I found the ladder at a local boat shop. Haven't seen one like it since. It has a push button to release it, and has 3 rungs.

The padding was from hydro-turf. I cut it myself. 

[ROFF]

On 9/18/2023 at 8:54 AM, kmad said:

Awesome, this is the advice I was looking for. To clarify, you used the 5200 adhesive to attach the coosa board to the back of the platform? You didn't fasten it with screws or anything like that? And then apply fiberglass over the expanded area and probably to blend in with the existing pads? I am not familiar with fiberglassing - can you suggest products for this project? I can probably find YouTube videos on how to do the application.  

Also, was your project successful? 

Thanks!

AFAIK it was successful.   I did a refurbish on the boat then sold it to upgrade to a newer LSV.    I have experience fiberglassing and had the supplies handy.    I do see a post suggesting bolting thru the top if you replace the padding.   That may be a less expensive way to go.   Resin, glass and coosa are not cheap these days.    
 

Whatever method you use be sure to Mount the platform to the brackets on the boat!    I’m sure you’re aware that it’s not easy to remove the platform.   At least mine wasn’t.   The reverse is true as well.  Unless the lineup is absolutely perfect it will be tough to get it back on. 

[kmad]

9 hours ago, ROFF said:

AFAIK it was successful.   I did a refurbish on the boat then sold it to upgrade to a newer LSV.    I have experience fiberglassing and had the supplies handy.    I do see a post suggesting bolting thru the top if you replace the padding.   That may be a less expensive way to go.   Resin, glass and coosa are not cheap these days.    
 

Whatever method you use be sure to Mount the platform to the brackets on the boat!    I’m sure you’re aware that it’s not easy to remove the platform.   At least mine wasn’t.   The reverse is true as well.  Unless the lineup is absolutely perfect it will be tough to get it back on. 

Yes, the more I think about this, I really like the thru-bolting idea that JasonK suggested - I was going to switch to a new foam padding anyway! Thru bolting should distribute the weight more evenly and I won't be worrying about what the screws need to fasten to. 

That's a good reminder about the brackets. I was concerned about how I would do this job precisely so that they would fit perfectly. Putting the platform bracket on the mount and then attaching the platform to the bracket is definitely the way to go. 

[kmad]

10 hours ago, JasonK said:

I found the ladder at a local boat shop. Haven't seen one like it since. It has a push button to release it, and has 3 rungs.

The padding was from hydro-turf. I cut it myself. 

cool, and nice work! the hydro turf looks well done!

[cowwboy]

On 9/21/2023 at 6:54 PM, kmad said:

cool, and nice work! the hydro turf looks well done!

Did you ever get the platform mounted up?

[kmad]

On 4/21/2024 at 10:36 PM, cowwboy said:

Did you ever get the platform mounted up?

I've been mulling it over all winter and I actually just started working on this project today. I'll post updates here to log my work. 

Today, I worked on pulling off the existing foot pad with a crowbar. I left a few scratches behind but this will all get covered up when I put a new pad on. This step was a little bit tedious but it wasn't as tough as I thought and the residual adhesive was minimal. With a little bit of Goo Gone and a drywall knife, I was able to clean things up like new. 

The next step is to to build backing material between the existing bracket mount and the edge of the platform since the bracket locations on my hull are wider. I don't have the supplies for this yet so I probably won't post an update for a while. I am thinking I will get marine plywood or HDPE board. I think this will be the trickiest part especially to ensure the platform is "balanced" on the brackets before drilling the holes through the platform. Even with attaching the brackets onto the boat and then resting the platform onto of the brackets, I can see how balancing it properly will be essential because if the weight is not distributed correctly, there is too much friction on the brackets. The implications of this is that although I can probably get it installed I may never be able to remove the platform! Might be more of an art than a science, will post an update when I have one. 

[cowwboy]

I ended up picking up the platform for a 06 the guy had locally. He dropped in price quite a bit.

I need to do a few gelcoat chip fixes, make the spacer for the mounting bracket like you mentioned, and also make a spacer to correct the difference in gap due to hull radius difference.

But the new platform is a bit longer so that'll be nice.
 

I have a traction pad on order and waiting to hear back from the local MB dealer as to how much their bolt on fold out step is from the factory. 

My plan right now for the gap between the boat and hull is layers of 3/8" uhmw screwed into the platform that I'll put EVA traction on top of to hide the lines. 

I'll either us UHMW, EPVC, or HDPE for the bracket spacer. Depends what my local supplier and my leftover material shelf has  fits the dimensions. 

I have 3m 4000 adhesive on the way which I know will not be a 100% adhesion glue but will help the screws to keep it all together. Then will have to contour the UHMW to match the radius of the hull. 

[cowwboy]

Got mine finished up. 

https://www.wakegarage.com/projects-archive/swim-platform-projects/swapping-to-a-fiberglass-platform-r357/

[kmad]

Nice! I made significant progress this weekend. 

I decided to go a different route with mounting the bracket. Rather than building or adding material to the platform, I thought it would be easier to subtract! The bottom of the platform is gelcoated and it is far from symmetrical. on the starboard side, there is a lip at the edge of the platform which coincidentally did a good job of cradling the part of the bracket that curls up. on the port side, however, there was a build-up of gelcoat which made the whole thing unlevel when I was doing the test fitting. I used a Dremel to hollow out this corner of the platform. I had no idea what I would find in the core...it is some type of foam material. After I got the test fit right, I proceeded to drill the thru holes. I used JB Weld WaterWeld Epoxy Putty to fill in the holes the bracket was previously screwed into and also to seal in the mess I made - I do not water to get into the core and permeate through the platform. I really liked working with the putty because I could work the material with my hands into where I needed it to go. I was liberal with the stuff and it cures like a rock...

The next day, I had to sand the putty down to recreate the cradle-like shape I am seeking and to reproduce the test-fit from the day prior. In retrospect, I should have waited to drill the thru holes until AFTER applying the putty because now I am trying to sand the thing down to get the holes to line up perfectly. Or maybe I just used too much putty! Finally, I got the platform to balance out after sanding, testing, sanding, testing, etc. Next, I buffed, polished, and waxed the platform. I was very pleased that I was able to buff out a bunch of black scuffs and scratches that were there when I bought it. I was already accepting that I'd live with them but now they are no longer there, it's almost spotless. 

The platform did not come with an access cover for the wedge for whatever reason (it was lost or damaged)? Several others above encouraged me to make one but I found this online: https://www.malibuparts.com/products/axis-swimdeck-access-door. It's the exact part I needed...this is for an Axis boat but I guess they have not changed the dimensions since 04 or whatever year the platform is from. 

Starboard Side corner: 

Port Side corner:

Port Side corner after sealing in the area I hollowed out:

Port side corner after sanding:

Buffed, polished, waxed, wedge access door installed:

The next step was to install the platform. Choosing hardware was trickier than I realized or maybe I was overthinking it. I was initially just going to use a stainless steel bolt with SS washers and a nut to install but I was thinking that maybe I should dampen the stress on the fiberglass so I decided to use neoprene washers (found in the hardware/fasteners aisle) to assist (and I think they will help provide a watertight seal too?). Also, while the platform was balanced, there was still some 0.25-0.5" gaps between the bracket and the platform near the transom due to the angle of the bracket...my solution was to buy rubber washers (found in the garden hose aisle). In conclusion, this was the hardware situation I ended up using: thru-bolt (1/4" x 2" SS machine screw with Phillips head) -> 1/4" neoprene washer -> 3M marine silicone -> swim platform -> 3M marine silicone -> rubber washers (stacked in some cases to fill gap, stacked 3 high at holes nearest to transom) OR 1/4" neoprene washer if no gap was present (furthest from transom) -> metal bracket -> 1/4" SS washer -> SS nylon nut. Using a Phillips screw driver and a socket wrench, I was able to tighten all the bolts. 

A

And here is the final product!

It's level, sturdy, and looks great! I am pleasantly surprised with the results and I am very glad I went this route vs. modifying the location of the mounts on the transom of the boat to fit this platform. It was almost 80 degrees in northern Michigan today so I am eager to get going. I am going to put the Bu in the water this week as-is. Next, I need to decide if I want to install an under-mount ladder using the same thru-hull procedure. Finally, I will be ordering foam decking either from a Chinese supplier on eBay or thru Amazon and I will just cut it myself. I do have a concern about how it will adhere and cover up the top of the bolts so I'll post about that when I make the attempt. If you're still here, thanks for following along! 

Edited Monday at 03:26 AM by kmad
fixed starboard/port references

[cowwboy]

This is who I used for the EVA foam.  https://www.ebay.com/itm/195983870145
Our first trip out was great we loved the extra room and feel of the EVA foam.
Somehow the FAE fell off so that was a huge bummer. 

Edited Monday at 03:14 PM by cowwboy