Wow, nice work Clem! My neighbor did one a few years ago. "Yeah, these guys roll in with their high dollar bass boats thinking they're all that, but I can cast in 4" of water, launch almost anywhere and my total investment is less than they spend on a season of fuel."
=~ )
Really cool redo of the boat Clem
Floating Doc (Forum Supporter) said:1SlowVW said:In reply to ClemSparks :
That's looking fantastic.
Indeed it is.
I was concerned about the UV resistance of the plastic floor, obviously you addressed that with a layer of some sort of finish. Is it paint?
The only plastic floor is the white floor in the bottom of the cockpit. It's PVC board that's advertised as being UV resistant. Used for trim and such on exterior home projects I assume. It's an experiment...we'll see how it works. I don't think it's going to hold up to foot traffic as well as I'd like but then again it's not a problem if it's a bit scratched or dented. An aluminum floor would have been my first choice but I just wasn't willing to spend the money for that.
The remainder of the decks/hatches are just plywood with epoxy and then floor paint (and some "rubber crumb" for texture...that turned out too aggressive for my taste but what's done is done)
The rear deck is basically two hatches that slot into the extrusion on the gunwhale and latch in the center.
I appreciate the kind comments from all...thanks!
Next is to see if the engine is worth spending some time and money on.
The seat base will need to be mounted soon and I have to come up with a seat of some sort for myself.
In reply to ClemSparks :
I don't usually say this to another guy, but... Nice Johnson.
ClemSparks said: Next is to see if the engine is worth spending some time and money on.
Serial number? I can help you with that.
Lol on the compliment.
The model/serial numbers are 55ELD77D / E4702712
It's a '77 Johnson 55 horsepower "Looper". Tell me anything you think I should know about it. I'm the 3rd GRMer to own it. It hasn't been run in a long, long time. But the boat it was on was decommissioned due to a tree falling on it, so we surmise the engine will be good.
But really what I meant by "see if it's worth spending time/money on" was that I need to check compression and a few other items to see if it's healthy enough to start replacing water pumps and ordering carb kits and other things that cost money (but are totally worth it if the engine will run good in the end).
In reply to 914Driver :
I think if I build a basic plywood boat it would be one of these spec racers.
https://ccwbra.com
Looks like good fun with 6-8hp.
I wish there were cocktail races near me, I'd build one.
The simplest little boat like this is a minimax. I built one with my dad, and he with grandpa. My son is almost ready!
Ah, spring time.
I just drained the gas tank in the boat, since the fuel has been sitting for a few months now. I usually fill it 4/5 of the way to full with ethanol-free, because having an empty below floor tank is asking for trouble.
The good news is that it's still gasoline, so I can run it through the cars. There was a little bit of water in the separator, but not all that much.
The list of what's left.
1. Fix some dings and chips in the gel and faring.
2. Check all through hull fittings.
3. Clean the boat. This will likely involve a buffing and waxing this year. Ugh.
4. Check the electronics..
5. Replace the horn.
6. Look into getting the seats and such redone *for real* this time.
I need to get off my but and finish this thing.
Ice will be gone from the rivers in a week or so.
In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :
I looked at mine a couple of weeks ago. It's pretty much ready except for being absolutely nasty. It needs a visit from a scrub brush, bleach, and teak oil.
Just getting ready to start a new boat. Sails should be here soon, plywood too.
Soon to be building a West Mersea Duckpunt.
MattGent said:I wish there were cocktail races near me, I'd build one.
The simplest little boat like this is a minimax. I built one with my dad, and he with grandpa. My son is almost ready!
I built one like that at the Navy hobby shop when I was going through basic preflight training.
The most expensive part was shipping it home
The walkthrough window on my boat is jammed up and won't close. I hit the hinge with a bit of oil, and I've let it sit over night. I'm hoping it isn't still inop, otherwise I may have to take it apart.
I have no idea how to take it apart.
A sailing club I once belonged to had a Hudson River Schooner in the attic of an old barn. If this trips you trigger, I can ask.
Here's my hole in the water. About 38mph, 3 miles per gallon.
It seems ants have built a nest in my outboard motor. I'm not sure if they're fire ants or not. I went ahead and ran the motor on the hose, and everything is operating as expected. I guess that's what I get for storing it with the engine barely touching the ground. Time to get some sort of ant killer spray.
In other news, I picked up this heavy duty fiberglass boat for $200. It's 13 1/2' long, and about 5 1/2 feet wide. The goal will be to make it into a solo fishing skiff, so I don't have to tow and launch a 20' boat by myself when I'm feeling the need to use motor power to get somewhere.
It's old enough that it doesn't have a Hull ID on it, and small enough that it hasn't ever needed a title in NC. I have *no idea* what kind of boat this is. I've already spoken to the agency that registers boats, and there is a process in place to get registration for it.
In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :
What are you going to power it with? That looks ripe for about a 70-hp Yamaha 2-stroke from about 92-96. They were light and pretty reliable.
I feel bad, I own two sailboats, two kayaks, a pulling boat, and am working on a smaller sailing dinghy.. and not a single one has seen water this year. Between work, my sick mom, and now my uncle coming out for a week to see said sick mother, I just do not have time.
I mentioned this in another thread. We have here a McVay Falcon, 15’9” of very early fiberglass boat construction. Based on her sail number 176 and some information I got from Cape Cod Shipbuilding in Wareham MA she was likely built by the long defunct Beetle Boat Company in New Bedford around 1954. I think she’s a pretty little thing and while not a racing boat she’s still fun to sail
I bought her with some money I made shipping on a US Lines container ship as a cadet in 1983. Some quick maths and yeah, that was 40 years ago. She’s been covered up and resting under the deck of our camp for 10 years because life. I had gotten back into sailing on a Sunfish the last couple of summers and decided I really needed to make an effort to get her back in the water. To motivate myself, I ordered new standing rigging (stainless steel wires that hold the mast up) and a set of sails. The rigging I had was likely original (pushing 70 years) and the sails I’ve been using are probably from the mid 60’s. Since I’m no longer a broke college student we made an appeal to the CFO and she graciously approved. 
(She got a nice lunch on the water on Cape Cod when we dropped the sails and rigging off.)
She’s seen some stuff over the years including surviving two pine trees landing on her and the trailer during Hurricane Gloria in 1986. (I was somewhere between the Bahamas and Groton CT on the USS Pittsburgh on sea trials as an engineer for Electric Boat.) Previously mentioned Cape Cod Shipbuilding had made her original mast and were able to make the replacement in the picture. She was out of the water for long time from the early 90’s until 2005 when I did a major rebuild to replace all of the structural wood and then fair and repaint the hull.
The weather didn’t work out this weekend to be able to try the new sails out but we’re all set up and ready to go. We’ll be back up to the lake Thursday night and staying for the week of the 4th so fingers crossed!
In reply to 11GTCS :
Post some pics of it sailing if you can!
Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :
What are you going to power it with? That looks ripe for about a 70-hp Yamaha 2-stroke from about 92-96. They were light and pretty reliable.
It screams jet boat, but I'm bottom feeding locally and there is a 25 HP Mercury 4 stroke for sale with cables and such that should move it along, if not briskly. The transom is short, so any 15" length outboard will work. It seems like a 70HP would be hilarious, giggling overkill, but it's not out of the question. What I *ought* to do is get the boat mostly finished and weigh it to see how much mass I have to move around before I buy anything.
The issue is that I'm close to the ocean and all kinds of lakes, so any outboard around here goes for a premium. Doubly so at this time of year, and it will likely be next year before this thing ever sees the water.
Curtis has got me seriously thinking about what motor to put on that boat when it's done. I think the formula is 1 HP for every 25 pounds of boat/gear/occupant. So that 25 I was looking at may be a bit underpowered once everything is loaded up.
A 70 HP would move a boat that's 1750 pounds. Which is probably more than mine will weigh. I'm also concerned about the transom weight of an engine like that.
Point is, this is taking up a lot of mental space in my head, and I haven't even started building the boat yet.. But I am looking at the local classifieds in case something in the 40+ range pops up for a decent price. I'm thinking I want to stick with manufacturers that are still making motors. So, Honda, Suzuki, Tohatsu, and Mercury.
I also see what was going on with the outboard dculberson picked up, where he's taking the 9 HP Suzuki and re-rigging it to be a 20 HP with a new ECU and some mods. Are there any older engines where that's a known process?
You know, like this: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/930498714794962/
Good job enabling, Curtis!
In reply to adam525i :
So of course it’s been raining, humid and dead calm ever since she got launched. Lol. I did get her off the mooring today for a bit, light air out of the SE and mid 80’s which is not usually a winning formula up here but sail we did.
Here we are after tacking out of the small sheltered cove where my parent’s place is. First time underway with her new sails and first sail since 2013. Sorry for the picture quality, my wife took this with her phone and I cropped it as much as I could. We’ll work on getting some real camera pictures.
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