I've picked up (free) a 1967 14' Islanders (made in Burnaby BC)with a 1980 Merc. 50 (4 cyl) on it. The boat has sat unused since 2000 and was used twice prior to that between 1996 and 2000. The rest of the time it's sat, uncovered but tilted (bow high) and plugs out.<br /><br />It came with a (used once) trailer that has 1.5" wide bunks (they're short). The bunks do not go under (past) the transom and the trailer does not have keel rollers except for one near the bow. The entire weight of the boat is on the bunks (and the one forward roller).<br /><br />I managed to get it on the water a couple of weeks ago (thanks much to the Merc. forum for helping me get it going!) and when I popped up on plane I noticed the boat seemed to wallow a lot. If I was to describe it, it was like an old Ford truck grabbing a rut on the road and following it. If you fight it, it fights back, but if you let it wander, it works itself out and wanders a bit quite happily, but generally head where you want it to go. If I pull back from WOT (5300 RPM) and run it about 4000 RPM, it tracks much nicer.<br /><br />I initially thought I had a simple engine trim problem so I reset the trim bar back a (trimmed the motor up) to see what differenc it made. I detected nothing noticable and the boat still behaved the same way. More to experiment with here I think...<br /><br />When I loaded the boat up with kids, it seemed to settle down and track much nicer, but still wasn;t quite right.<br /><br />Couple of other things to note. The transom seems rock solid. The boat has a bilge plug and the previous owner told me that after every trip, be sure to drain it as it always has water in it. I did, and I seem to be getting about a pint after a full afternoon's running. This is consistent with what he found and he's known the boat for years (it's always been that way as long as he's known it). the boat sits with plugs out on land, and always has. <br /><br />The floor seems solid. It's not rock solid, but I'm not the least bit worried about going through it..<br /><br />And now for the thing that worries me. When the boat is on the trailer and I pop my head under it to look, the hull is quite badly distorted where the boat is sitting on the bunks. I'd say I have at least an inch deflection, maybe a bit more. It's sort of cupped shaped.<br /><br />I believe this hull deflection is occuring when I'm running and that's why the boat's wallowing..the hull is constantly changing shape.<br /><br />I called the manufacturer and was told that this hull type has three stringers in it, one down the middle, one down either side. I have not drilled the floor to locate the stringers and I have no idea what shape they're in. Based on the hull defelction, I'm extremely suspect that they're shot. but based on the fact that there's no floor deflection, and I'm pretty sure it's only 1/2" plywood (which would distort if not properly supported) I'm not so sure. However, I do believe the boat should handle much better than it does.<br /><br />Ideas? Am I cutting the floor out and learning way more than I wanted to about stringers and fiberglass?<br /><br />boat pic at:<br /><br /> http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/IA_3.jpg <br /><br />Thanks<br />Rob
