Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

[ezmobee]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Real nice work so far. Just spent three days fishing out of mine with two buddies and was loving the setup. I definitely need to add some rod holders though!

 

[Starman8]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Real nice work so far. Just spent three days fishing out of mine with two buddies and was loving the setup. I definitely need to add some rod holders though!

What style/MFG you thinking?

I had Bert's on the 2000, great stuff $$$$$, may bail to Scotty triples or just save money and wait

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

What style/MFG you thinking?

Something cheap. I'm not that hard-core of a fisherman.

I know I'd like 2 rail-mounted ones for up front. Not sure yet what I want to do in the stern.

 

[barato2]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

i got some decent looking chineez knockoffs of Attwood rail mount holders on fleebay for abt $50/pr. they seem reasonable quality and clamp to rails firmly.

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

how many sheets of 4x8 do you suppose ill need for the floor? im guessing 4-5, right? (18')

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

four

 

[Starman8]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

hey ZZ, the answer to your fuel tank question was under the splashwell

it is a perm metal tank, 22 gallons and it sits center to port

on the star side is the PTT pump and motor

the back wall is removeable for servicing if needed, but I cut an access panel on each side for minor issues like bleeding the trim, and each panel has a 4" circle cut out for ventilation, with a trim cap.

the aft deck is also removeable if needed as it is screwed in using L angle

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

ok, it been a while since ive posted and thats due to me having no money to spend!! ... what else is new. anyway i got a floor cut, went pretty easy. easier than i thought it would considering the only old flooring i had to use as a template was the bow piece. im glad i had that though. i decided to use a brand of subfloor called "advantech". if any of you have ever used it before you'll know why i choose it. i know it looks like osb but its far from it. its made up of thin strands and chips of wood but is then soaked in a resin/wax mixture, then basically heated and pressed into panels. its very dense stuff. the moisture absorption, and strength far surpass that of osb or pl
ywood. i know its probably not an ideal thing to use in a boat, but im on a budget.... a tight budget. you can paint it but it has to be an oil based paint... sooo... the plan is to coat the crap out of it with some rustoleum and throw down some sand on top and paint it again.. did this on a glasser and it came out great.. i just hop in and pressure wash it out when i need to.

i got to thinking that when i pulled the old floor up, it was 1/2 " ply and wasn't treated with anything.... 35 or so years later it was still there.. somewhat... so if i can get even ten out of this floor i'll be happy. probably wont even have it that long honestly. its tongue and groove also which i thought was nice..

heres some pics

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

this stuff has a 300 day guarantee or something like that where you can leave it exposed to the elements when building a house and it will not require any top sanding.. i worked in lots of houses that have been built with it and i used it to build a 800 sq ft cottage/camp/shed as well at the in laws.. i love this stuff.

the floor is not attached and the center stringers arent even back in yet.. the deck is just laying in there as of right now.

BUT, the big news is.... i was looking at my leftover pieces of decking.... and because im so cheap about things.... i decided to go center console because i had enough left to build one! waste not want not! of course it still needs a ton of work but it basically built... the front seating ares is sized to mount a folding seat on it... ill have a seat on a pedestal in back to sit on while driving. it pretty skinny as far as CC go... about 20" wide.. the reason for that is i have numerous fuel tanks that would be able to fit underneath, including a metal 18 gallon that is almost square in shape that im thinking of sinking below deck under the console... there would be a few inches of the tank that would stick up through the floor but it would leave me lots of room underneath for a shelf or something.

heres some pics of what i have going as of today.. still need to sand sand sand sand.. putty... sand sand sand and paint (or glass it, idk yet) bbut hey, its a start and it i have all winter!

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

ok, just remembered that i forgot to ask.. can you guys direct me to some threads detailing how to run the control cabling for CCs and any good threads on measuring for new cables?? thanks

 

[Pugetsound]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Is that still not a long way to reach back if you have a motor problem??? about as much as the splash well was??

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

sorry.. im not following you there puget.. what do you mean? if you mean the placement of things.. nothing is attached yet and the console is bound to get moved forward..

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Carpentry is looking good. Are you planning to coat the undersides and edges of the deck wood? I sure would.

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

thanks..yeah, im gonna paint the crap out of it... i can really afford to do much else. i would trust the advantech to hold up better than plywood any day. id love to epoxy it but i can justify spending the money. ill attach the deck with screws... if there turns out to be problems ill pull it up and do it over. im looking at this like an experiment i guess!

on a side note, ive seen pieces of advantech that sat outside for well over a year and it just looks a little weathered.. no real edge swell.. this stuff is NOT like osb. and its solid... it must weigh about 70 lbs per sheet atleast.

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

here, check it out..
http://www.advantechperforms.com/dare-to-compare/competitor-comparisons.aspx

im actually running my own little experiment with chunks of ply vs advantech in water, so far, advantech is winning..

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Looking good,I think your console is my consoles cousin.I Like the chair,cant wait to see what u do next.As far as running the cables and stuff,i used an old vacum hose from a mobile carpet cleaning truck and some wire to pull through.Better to have the cables a little long than short.

 

[mr catfish]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

Any new work been done lately, love the project. Im doing the same on a 1976 lund. Fish and ski boat, lucky its already an open bow.

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

not too much lately... just alot of thinking. trying to figure out how im going to build the decks in. been scoping out alot of parts on ebay. just picked up a set of morse/teleflex top mount controls from ebay for $20! working on the console a little bit.. made a switch plate with some lighted rocker switches. brought the whole console into the basement to finish it up over winter. may have made it a little too narrow and will probably end up having to move the steering wheel to the left a bit. sucks because i already cut a hole out for it but i can patch it as i still have the cut out. im thinking ill end up glassing over the console when im done mocking everything up. the console is going to end up being jam packed with all the hardware/wiring/controls/fuel for the boat..

so im at a point where i need to get new, shorter cables for the controls and a shorter steering cable so i can run them under deck where i need them. in the meantime im going to start painting the deck piece by piece in the basement as well. after thats all taken care of i can figure out what power i need to run and to where and then i should be able to pput the deck together and button it all up and start working on the decks/interior.. needless to say, it's a project but it'll be done by spring!

 

[zigzag]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

been a while..... i have been focusing on my wifes boat, a 15 foot runabout.. all vintage steering and controls with a 59 johnson 18 i spent all winter rebuilding. its about ready to go so i am back to the craft!!! hope you fellas didn't give up on me yet! stringers are back in, foam is under the floor, cables are routed... next step, screw the floor down and build some casting decks. ill update with some pics when i get to it.


btw, who knows about top mount controls??? specifically morse incom top mount... its similar to the universals teleflex sells now... i might need a hand at getting them hooked up

 

[barato2]

Re: Holiday to Open bow conversion.... aka: the unthinkable

no worries dude. some of us on here (ahem....:facepalm move even slower