Re: Is it even worth it?
Tas, the motor I have is long shaft but I was thinking of removing the spacer and converting it to a short shaft for this purpose.
Trying to figure out exactly what would be the best thing to use for resurfacing this boat. I don't have the experience with this. I'm going to need to redo the entire surface of this boat. Should I go over it with some sort of epoxy resin or fiberglass resin and sand until smooth? In a method similar to spackeling and sanding?I could use some advice in this department, also with exactly what product(s) to use. I read alot of the other threads where people mention this resin or that epoxy, etc. Humor me and hold my hand a minute. I'm a newbie to repairing boats, but not a newbie to tedious work of this nature. I just need proper information because trial and error gets real expensive and frustrating. I am itching to get going on it though.
Which brings me to my next question. Exactly how do I separate the two haves? What I want to do, and think I should, is separate the two haves and then perform all the necessary repairs and reassemble the two haves. Seems much easier that way. How do I separate and then what do I use to bond them back together? There is a definite flat edge on both halves where they're bonded together. It really doesn't look that difficult either, I just don't want to get all finished and find out the hard way that I didn't do things properly the first time. There won't be a second time.
Here's my entire plan. Feel free to critique it, but offer constructive criticism please. What I'm trying to accomplish is to build a mild speed boat out of this used up runabout. A classic with some flair.
I was going to separate the two halves. Repair and refinish the fiberglass. While I have it apart, the wood in transform appears to actually be in excellent condition, so I was going to beef it up a bit, possibly with a 1/4 in aluminum plate on the inside. Then use a piece of 1/4 inch plywood for a floor. Glass the edges of that in, keeping it as low to the hull as possible. Then installing two angle brackets from the transform to the floor I install. Again probably aluminum. This will all probably have to be done at the same time. I wanted to this so that the thrust force of the motor would be transferred through the whole floor of the boat and support the larger motor.
I need to pull that dash crack back together. Someone previously tried to build a support for it and failed. I wanted to be able to flip it over, build my own light weight support structure underneath and pull it back together and repair it. I'm also thinking of installing some flush mount gauges, amp / oil, etc., but keep that original speedometer. Obviously re-chrome everything that is chrome,including those horns.
The seats appear to be what gives the hull it's sideways structural support. They are badly rotted.This is what I think caused the spider cracking in the first place. They rotted and the whole hull began to flex, or over flex.
Which again would benefit from installing a minor floor. Repair all that. Keeping them as bench seats, upper and lower. Heck maybe I'll even raise the rear seat a couple of inches so people in the back can see over people in the front. These seats are a no brainer to me. Couple of boards, some 2 or 4 in foam and some marine vinyl from JoAnns.
Then finish the whole thing off with a color scheme like this:
What's currently red I want to paint in the deep metallic (pearl?) chile pepper red that you see on a lot the new Chrysler vehicles. What's currently white, I want to depart from tradition and paint a metallic silver. All of it.
Install silver or light grey carpet and do the seats in Red, possibly with light grey or silver panels in the positions where you would actually be sitting.
Then I want to repaint the 75hp Johnny in metallic silver also, and redo the accent / insignia paint on the engine cover in original color. Which also happens to be red.
There what do you guys think? For me I pretty much know already how I plan on accomplishing everything I want to do. It all hangs on my ability to figure out to repair the surface first. If I can get that handled and do a quality job, then I can get the rest of it to come together.
Okay, any thoughts or criticisms?
