Restoring a '76 Chrysler Hydro-Vee

[auTONYmous]

Hey, first things first, I'm new here. In fact, I've never owned a boat before. But one thing I've learned in life is that its not enough to buy something and call it yours if you don't know jack about it. So, instead of buying a new boat and calling myself a boater, I decided to get a decent project boat that I can tear up and learn all there is to know about it before it ever touches water.

So, I picked up a '76 Chrysler 16' Hydro-Vee open bow for a tiny bit more than the trailer is worth. The problem? It sat outside uncovered for 5 years. I've read enough around this site to know that pretty much means the decks are shot, and no self-respecting guy who wants to party next weekend would buy anything like that. But I would. I enjoy the fruits of my own labor a little more than the things that are just handed to me wholesale. Well, I got some work to do, let me tell ya.

Obligatory first pics. I'm going to call her "Blue". Not because of the color, She's a little sick right now, but one day she'll be healthy and be my best bud.



Now that the introduction is over, let me get to the nuts and bolts. Like I said, she sat outside for 5 years. And I'm a NOOB. So, I felt the soft spot and instantly thought "rotten stringer. Great". Well, I was wrong. Kinda. I got up on the deck, cleaned out the 5 years worth of biological material that had collected on her, like this kinda crap:



Well, then I went searching for someone who has done a resto on an old tri-hull like this, and I ran across a youtuber by the name of "jmink" who actually started this same type of rebuild last year and isn't done yet. Awesome. I think I have a new friend.

Anyway, I got the crap out (that includes the seats), delicately handled the stuff that will need to get used for templates - the seats will be new, but the side pockets (dunno what they're called) and misc molded-in seats will be copied with new wood and upholstery, so I treated them gently. I have old-school upholsterers on standby. For cheap. (No, really, they work for barbecue, which I happen to be pretty good at).

EVERYTHING that was wood in this thing is rotted. No biggie. I can work a jigsaw, and if I get into a pinch, my next-door-neighbor is a master carpenter whose shop is in his garage. He's always there, and always ready to answer my stupid questions.

So, what's my problem? Well I mentioned rot, right? THIS spot right between the consoles is like stepping on a trampoline. Bouncy soft. Every time I stepped on it, I heard wood cracking, so I stopped stepping on it for fear that I would fall through.



Well, I've watched enough videos and read through enough posts here to know what that means: completely rotted center stringer. But how could that be? These Chryslers were supposed to have been built tough, and foamed like crazy, right? Well, it seems I got something I didn't expect. While the rear of the boat and the bow are SOLID, that little spot in the middle was the only one that was dead. I wonder why? Curiosity got the best of me, and since I have to rip out the carpet and everything anyway, I decided to take a little looksee (and this is where YOU guys come in)




(and I'm gonna make this one BIG so you can really see what I mean)

I stuck my camera in the hole, turned on the flash, and faced the stern. Guess what?



No center stringer. No foam either. What the hell? (And please tell me that's fiberglass and not GRASS hanging off the bottom of my deck.)

So, apparently, I've heard some of these boats were made with TWO stringers, not three (sounds right). I have no idea if there's foam between the stringers and the sides of the hull. Not sure. Won't know til I pull the cap and get into all of the decking.

What I AM questioning, is once I ript this deck out, do I need to build some bulkheads for support? Look into adding a center stringer? Or just go with a thick deck and fiberglass it back in, similar to how she was built?

Also, one thing I've not seen anyone do (or show) when laying new decking, is do you get UNDER the decking and tab the deck to the stringers underneath? Or just encapsulate the deck wood, lay down PB on top of the stringers, and let it set up?

So, treat me gently guys, I've been hearing all sorts of good things about Chrysler hulls, and bad things about the 105hp hanging off her transom. Just point me in the right direction to get this done. I'm determined, but I want it to last another 30+ years.

 

[southkogs]

Welcome aboard auTONYmous. Cool lookin' project.

 

[Woodonglass]

Yup, That's a Great Tri-Hul design. Is the outboard a Chrysler? Does it run? That ain't grass it's glass!!!

First order of business is to drill some exploratory holes on the inside of the lower regions of the transom to determine if she needs to be replaced. Boats of this vintage that have been abused usually need total restorations and if the transom is bad, then you'll need to either remove the top cap of the boat or cut the cap in front of the splashwell in order to gain access to the transom for replacement. Being a Tri-Hull it's usually easier to remove the entire cap. Lots of great examples here on the forum so do some searching and I'm certain you'll find all the reading material you need. Keep posting pics and questions and we'll be here to help when and where we can.

 

[jmink]

You're off to a great start Tony. I can definitely tell that you've done your research. I agree with what Woodonglass said, check to see what all is rotted next. I'm jealous that you potentially only have two stringers to replace! (I had five of those boogers in my boat) Keep rocking and rolling!

 

[Arawak]

Maybe by '76 they were building them differently, but check out my aborted Chrysler conversion to see what the construction was like in 72.

 

[auTONYmous]

Thanks, guys. I covered her up while I plan my next steps. First thing is to get that 105 off and send it to the garage where I can work on it. Next will be removing the cap and THEN I can tear out the flooring to see what's what under there.

Some geniuses around here have made my job of getting the motor off sound easy. I'll build a stand in my garage, bring the boat up to the driveway. Call a tow truck with a hook, and have him lift the motor off and onto the stand (don't know who to credit for this little gem of ingenuity), then I can wheel it right in the garage. After that, I'll pull the boat back to her holding area and keep working on the structurals. No idea if the motor runs, but having it in the garage will give me closer access to what I'll need to get it running and keep it dry until time to reassemble. Prop looks beat up, so I'm worried about the lower unit.

Would there be any value in creating stands for the cap while it's off the boat? Or will it be okay just on the grass? I'm deathly afraid of developing any new cracks in the gelcoat. There's already some spots I need to patch on there.

Y'know what, Arawak? Looking at your pictures, I think there might actually be a short center stringer that doesn't support the deck hiding under that mound of goop in my hull. Ours look pretty similar. Still praying my transom isn't nearly as bad as yours. For some reason replacing stringers doesn't scare me as much as replacing the transom...

PS. (I'm pretty humbled right now that the VERY guys whose threads, videos, and knowledge sharing inspired me to do this are the ones chiming in to help. No words can express how awesome this feels.)

 

[Arawak]

Que sera, sera. If your transom is shot, it's not a big thing to fix, especially on that boat.

The cap on my Chrysler was rather flimsy. I did put it on the grass, but I put some supports in the appropriate spots. Would not hurt to cut some scrap lumber to the width of the cap and screw the sides in, to hold it in place. Ditto for the hull itself, although those Chrysler hulls were built before they had any idea how strong FRP is and won't sag much if at all.

Those Chrysler motors are pretty easy to make run. They suck gas, and don't produce a lot of power, but there's not much to them and they just keep running and running.

 

[auTONYmous]

Engine stand built. Time to yank that puppy and start taking the cap off.


(I hope you guys didn't think I was going radio silence...)

 

[Corjen1]

Its a great stand!! Good work!! Mind if I tag a long for the build?

 

[Woodonglass]

Here's what I did to remove my motor. 6" Lag Screw Eye into the Garage Door Header. (Headers are Normallly double 2x8's or 2x10's) Then I bought a 1/4" ton Hoist from Harbor Freight

http://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-ton-lever-chain-hoist-67144.html

and attached to the Eye Bolt. Backed the motor under, Tilted trailer to lower motor down as far as it would go, the Unbolted from transom and hoisted her off. Rolled the Motor Stand under it and lowered into place. With coupons I got the Hoist for around $40 bucks.

 

[auTONYmous]

Hot damn, woodonglass! That's a cheap, fantastic way to do it, and buying the hoist is cheaper than 1 call for a tow truck.

/me logs off and heads out to Harbor Freight

 

[sgp0511]

An even cheaper way to get that motor off is just to get an old man with broken arm and lift that puppy off,lol that's what I had to do today then me and my brother lifted it onto my boat, not that bad if you have 2 people but nice boat

 

[gm280]

Yes, the usual rotted pictures of a beginning boat project. While it seems dismal, all is not lost. You have to go through all the rot and such to get to where you can begin. And presently rebuilding my own tri-haul, you really need to build some type side supports AND take tons of pictures and measurements before removing the cap. Because down the road you will want that cap to fit back on. And if the haul splays out, the cap will not fit again. So measurements and side supports are a must. Support the sides either from the inside or outside so it doesn't warp out of shape. I went with supports on the outside, by making a little cradle type setup on wheels, so I could move around the inside without crawling over cross support when grinding out the old glass. My efforts are linked in my signature below. But I would like to join in your project if that is okay... :thumb:

 

[auTONYmous]

Well, I finally got that big old girl off the transom. Took a bit of work. You don't really know what 375+ pounds feels like til you're trying to steady it while staring precariously at the lone chain holding the whole thing suspended in air.






Went with the harmonic balancer puller with the hoist on garage header
(thanks again, Woodonglass. I'll owe you a fishing trip and few cold ones by the time this is over)



Here she is in her temporary spot, relegated to a corner of the garage while I get the rest of the boat sorted. Prop's shot, but the rest of the motor *appears* to be in decent shape. Once I'm confident the hull is nearly ready, I'll start the engine overhaul.

Next up: Removing that cap!

 

[sphelps]

Congrats on motor removal ! It always looks so simple and easy until ya start lifting it . It can get a bit unnerving and frantic in a hurry . And you just feel a bit uneasy until she's resting on the stand .. :lol:

 

[auTONYmous]

Yep. Everything you just said.

And I REALLY started panicking when I noticed the eye bolt in my header was starting to bend before I even got the stand in place. Gotta get a thicker one next time. Oh, and one of my trailer tires needs a few pounds more, so my boat was sitting tilted, which made it even more interesting getting both sides of the transom bracket just barely cleared enough to remove the damn thing.

Steering cable wasn't trying to go back under the cap far enough and it was impossible to see under there let alone crawl in and move it, so I just lightly bent it til it came free. Gotta replace it anyway (plastic boot cracked near the engine mount and about 3 inches of the steering cable rusted pretty good, so I didn't care too much about bending it a little. Just hope I can actually get a replacement).

It was a maddening 15 minutes of wrestling, but I got it off.

 

[gm280]

Oh yes the things we do some times and then think back about them and wonder how we made it this far... Good to see progress as well... :thumb:

 

[fstorm08]

I love the Hydro-V! :thumb:

 

[Mark72233]

Tony, cool boat tagging along.

 

[archbuilder]

Cool looking boat, I'd love to see the bottom of that hull! I didn't know the Chrysler OB's weighed that much, that's 75 pounds more than my Merc. Permision to com aboard?