1970 ish Mirrocraft 14 Deep Fisherman Project

[fool4fish1226]

Great project :beer:

 

[DesertRAT]

Finally got the boat prepped for painting. I decided to refurbish the trailer now and then at least that is done. I needed the trailer to get the boat to the paint shop and didn't want to take the boat off the trailer once it is painted. I didn't do too much on it, just touched up the paint with a rattle can and replaced the bunks and carpet. The wiring was okay, just needed to be cleaned up. I'll post again once the hull is painted and back at the house.

 

[Markster]

Hi Rat,
Your boat is looking great! I went through the same process as you stripping down my mirrocraft deep fisherman and repainting a few years ago. It a tough job but these boats turn out real nice! Keep at it, the tough part is done!
On mine, i wanted a flat floor for duck hunting so i rearranged the inside a bit. Im very happy with the final result. I found that this models design makes it possible to easily make all sorts of interior changes without requiring through hull drilling. I really nice feature.

 

[DesertRAT]

I'm still waiting to get a day off from work so that I can paint this thing. Hopefully soon! I did kill an hour here and there and kind of laid out my design of what I am wanting to do with the fishing deck up front.

I am keeping all of my benches intact because that is were all of the floatation material is. I am using 2x2's and just putting them on top of the benches and securing them with aluminum and stainless steel hardware. For securing the 2x2's to each other, I am using galvanized strong-ties with galvanized screws.

This up front fishing platform will be the highest of the boat. For the back of the boat, there will be a floor and two more seats at bench level.

 

[TinCanCaptain]

Looking good. I'll definitely keep an eye on your build. I really liked the look of the bare aluminum hull. Too bad it was too rough for your liking.

 

[TinCanCaptain]

Im in socal too. Moving to paramount pretty soon. Do you know if Perris is 4 stroke only? I have a 2 stroke on 14 ft richline.

 

[DesertRAT]

Thank you TinCanCaptain! I am really liking the white and blue color scheme that some folks have done on here. I'm trying to find some time to rent a paint booth in town, it's pretty inexpensive to rent for the weekend. They basically just supply the room and the compressor, all I have to do is bring the paint and the paint gun. I'm a bit nervous doing this, the last time I painted something was when I was a teenager years and years ago. If I can get the booth for 3 days, i'll be good to go. I figure day one is primer, then on day 2 will be white paint and then on the last day i'll shoot it with clear coat.

While I'm waiting for that, I want to at least get the front deck frame done. I want to put 3 coats of urethane on the wood while my boat's paint is drying. That's the plan anyway.

I have to get this project done by May when the lakes around here starting opening up. Right now, the lakes are frozen and most of the water is being used for snow making for skiing and snowboarding. In April, the snow just melts back into the lakes again. Kinda cool how they do that all.

 

[DesertRAT]

I'm not sure about lake Perris. Only been there a few times when I was stationed at March AFB. I go to Big Bear a lot for fishing, which is local, and Bass Lake, Yosemite when it starts to warm up around May. Silverwood Lake is a about 20 minutes from my house but it gets very windy there. I haven't run across any restrictions on motor type on the lakes I use. I have a 15hp 2-stroke myself and I'm hoping I can use it on my favorite lakes. I guess I better check into that.

 

[TinCanCaptain]

Quick question. What brand/model is your battery box? I tried looking online but the only one I saw that looks similar is the seasense one. I like the divider in it. I want to mount my breakers to it kinda like your shutoff.

 

[DaleH]

Quick question. What brand/model is your battery box? I tried looking online but the only one I saw that looks similar is the seasense one.

Looks to be a QuickBox brand adjustable battery compartment, see: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B006WAEXU0/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/192-5245099-0524119 . They are made by Quick Cable, https://www.quickcable.com/products.php?pageId=889

Wow, and I found them here for only $ 7.30 each , with only $5 for shipping from Wisconsin to Mass:

https://www.gemplers.com/product/224780/QuickCable-Battery-Boxes-Adjustable-24-27-31-Battery-Group?gclid=COThlsrxucMCFfLm7AodijgAQA&sku=224780&CID=25SEPLA&ef_id=VMqDQQAABFMbM1ss:20150129190017:s

Shown below without the divider installed. I'm going to use one and rig a battery On/Off switch into that unused end compartment ,

 

[TinCanCaptain]

Cool man. Thanks. I'm actually working in sun city til Monday. Too bad I can't hit any of the lakes around here.

 

[DesertRAT]

The one i got from Amazon was $15 and it's the NOCO HM318BKS Group 24-31 Snap-Top Battery Box for Automotive, Marine, and RV Batteries. Sounds like you got a very good deal for $7

 

[thewalleyehunter]

Nice job so far. I am almost done with my 14' Mirrocraft project. Check it out if you'd like. https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=29545

 

[kwas]

Got any more updates on the progress?

 

[g0nef1sshn]

Just skimmed through you build a little and saw you did carpet over PT wood for the bunks. Ill be redoing my bunks soon too, but have been reading about the newer PT wood being bad for Aluminum. Are you planning on some other material to keep the hull off the carpet?

Its looking great btw!

 

[DesertRAT]

Sorry for the long delay, life just happened and I got busy doing other things. But I am now back in the game and working on the boat again.

I ripped out the old transom and put a new piece in. I ended up putting 5 coats of spar urethane on it to seal it up. This was a fairly easy process, I used the old transom as a template for the new one.

 

[DesertRAT]

The wood pieces that I had previously cut were sealed using the spar first and then stained with a colored (white) sealant/stain to help me identify which pieces were done.

 

[DesertRAT]

By the way, I decided not to paint the exterior. I got all of the old paint off and polished it up good and decided I liked the way it looked.

 

[jasper60103]

Looking good, DesertRAT.
I like the polished aluminum too.
Thanks for the update.

-jasper

 

[DesertRAT]

I took a day off to work on some more water sealing my wood and getting the sealed frame back into the boat. I am using galvanized clips and screws to hold the wood in place and then using stainless steel clips and aluminum pop rivets to fasten to boat.