amateurhour
Well-known member
After over a year of lurking here I finally get to make a thread because I finally got a boat!
I traded a $200 Bass Pro gift card for a 1970's Aluminum V hull that was listed as a Sears (but Vermonster pointed out it's actually a Richline), a trailer, and a Briggs and Stratton 5hp (air cooled) outboard. Definitely not a bad deal for a $200 gift card right?
I told this story in the boat thread but when I brought the boat home the trailer made it 4 out of 7 miles smooth sailing. It rode very well. Then the freaking back right tire popped off the wheel halfway (the guy aired up the tire before I left as it was flat and I think it just offset it from the wheel) leaving me on the side of the highway. So here I am first night owning my first boat with no clue how to fix this scenario. I was pretty much just going to take the back road home anyway so I drove on the wobbly tire and it managed to get me home (it even popped back onto the wheel a few times) until about 3/4 of a mile from the house where it came off the wheel entirely. So I went the rest of the way on the rim, going very slowly, and hoping I wouldn't get pulled over or anything.
Thankfully the boat made it home safely and was tucked away in the garage.
I started the tear down this weekend and I've gotten a little bit of work done. I've got the before pics and some progress pics. I plan to replace both wheels/tires on the trailer and get a spare as well. The electrics, hand winch, and padding on the trailer is still in good shape so the only thing it should really need is repainting.
The Before Pics:
The front view (note the tire-less wheel )
Side view
Side view (continued)
Interior
Back (apparently it already has a name. Is it bad luck to rename a boat?)
PROGRESS PICS:
The first thing I did is try to get the motor off, but it was padlocked to the transom so after searching for a pair of boltcutters I decided that a hacksaw would be enough to take out the plastic around the lock. It now sits safely on my "motor stand"
Stupid Lock
Motor Stand
So the boat actually has two nice folding seats, and the front one has a nice support swivel plate too.
So I removed those and then took the wooden bench off the front seat to find...
FOAM! But not nasty old foam, so it must have been replaced pretty recently. Regardless, I took it out, and each bench has two long sheets in it so I'll need to replace that.
Work work work, out go the seats and foam.
I managed to get two seats done today. After I got the motor off from the back I was left with this:
As you can see, it's a mess. I took out a homemade wooden battery holder and noticed the makeshift toggle switches for the bilge pump and an older eagle depth finder up front which I'll probably get rid of in favor of a better fish finder.
So I'll need to replace those switches for a proper fuse box...
Lastly, I found the drain hole and drain plug, which barely sits in the drain hole, so I need to replace/fix that, because I don't want to sing
So that's it for now. I've still got a lot of work to go. Priority one is to finish tearing down the boat, and then get the wheels for the trailer. Then I'm getting a gas tank and gas line for the motor and make sure it's good to go, then I'll strip and prime the boat and fix any holes or leaks in it.
So you experts let me know what I'm missing or if I'm doing anything wrong. I'm excited because this is my first boat and I think it will be perfect for fishing the lakes in Nashville and camping out on the islands on said lakes.
More updates to come!
I traded a $200 Bass Pro gift card for a 1970's Aluminum V hull that was listed as a Sears (but Vermonster pointed out it's actually a Richline), a trailer, and a Briggs and Stratton 5hp (air cooled) outboard. Definitely not a bad deal for a $200 gift card right?
I told this story in the boat thread but when I brought the boat home the trailer made it 4 out of 7 miles smooth sailing. It rode very well. Then the freaking back right tire popped off the wheel halfway (the guy aired up the tire before I left as it was flat and I think it just offset it from the wheel) leaving me on the side of the highway. So here I am first night owning my first boat with no clue how to fix this scenario. I was pretty much just going to take the back road home anyway so I drove on the wobbly tire and it managed to get me home (it even popped back onto the wheel a few times) until about 3/4 of a mile from the house where it came off the wheel entirely. So I went the rest of the way on the rim, going very slowly, and hoping I wouldn't get pulled over or anything.
Thankfully the boat made it home safely and was tucked away in the garage.
I started the tear down this weekend and I've gotten a little bit of work done. I've got the before pics and some progress pics. I plan to replace both wheels/tires on the trailer and get a spare as well. The electrics, hand winch, and padding on the trailer is still in good shape so the only thing it should really need is repainting.
The Before Pics:
The front view (note the tire-less wheel )
Side view
Side view (continued)
Interior
Back (apparently it already has a name. Is it bad luck to rename a boat?)
PROGRESS PICS:
The first thing I did is try to get the motor off, but it was padlocked to the transom so after searching for a pair of boltcutters I decided that a hacksaw would be enough to take out the plastic around the lock. It now sits safely on my "motor stand"
Stupid Lock
Motor Stand
So the boat actually has two nice folding seats, and the front one has a nice support swivel plate too.
So I removed those and then took the wooden bench off the front seat to find...
FOAM! But not nasty old foam, so it must have been replaced pretty recently. Regardless, I took it out, and each bench has two long sheets in it so I'll need to replace that.
Work work work, out go the seats and foam.
I managed to get two seats done today. After I got the motor off from the back I was left with this:
As you can see, it's a mess. I took out a homemade wooden battery holder and noticed the makeshift toggle switches for the bilge pump and an older eagle depth finder up front which I'll probably get rid of in favor of a better fish finder.
So I'll need to replace those switches for a proper fuse box...
Lastly, I found the drain hole and drain plug, which barely sits in the drain hole, so I need to replace/fix that, because I don't want to sing
So that's it for now. I've still got a lot of work to go. Priority one is to finish tearing down the boat, and then get the wheels for the trailer. Then I'm getting a gas tank and gas line for the motor and make sure it's good to go, then I'll strip and prime the boat and fix any holes or leaks in it.
So you experts let me know what I'm missing or if I'm doing anything wrong. I'm excited because this is my first boat and I think it will be perfect for fishing the lakes in Nashville and camping out on the islands on said lakes.
More updates to come!