My boat, My story...(if you're interested)

[TOTONKA]

Hey guys,

I love this site, so many cool boats and creative ideas. I thought it would be fun to share some of the stuff I have done to my boat over the last 3 years I have had it. I wanted to buy a flat bottom as big as a battleship so it would be the last boat I ever owned. I don't have alot of money, I do something when I have saved up for it, or when I can talk the wife into it. I don't do anything until I know I can do it right.

MY STORY

I bought my Lund 2072 off ebay for $2800 from a guy who bought 2 from Lund at an employee auction. He kept the center console model and I got the side console with the duck blind mounts. I don't duck hunt, but see alot of potential in keeping the mounts as accessory mounts (like rod holders). I couldn't find a trailer before I was supposed to pick up my boat so I talked the guy into giving me a killer deal on the trailer he had for it. ($1000) When I picked it up he showed me the MSRP for the trailer and it was more than I paid for the whole shootin' match, so I was feeling pretty good. The boat was in OK condition, the electrical wiring was god awful and it didn't have a motor. I am a huge perfectionist when it comes to my equipment and I love to have projects so this boat was right up my alley.

Of course the wife was instantly pissed off, because the boat is HUGE and we only had a Honda CRV to pull it, which wasn't going to work for very long. [-X On the drive home I was talking trucks which she really loved. :evil: She also really loved the way the boat looked :---) all olive drab without carpet and no motor. Who cares what she thinks! NOT ME!! [-X This thing was the most beautiful boat I have ever seen.

I got an old Mercury 1150 that I ran up until this summer when I got a good deal on a 2000 Merc 115.

END STORY (but not really)

I am always looking for suggestions for new projects all ideas are welcome. :idea: :?: :idea: Anyway, enough with the story... here is a list of everything I did. (With limited metalworking tools) Jig saw, belt sander and hand drill and tapset. I wanted to keep the theme that this is a duck boat, in case I ever do sell...so very little is shiny.

Reinforced bow deck with 3/16 aluminum plate. (it was spongy)
Added reinforcement on back fishing deck for a second seat
Rewired all guages and lighting so they weren't so sloppy
Rearranged dash guages to my liking and made aluminum plate to make it pretty.
Covered up holes on top of steering console with another aluminum plate.
Had all aluminum plates sprayed with truck bed liner.
Made plastic transom mount for speedo peton and transducer to reduce holes in the transom
Had a buddy with a metal shop build an 8' rod locker/storage
Bow mounted a hidden electric anchor winch
Built a anchor davit out of stainless steel with SS rear rope guide pully. (etch primed then painted it satin black)
Put 2 - 8" access hatches in splashwell so I can get to bilge pumps and for winterizing
Made guide ons for boat trailer
Carpeted floor
Livewell aerator timer

Toys

Added 24V 80# thrust Minnkota (55# Motorguide wasn't enough)
Added fish locator and GPS (will add 2nd front locator)
Drink holders mount to duck blind brackets so are moveable.

Future plans? [-o<

Baitwell
Locking system for rod locker (will be Fish finder GPS storage so security is ultra important)
Bluewater LEDs in livewell
Bluewater light strips length of the boat for night vision
Ordered Fasco paint today to do a keel guard
24V onboard charger (Have it, to be installed)

 

[SlimeTime]

lol....you'll never have to worry about everyone here being interested in talking or listening about boats :wink: Sounds like a great deal, looks like a nice boat & you've already done quite a bit to her.

Take it from a 3X "loser".....keep the Mrs happy, not a lot you can do with 1/2 a boat :shock: :lol: Get her into fishing, she'll come over to your side.......

ST

 

[TOTONKA]

Oh, she loves fishing, and she has grown to like the boat. She just thinks it's a money pit. I work hard to keep the wife happy...I just need something to make her mad :twisted: #-o

 

[SlimeTime]

Oh, she loves fishing, and she has grown to like the boat. She just thinks it's a money pit. I work hard to keep the wife happy...I just need something to make her mad :twisted: #-o

lol, my 3rd wife was a money-pit Heck, I give lessons on making women mad :wink:

Next time ya got the boat & camera out at the same time, (unless you already have one), get a side shot of the boat & post, I'd like to see the whole boat.

ST

 

[FishingBuds]

Love the size of the boat, I assume you have plenty of big waters for it :wink:

Your bed liner , tell us more about it, we've had alot of questions on this stuff.

how long have you had it on and has it held up?
what kind?
would you do it again?
How many coats?

I want a 1448 jon, this will last me around my area.

Sweet job and YES post a pic of the hole boat.

 

[Waterwings]

The mods look great, and I like the idea of the hidden anchor winch! And yes, post some pics of the entire rig! 8)

 

[dedawg1149]

the boat looks great,post some more pictures so we can see the whole boat =D>

 

[Jim]

Nice boat Totonka!

That thing is a beast! =D>

 

[TOTONKA]

OK, here's the pics...sorry, it took a bit of trouble to get the quality low enough to post them.

FishingBuds

I just had a local company who does the sprayed in bed liner on trucks do the plates. It is sprayed on in one coat about 1/8" thick. It is very durable, I can't remember the brand, but I assume most of them are pretty tough because they have to be for truck beds. Most of the stuff was sprayed 2 summers ago. Innitially it was kind of shiny but dulled after the first year because I don't cover my boat. I would do it again in a heartbeat, and intend to coat a few more things. I wish they had more than just black where I went, I'd yank out all the carpet and have the whole thing sprayed.

I am in Wisconsin, close to the border of Minnesota... there is water wherever I need. I mostly fish one lake and it's not very big. (<500 acres) Now that I have the newer outboard, I will hit lakes where a reliable motor is a must, like Lakes Michigan or Mille Lacs.

 

[dedawg1149]

that truley is a beast =D>

 

[LeftCoastAngler]

Very Nice.
I'm all oohhh awe... The center consoled one sounds dreamy. That's right about what I'm in the market for next...

~LCA.

 

[Waterwings]

Thanks for posting the pics. That's one heck of a rig you got there! 2072!!! Dang, paint that sucker haze gray, stencil AFV (Assault Fishing Vessel) on it, and hit the water! 8)

 

[Zum]

Nice find...Great boat,all kinds of room to run around.

 

[FishingBuds]

NICE :shock:

Should feel safe in that one :wink:

Great on the bedliner, Man I'm tellin ya it becomes a topic on that stuff time to time, watch out for the post on bedliner they can use your input for it

 

[TOTONKA]

I think the main thing with the sprayed on liner is that some serious roughing up is nessisary otherwise it may not bond well. It's a good surface, but nothing i would do a bottom with. anything inside would rock!!!

 

[FishFry]

I think my boat could fit in that lockbox. Nice.

 

[hatch17]

Super nice boat!
What are the two chains under the boat on the trailer for?

 

[TOTONKA]

The chains are for a retractable roller system. There are 4 bunks that the boat sits on while going down the road. When loading/unloading the boat, there is a second winch that pulls those chains to bring the rollers up so they can contact the boat. They work pretty good, the boat will actually rock back and forth if I leave them up.

I just have to remember to drop them down before I pull out of the landing because I need a hill to get them to drop down on their own.

 

[Waterwings]

The chains are for a retractable roller system. There are 4 bunks that the boat sits on while going down the road. When loading/unloading the boat, there is a second winch that pulls those chains to bring the rollers up so they can contact the boat. They work pretty good, the boat will actually rock back and forth if I leave them up.

I just have to remember to drop them down before I pull out of the landing because I need a hill to get them to drop down on their own.

Sounds like a heck of a neat system for loading/unloading! Hang onto that rig you have. I looked at the 2008 Lund catalog online, and it seems the biggest jon they have now (that I saw) is a 1852.

 

[TOTONKA]

I intend to keep this boat forever, so every mod I do is in either stainless steel, aluminum or plastic. Whenever I see a DIY project where the person used plain steel screws and sheet metal, I know in a few years it will look like it's 20 years old.

Over the last few years I have drilled a few holes in the transom and the shavings that come out aren't wood, they are grey/black and fiberous . I think the transom has a carbon fiber core, does anyone know what this would be otherwise???