What would you do?

[trollingman]

I just bought a 1998 Lund Tyee 1950. There are two bow eyes, an upper and lower. The lower is stout and very thick, it matches the dimensions of the factory bow eye (1/2" thick). The upper bow eye was thinner, this is also where the winch strap was attached. It appears the previous owner had some issues with trailering the boat and it shows. The upper had a small crack and was loose, upon closer inspection from inside the boat they also installed the interior supports sideways so the supports were only pressing against a small sliver of the bow. I believe it needs to be repaired, plus I intend to adjust to trailer to use the bottom eye because that is where the factory intended to have the winch attached. I do not believe the upper bow eye is a factory install, the previous owner probably added it to make attaching the winch easier.

Here are my questions:

1) How do you find parts for boats? I have been looking and it is very difficult. (I'm in Iowa, but looking online). It appears dealers have this locked down. I'm fine with salvage parts for this application. I just want to get the inside and outside supports for this bow eye.

As for the damage around the bow eye (pictures attached), they appear to be from the roller. I imagine the boat jumped off the roller, I'm going to attached another strap going down to prevent this in the future. It is not just paint removed, but some gouging in the hull. How would you approach this:

1) leave it be, this ain't a beauty pageant and it doesn't matter.
2) Just paint it and call it good.
3) Fill the gouges with something, then paint it.
4) You need a professional to cut, patch, weld those spots.

If you look closely at the pictures you can see a bend in the aluminum right below the bow eye. To fix that I should:

1) leave it, doesn't matter
2) put a small bead of 4200 and tap is back in to place with a mallet
3) just put a small bead of 4200 in it and call it a day, tapping it back in to shape isn't going to work.
4) something else

Overall the boat is in great shape, this is really the only part that has damage. I'm not particularly concerned with winning any restoration prizes but I want this boat to last me a while and this is the only issue that sticks out as a possible repair.

Thanks for any advice you can give, much appreciated.

 

[LDUBS]

Google boat bow eye. You will get a lot of hits.

That gap in the third pic. I wonder if that was caused because the bow eye was improperly backed, as you suspect. I would fill that gap with something like 4200. I question that you will be able to tap it back into place, but if you can, so much the better.

The way it is currently set up, the upper bow eye seems to be in the right place to me. I don't think you could use the lower one unless the winch platform is lowered quite a bit. At least 6" to 8"? I don't know, just guessing.

I would probably do a close match touchup on the places where the paint is scrapped off and otherwise not worry about it.

BTW, congrats on the new boat.

 

[trollingman]

Google boat bow eye. You will get a lot of hits.

That gap in the third pic. I wonder if that was caused because the bow eye was improperly backed, as you suspect. I would fill that gap with something like 4200. I question that you will be able to tap it back into place, but if you can, so much the better.

The way it is currently set up, the upper bow eye seems to be in the right place to me. I don't think you could use the lower one unless the winch platform is lowered quite a bit. At least 6" to 8"? I don't know, just guessing.

I would probably do a close match touchup on the places where the paint is scrapped off and otherwise not worry about it.

BTW, congrats on the new boat.

I'm going to adjust the platform down to use the lower bow eye. Looking online at pictures this is the way these boats are set up. The upper eye was probably added by the previous owner to make it easier on his back (had back problems). I'm pretty certain the best was caused by the inside brackets being vertical instead of horizontal. I already have the correct 1/2" bow eye just need the brackets to fit it. I'll probably just just use 4200 and fill the gap. Might try to tap it back in place but, if it goes easy enough great otherwise I'm not going to go crazy on it.

Thanks for the vote to just touch up the paint, it's the direction I was leaning anyway.


She isn't a perfect boat, but still pretty nice. I'm excited to get my first fish in the livewell.

 

[thill]

IF that bottom one is the factory one, see if you can adjust the winch to use it. That would be preferred.

It might be that the top one is the factory one, but someone swapped it out for a thinner gauge one. Maybe go on Amazon and buy a thicker one? They don't cost much and come quickly. Here are a couple:

3/8", which is common for aluminum boats:
https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Marine-Boat-Stern/dp/B07Q98J6Q3

1/2", more heavy duty:
https://www.amazon.com/NovelBee-2-Pack-Stainless-Washers-Length/dp/B07TLM2ZGB
If you can tap that gap closed, that would be a win.

Hope this helps.

 

[trollingman]

IF that bottom one is the factory one, see if you can adjust the winch to use it. That would be preferred.

It might be that the top one is the factory one, but someone swapped it out for a thinner gauge one. Maybe go on Amazon and buy a thicker one? They don't cost much and come quickly. Here are a couple:

3/8", which is common for aluminum boats:
https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Marine-Boat-Stern/dp/B07Q98J6Q3

1/2", more heavy duty:
https://www.amazon.com/NovelBee-2-Pack-Stainless-Washers-Length/dp/B07TLM2ZGB
If you can tap that gap closed, that would be a win.

Hope this helps.

Yep. I'm going to adjust the winch down to the bottom one. I already bought the 1/2" bow eye, I was in the process of changing it when I realized the one already installed wasn't factory.

I just need to find the correct bracing that goes inside and outside of the bow eye.

I found a guy on Facebook parting out a 1990 tyee. He is going to look, hopefully they are the same. Unfortunately, he isn't going to be able to check it out for a week.

 

[bigcity]

If you're looking for OEM hull parts, I'm willing to bet a dealer is the only place you'll find them. Same as with a car, you won't find parts to fix the glove box at a parts store. You'll have to bight the bullet on their price.
But, having said all that. How did they turn the inside bracket 90° to mount it unless it had holes that match the bow eye?? If it doesn't match the inside profile it can't be factory, IMHO.
Why can't you just get/fabricate a new inside backing plate that matches the hull profile and bolt it back on?

 

[thill]

Those parts you have look useable, with a few taps from a hammer, if needed. What is wrong with them?

Many boats just have a V-shaped block of wood in that area that distributes the load and protects the hull.

Some guys crank the boat on the trailer crazy-tight and damage their own boats, rip steel cable, tear straps, breaking teeth on the winch, and so on. It's a shame and completely unnecessary. Snug it down, strap the back and go.

 

[LDUBS]

Saw a discussion on another forum related to bow eye placement and retrieving boats. Use the lower bow eye to retrieve the boat. Use the upper one when trailering/towing the boat. Kind of makes sense.

 

[trollingman]

If you're looking for OEM hull parts, I'm willing to bet a dealer is the only place you'll find them. Same as with a car, you won't find parts to fix the glove box at a parts store. You'll have to bight the bullet on their price.
But, having said all that. How did they turn the inside bracket 90° to mount it unless it had holes that match the bow eye?? If it doesn't match the inside profile it can't be factory, IMHO.
Why can't you just get/fabricate a new inside backing plate that matches the hull profile and bolt it back on?

I imagine it didn't come with the top eye at all and they ordered the hardware for a 3/8" bow eye, drilled some holes and installed it (incorrectly). After running it loose and reaming out the holes it can now fit the 1/2" bow eye.

I might have to do some fabrication to get this working. Or I could buy another 3/8" bow eye and install correctly. It's just that the outside block barely covers the holes and I have my doubts it's going to stay in place well enough if someone puts too much torque on it.

 

[trollingman]

Saw a discussion on another forum related to bow eye placement and retrieving boats. Use the lower bow eye to retrieve the boat. Use the upper one when trailering/towing the boat. Kind of makes sense.

The upper would certainly be a lot easier to hook to when pulling the boat with a lead or trying to hook the winch on from inside the boat. I'm pretty tall and I think it will be a pain to connect the winch to the bottom one, I can only imagine how difficult to would be with a bad back. With the rollers that high up the bow they would really only give rotational support and stop the boat from lurching forward better, but very little support to carry the weight of the boat. I got the winch adjusted to the bottom eye. When moving the winch I could see slight wear marks where it used to sit. So it was on the bottom at one point.

 

[trollingman]

Those parts you have look useable, with a few taps from a hammer, if needed. What is wrong with them?

Many boats just have a V-shaped block of wood in that area that distributes the load and protects the hull.

Some guys crank the boat on the trailer crazy-tight and damage their own boats, rip steel cable, tear straps, breaking teeth on the winch, and so on. It's a shame and completely unnecessary. Snug it down, strap the back and go.

The "v" shaped aluminum could easily have the holes drilled out to the 1/2". The outside block is the issue. Now that the holes have been reamed out in the keel the block barely covers them. I could hit it with 4200 and hope the seal will hold with a sliver of overlap between the hole and block but with the holes that big I imagine someone putting too much torque on it will flex it and break the seal.

 

[thill]

I would drill and use the 1/2" that you already have. Most boats don't even have a block on the outside, so if it covers the holes, even by a little, I'd be happy. The inside blocks that distribute the load are the ones that really matter.

Do seal everything. Clean up the area, (soapy water, brake or carb cleaner or whatever) and put plenty of clear silicone or E6000 under and around it, and then clean up the excess with paper towels and Denatured Alcohol before it starts to skin over. It will be fully dry by the next day.

And that will be the end of that.

 

[thill]

...I got the winch adjusted to the bottom eye. When moving the winch I could see slight wear marks where it used to sit. So it was on the bottom at one point.

Good job!

The "v" shaped aluminum could easily have the holes drilled out to the 1/2". The outside block is the issue. Now that the holes have been reamed out in the keel the block barely covers them. I could hit it with 4200 and hope the seal will hold with a sliver of overlap between the hole and block but with the holes that big I imagine someone putting too much torque on it will flex it and break the seal.

Use plenty of sealant between the layers and tighten everything down snug, and they will be solid. Being loose is what causes the damage.