I joined here not long ago, because I was looking at smaller, cheaper boats that I could fish my favorite lakes with, and I just wasn't able to afford it. But, a friend of mine and I have been fishing out of his 12' Fiberglass boat for a couple years now, and I thought some of you might like to see it and what it was/what it became.
It was about 3 or 4 years ago, we finally decided to dig this boat out of the field behind his house. His parents used to take this boat out fishing back in the 60's, and it had a lot of sentimental value in his family.
So when we started with the boat, it was covered in moss from sitting for so long and the transom was rotted. The trailer was rusty, with two flat tires, both the bunks were rotted, and not to mention didn't do a very good job of holding the boat or make it very easy to load. This is the only picture I have of the boat before we started working on it, with an old Johnson Seahorse on it.
So, not long after that picture, we started working on it. Ryan (in the Hat) and his brother Andy (in the front of the boat) Spent a day cutting out the wood inside the transom, replacing it, and resealing it. Then, we stripped all the moss off, sanded it, and painted it, but there was a bit more to it than that. The trailer also got a nice wirewheel stripping, and a good coat of black rattlecan paint. A couple weeks later, this is what it ended up as.
And we fished it in that form for a couple months that year. The little 12# trolling motor and 6 horse Chrysler motor. :lol:
But, it wasn't too long before that ol' Chrysler gave out, and it was time for an upgrade. Ryan had found a good deal on a 90's Merc 9.9, and boy was there ever a difference there. His uncle also gave him an older 30# Motor Guide hand control trolling motor, which helped a lot, but was still a pain to control and fish.
It's been about two years now, and we've just been fishing it the way it was. But just before winter ended, we put some more work into the trailer. Adding guide bars, as well as redoing the bunks so that they ran forward and back, instead of side to side. It made it MUCH easier to load the boat, nearly foolproof because of the design of the hull, the outer V's force it to sit perfectly on the bunks every time. And here the other day, I got bored, and decided I'd put a nice new piece of equipment on it.
Oh man, that foot control motor was definitely what it needed. It's an Edge 45# Minn Kota. This boat is stable enough that I can stand on the front bench while using the motor, and not fall out. Not to mention not having stop fishing to correct the hand control motor every few seconds is SO much nicer. I took it out Tuesday morning on my own, and never had a single problem all day long.
It was about 3 or 4 years ago, we finally decided to dig this boat out of the field behind his house. His parents used to take this boat out fishing back in the 60's, and it had a lot of sentimental value in his family.
So when we started with the boat, it was covered in moss from sitting for so long and the transom was rotted. The trailer was rusty, with two flat tires, both the bunks were rotted, and not to mention didn't do a very good job of holding the boat or make it very easy to load. This is the only picture I have of the boat before we started working on it, with an old Johnson Seahorse on it.
So, not long after that picture, we started working on it. Ryan (in the Hat) and his brother Andy (in the front of the boat) Spent a day cutting out the wood inside the transom, replacing it, and resealing it. Then, we stripped all the moss off, sanded it, and painted it, but there was a bit more to it than that. The trailer also got a nice wirewheel stripping, and a good coat of black rattlecan paint. A couple weeks later, this is what it ended up as.
And we fished it in that form for a couple months that year. The little 12# trolling motor and 6 horse Chrysler motor. :lol:
But, it wasn't too long before that ol' Chrysler gave out, and it was time for an upgrade. Ryan had found a good deal on a 90's Merc 9.9, and boy was there ever a difference there. His uncle also gave him an older 30# Motor Guide hand control trolling motor, which helped a lot, but was still a pain to control and fish.
It's been about two years now, and we've just been fishing it the way it was. But just before winter ended, we put some more work into the trailer. Adding guide bars, as well as redoing the bunks so that they ran forward and back, instead of side to side. It made it MUCH easier to load the boat, nearly foolproof because of the design of the hull, the outer V's force it to sit perfectly on the bunks every time. And here the other day, I got bored, and decided I'd put a nice new piece of equipment on it.
Oh man, that foot control motor was definitely what it needed. It's an Edge 45# Minn Kota. This boat is stable enough that I can stand on the front bench while using the motor, and not fall out. Not to mention not having stop fishing to correct the hand control motor every few seconds is SO much nicer. I took it out Tuesday morning on my own, and never had a single problem all day long.
