1997 Chaparral 2330 Bowrider - Minor Restore and Refit

drewm3i

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Dec 31, 1969
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279
Looking good. I am surprised the bowrider version doesn't have the molded helm like the cuddy...Would have been a nice feature, but you are making up for it!
 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
Looking good. I am surprised the bowrider version doesn't have the molded helm like the cuddy...Would have been a nice feature, but you are making up for it!

It would have been nice. Probably due to money. Cheaper and easier. Also, it was during the transition years where the manufacturers were going to fiberglass inserts instead of carpet over everything.
 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
Where did you get the insulation from. It all looks great

Thanks Mark. It's Soundown insulation. They sell it on iboats, but I got a kit from a different vendor. I'm really happy with it. It's quite an upgrade from the OEM foam.


 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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The fronts of the rear seats were carpeted originally. I had fiberglassed them earlier, so I put on some blind nuts and gelcoated them. I used some of the engine insulation and put a vinyl/rubber trim around the sides and bottom to finish them up.










 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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The original ski locker hatch was a couple of pieces of plywood covered in carpet and screwed together.






 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
I recessed a new stainless handle and painted the aluminum trim piece to complete the hatch. The smaller hatch is the access for the fuel tank.


 

sprintst

Commander
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Apr 18, 2009
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2,066
You kept the right girl man...and this one is well built if I must say.

I need to find some better battery straps like the ones you have. All round excellent work.
 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
Thanks Sprintst. She is a keeper. The straps work really well. They hold well and are easy to take on and off.
 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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In an earlier post back before I had fiberglassed the deck, I showed how I had installed part of the new base for the seat post. I placed these stainless screw plates under the reinforced deck area under the helm seat. I had secured it under the deck and test mounted the base before fiberglassing. After fiberglassing the deck, I was able to re-drill the holes and test again. I had put some foam earplugs in each hole before fiberglassing and again before gelcoating so that it would keep the holes clear, and make it easier to find the holes in order to drill them out.


 
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NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
It worked really well. After gelcoating, I was able to find and drill out the holes and everything was going very smoothly... too smoothly.


 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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I managed to get the holes drilled and was able to get the screws to thread in the screw plate. It wasn't easy to get all the screws in when I test fit the base, but with a little work, I was able to get it to work. Sooo, I put some sealant on the base to mount it on the deck and started screwing it down. I had all 6 screws started and was screwing them in, however, when I got to the last screw it stopped halfway down. I tried backing it out. No luck. I had the infamous stainless to stainless galling that I was trying to avoid. I had thought that they were sufficiently lubricated, but alas, no.

The screw eventually sheared off and I removed the rest of the screws and the base. I was able to drill the broken screw out, but now I was worried that the galling had damaged the metal more than re-tapping could fix. I went to the hardware store and found a stainless hex head cap screw with the hex just a bit larger than the screw I was installing. I enlarged the hole in the deck to allow me to drill and tap the screw plate below the deck to accept the larger cap head screw. I then drilled and tapped through the hex on the cap head for the original screw. I screwed the cap head screw in the plate and installed the seat base without any more problems. Just another of the many minor setbacks along the way.

I like how it turned out. I just wish that the base plate had 6 hex bolts for mounting instead of three. Not worried about it functionally, just aesthetically. Maybe I'll glue some dummy bolts on just to make it look finished.


 

drewm3i

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Dec 31, 1969
Messages
279
Hah! I had the same kinds of problems when reinstalling my seat bases. First, the base was very wobbly, so I did this to fix it and it worked like a charm!

DSCN0165_zpsqvlwn5xs.jpg
Remounting my seat bases into the three pieces of wood decking was hard as I had to avoid the fuel line and the wallowed out holes. I eventually was able to lag both bases in pretty securely with some big screws into new holes. I also used plenty of sealant... The passenger side has one bolt that isn't in all the way, but it is STUCK! The glassed in plates are the way to go...I'm surprised you didn't go down that road?
 

NorthwestChap

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Mar 7, 2011
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224
I think it's on page 2 of this thread where I discuss the seat base mount. From the photos, you can see that there really wasn't a viable method of mounting to the existing materials. I am willing to bet that there was a different method used in your boat, if not because of the difference between the models, but in the inadequacy of the mounting method in my model year. The method I employed not only provides for a very solid mount, but also allows for base replacement with the removal of 3 hex bolts.
 

NorthwestChap

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Mar 7, 2011
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224
Well, since I had the helm seat installed, I figured it was time to make sure the mechanicals were working correctly. So I enlisted the help of my boating neighbor to drop her in the water. I had him pilot the boat while I set the idle and timing. We were able to cruise around for a bit and get a little break in time on the engine. Everything worked flawlessly with the exception of a couple of small items. The depth sounder did not work. It powered up, but the depth reading was blank. I had installed it using silicone sealant, so I would try epoxy next. The only other problem was that I lost a bearing buddy from the trailer. Never had that happen before. I noticed it missing after pulling the boat out so don't know if it flew off on the road or when it hit the water.

Overall, I was very happy with everything. It's nice when things come together.





 

sprintst

Commander
Joined
Apr 18, 2009
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2,066
Solid as a rock. It's gratifying after the first float justifying all that hard work. You're going to have a ton of fun on that boat.
 
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