1990 Fibertron 15' Bass Boat Restoration

[Onenastyz]

Well im new here my name is Ian and im 20 years old so this boat is about 5 years older then me also this is my first boat it has a 60hp 2stroke suzuki outboard ive been on a crash course since I picked it up but the body seems too be in over all good shape except for some minor sun damage its a beautiful metallic blue and when the sun hits it just right it looks amazing the top is faded but it will come back with a good wet sand and buff. So I joined another boating forum before this one and they were all doom and gloom about what I asked and here it goes the carpet in the boat was wet when I got it so I immediately pulled the seats and carpet to let it start drying out I took the carpet to the car wash and power washed it off and it came out looking great when I came back from the quarter car wash with my buddy I set it out to dry. I went back and inspected the floor and its soft in a few places and I would feel most comfortable replacing it because I intend on keeping the boat. Oh I forgot about the price it was FREE and before I got a mile from where I picked it up I got an offer of 2300 while I was replacing one of the tires on the trailer at a gas station I thanked the guy for his interest but told him it wasnt for sale so I figured Id tell him I just picked it up for free less then a mile away needless to say I dont think he left a very happy camper. What do you guys think of it im really in this build 110% but the one thing that bothers me is I cant hardly find anything about these boats can anyone help me heres some pictures of it.

 

[Woodonglass]

Welcome to iBoats!
First off, It's Not a Bass Boat! I guess you can fish for Bass out of just about any kind of boat, but...That boat would not be designated as a Bass boat. 2nd the motor is missing the lower unit soooo, you'll need to start looking for one but before you do you need to do a compression check on the motor to see what it checks out to be. I'd then do a bounce check on the motor to see if the Transom has any flex in it. Boats of this vintage can have transom issues especially if they have soft floors. They could also have stringer problems below the floor. This Free Boat could end up costing between $2-3K before she's ready to put on the water. But even then, a new boat of this caliber could easily cost $30K. Do some closer inspections and let us know what you find.

 

[Onenastyz]

I have already talked to the previous owner and im meeting with him to pick up the lower unit thats a 400 part i dont have to pay for and the transom is fine what would be the designation of this boat of you know anything it more then I do but i really like this boat and if it doesn't pan out ill scrap the motor and sell the hull nothing ventured nothing gained this boat really has my attention though and when I talk to the previous owner I can ask gim why the boat was taken out of service so it can hopefully point me in the right direction so im gonna go have abeer and think about it cheers

 

[Woodonglass]

I believe it's a fibertron Sidewinder Speed Boat. What have you done to ensure and KNOW that the transom is Fine!!!

 

[sphelps]

Welcome aboard Ian ! :welcome:
Yep what you have there is one of those bonafied go fast type chick magnet speedboats . But if ya want a bass boat you can make it one by cutting the front cap off and add casting decks and live wells and such .. But WOG is right you really should dig a bit . If it has soft floors you may be in for a surprise or two below deck .
You plan on replacing the deck so that would be the time to do some core samples on the stringers and transom ..
The good news is ya got it for free so whatever money you put into it won't hurt so bad .. If you want to do this thing right you have definitely come to the right place .. Keep us posted and we will help all we can ..
Ohh almost forgot .. Do you have a title for it ? If not I would not put a nickle in it till you know you can get it registered ..

 

[Onenastyz]

No I dont have a title but i have the previous registration and in michigan boats under '20 aren't required by the state of michigan and the previous owner is signing the back of the registration which releases the boat to me then I can do what I please with it im not storing it at my property until its legally mine.

 

[Yacht Dr.]

No I dont have a title but i have the previous registration and in michigan boats under '20 aren't required by the state of michigan

Thats not entirely true there Nastyz. Permanent mounted engines need titles ( which your doesnt ).

Anyways, It shouldnt be too much trouble getting the deck out. Stringers probably wont be too harsh on ya either. Transom..yea that one might be a bit more time consuming but nothing you cant handle.

Be seeing ya

 

[gm280]

Okay :welcome: aboard onenastyz. I can see a really nice Bass Boat there after it gets relayed out. But we here on iboats like to make sure it is totally safe first. So there are certain things to do before spending any money. You have to do the investigating work properly and be ready for whatever you find. Soft spots on the floor does mean rotter wood. And couple that with the boat's age, you will have some structural issues before boating I'm betting... So start with taking tons of pictures both inside and out and then start to investigate the soft spots... Keep us posted with pictures as well and we can certainly offer assistances and suggestions on how to bring her back to whatever type boat YOU want... :thumb:

 

[Onenastyz]

Okay so who wants to hear they were right first lol ? so first I brought the boat to my house so I have a real space to work on it and the more I inspect it closer the more problems im finding my biggest worry now at this point is the transom I was inspecting the hardware that connects the outboard to the hull and they seem to have been over tightened quite a bit the fiberglass isnt cracking or anything but it definitely didn't seem right to me aside from that ive cleaned it out more and attempted to drain whatever water was stuck in the boat out so I put the trailer up and stuck an old graphite hockey stick shaft I had laying around under it and let it drain there is no transom plug in it there wasn't one in it when I picked it up it took a VERY long time to drain and after the bilge was mostly empty it still dripped for a long time there was a half dollar sized hole in the floor so I took a antenna and poked it thru and it yielded an couple inches of water under the deck and ive since taken the deck out it looks like this boat got run into a rock or ashore the rear of the hull was patched and not amazing but its good work and its water tight but aside from that this boat is janky to say the least im wayyy in over my head so theres no turning back now there is foam under the deck and its soaked so ive been breaking it apart with prybar and taking it out it smells BAD it looks to me as this was the 3rd deck that been in this boat because the 2nd deck is still partially attached in the front and the rear thats coming out too but tell me what your thoughts are and can some one please help me identify the motor the cover says its a 60hp but it says its fuel injected and im almost 99% sure they are carbs but i need to know so i can buy another ive done a wet and dry compression test and wet all 3 cylinders are about 125psi -130psi and it has spark so shes gonna run but please SOS guys any help is appreciated





I took about 5 jugs of nasty lake water out of the bottom of the boat with 2 water bottles talk about slow.
















Heres what it looked like after the first piece of rotten plywood came out it 3 pieces the foam is really nasty cutting the front section right now.

 

[MTboatguy]

In realty, that is not all that bad, I would be concerned over the transom, the rot normally migrates once it starts, so be really careful and check out that transom. For a go fast, ski boat, I would have probably taken it knowing that I was going to have to put time and money in it. I like those styles of boat, they are just neat to look at, but sometimes, they don't ride so good.

 

[gm280]

If it is any consolation, I've, as well, seen worst. But you are on the correct path now. Just don't short cut things as you go. Anything and everything rotted needs to come out first. And to do that properly, I can see the cap coming off as well. And your engine is NOT fuel injected but oil injected. That tank in the cowling area is for 2 cycle oil. There are two carbs on it as you stated. but it looks like a third carb is missing. But I have to admit, I am not a Suzuki person and therefore can't say for certain. It just looks like the lower carb is not there... So you do have a lot of work ahead of you. But you couldn't find a better place to get such help and suggestions... Post the pictures and questions...

 

[MTboatguy]

That is not the original hood on that motor, that is actually from a newer motor, which is why it says Fuel Injection on it, either that or someone put that decal on there for whatever reason, kids around here put phoney stickers on their cars and boats all of the time. But as GM stated it is an oil injection motor.

 

[Onenastyz]

Okay so can someone give me more info on the bounce check on transom because iam very curious to see how it checks out now that im knee deep in it thanks

Welcome to iBoats!
First off, It's Not a Bass Boat! I guess you can fish for Bass out of just about any kind of boat, but...That boat would not be designated as a Bass boat. 2nd the motor is missing the lower unit soooo, you'll need to start looking for one but before you do you need to do a compression check on the motor to see what it checks out to be. I'd then do a bounce check on the motor to see if the Transom has any flex in it. Boats of this vintage can have transom issues especially if they have soft floors. They could also have stringer problems below the floor. This Free Boat could end up costing between $2-3K before she's ready to put on the water. But even then, a new boat of this caliber could easily cost $30K. Do some closer inspections and let us know what you find.

 

[Woodonglass]

Pretty simple. Raise the motor up as high as she'll go then bounce on the lower leg...HARD! Check and see if the Transom Flexes even just a bit. (It shouldn't) If it does, then you'll prolly want to replace it.