I have returned... with a Starcraft this time!

[Decker83]

Glad to see the tarp is back up.. Keep hanging in there and you'll be back at it in no time..

 

[BWR1953]

Another intruder!

This one caught and released unharmed last night. We have no idea how it was getting under the house because we didn't find a breech point anywhere, but hopefully it will have learned the lesson.

The cat wasn't feral and must have weighed 15 pounds! A true fat cat! :lol:

 

[BWR1953]

Okay, I'm out of the wheelchair and back on the job! :crutch:

Got a couple more small steps done in Phase 1b of the Kingfisher project today. Mounted the trailer walkway platform/plank. Easy, peasy.

Then we removed the spare tire carrier from the donor boat and mounted it onto the Kingfisher trailer. Did a temporary mount of the spare tire (also from the donor boat) but will need to buy the correct sized bolts and put those in place before actually traveling with the spare mounted.

The weather was perfect and I'm feeling stronger so I just had to get out there and get something done! :biggrin-new: :becky:

 

[BWR1953]

BTW - turned out that the cat we captured and released belongs to my good friend/neighbor's mother! They were happy that I turned the big kitty loose without harm. Whew! :cat:

 

[BWR1953]

Went saltwater fishing yesterday from a dock. I'm not physically able to use the little Kingfisher yet but we really wanted to get out there and give it a go. Didn't catch any fish but my wife caught a couple blue crabs which were trying to steal her bait. Also saw some manatees cruising around with their calves. Beautiful day out with the family.

Had hoped to work on the Kingfisher today but my helper wasn't available. But I'll get back to it soon!



Note the Ospreys (fish eagles) sitting on the tops of the trees. Very cool big birds!

 

[jbcurt00]

Looks like a great day at a nice spot

 

[Decker83]

Its been so long since I have wet a line, I almost forgot how..:facepalm:
Would love to spend a day out like you did..

 

[BWR1953]

Thanks guys. It was really nice getting out there to the water again even without a boat. For me, getting out at all was an awesome experience. I was basically a shut-in for over a month and confined to a wheelchair when I did go out. Dunno how I would have managed if I'd hooked into a giant redfish! Would have been fun though.

I have a couple little things left to do on the Kingfisher in this phase and will then start working on donor boat with the 50HP Mercury. Gonna try to get it running and see how it goes. If y'all recall, the compression and spark are good on that 1985 motor so hopefully it'll fire up relatively easily. Once it's running I'll remove the controls and the engine from the donor then scrap that nasty old glasser hull.

However! My wife told me something that surprised me the other day. She really likes the look of that old bass boat! There's "something" about the lines that are really pleasing to her eyes. Indeed, a sleek and sexy bass boat is always nice. Who knows what the future holds, eh?



Looking forward to getting this engine mounted on the back of the Kingfisher!

 

[BWR1953]

Did a little more work this afternoon. I thought it would only take about 5-10 minutes but it was more like 45 minutes because I'd secured the wiring so well. The next time I install a piece of electronic gear I'll make sure it works on the water before nailing it all down! :facepalm:

Anyway, we removed the defunct Eagle Z-5000 depth finder. One more thing off the checklist for this phase. At some later point I'll have to get another depth finder. Probably two. One to install on the trolling motor up front as well.

And one good thing was that the main bolt which held the DF bracket fit the spare tire holder. Installed that and cranked it down tight. Still have to buy another bolt for the bottom but at least it's rock solid now even with just one bolt.

 

[Decker83]

I know how it is in the wheel chair deal..
Hope you get the merc fired up easily..

 

[Watermann]

Glad to hear your out and about fishing not too mention poking around on the KF.

 

[dozerII]

However! My wife told me something that surprised me the other day. She really likes the look of that old bass boat! There's "something" about the lines that are really pleasing to her eyes. Indeed, a sleek and sexy bass boat is always nice. Who knows what the future holds, eh?

Looking forward to getting this engine mounted on the back of the Kingfisher!

Glad to see your getting better and able to be out on the water again. Here's what you do with a rotten old glasser when the wife likes it.

 

[BWR1953]

Thanks guys. It's been an interesting time for sure. As in the ancient Chinese curse type interesting. LOL :lol:

Trying to get up into my Chieftain the other day was extremely difficult. Gonna use a step ladder next time.

DozerII - ya know, my wife actually asked me if we could keep that glasser for that exact purpose! I gently declined. :laugh:

 

[BWR1953]

Yet another intruder. Glad we caught it before it headed over to the Chief!

Finally found the entry point though and will be reinforcing that to prevent future incursions.

 

[BWR1953]

Got a little more KF work done today.

Sanded the dings off the prop from the shallow water event we had when we went fishing the last time (in December) and got that cleaned up.

And I swapped the trailer jack from the donor boat to the KF trailer. The donor jack is retractable and I like that much better.

Small steps but progress nonetheless. :joyous:

 

[Watermann]

So the admiral has developed a reverse "Stockholm Syndrome" for that old 'Tri-Haul' glasser :heh:

 

[BWR1953]

Yahh... she's a keeper for sure!

 

[64osby]

Yet another intruder. Glad we caught it before it headed over to the Chief!



Finally found the entry point though and will be reinforcing that to prevent future incursions.

Walked out the front door last week to find one of those chewed to death. My dogs first known kill.

They are nasty animals.

Did you drop yours off at the 2 legged intruders house.

 

[BWR1953]

Walked out the front door last week to find one of those chewed to death. My dogs first known kill.

They are nasty animals.

Did you drop yours off at the 2 legged intruders house.

Speaking of the 2-legged vermin, I think that they were actually more interested in my neighbor's place than mine.

He raises and races homing pigeons. Each one is worth quite a price. He asked me to keep a close eye on his place (he already has a security system setup) a few weeks ago because he was going to be gone for a few hours one evening. Said that there had been a number of pigeon thefts nearby. Turns out that some people want the birds for voodoo rituals or to just sell for like $5 each for drug money.

I'm thinking that maybe he needs to harden his property even more than I do.

 

[BWR1953]

A couple more items checked off the list this afternoon. Slow progress but steady anyway.

Moved the Chief out of the way and repositioned the donor boat in preparation for engine testing. Charged the brand new starting battery and stuck it in the bilge area. Man, is that donor boat nasty! :blue: Had my boy start stripping parts to transfer to the KF. He liked that job and was singing as he worked. Always a good sign. After that, the bugs started to come out so we called it a day.

Next step is to connect the battery and see if the PTT works at all. Keeping my fingers crossed on that one. Then I'll pull the spark plugs and test for spark with a spark plug tester instead of the old school method. After that I'll spray carb cleaner into the carbs and crank the engine over without the plugs installed. Haven't pulled the carb cover yet but I did find a mud daubers attempt to plug the telltale tube!