1979 Borum Bobcat ski boat restoration

[GT1000000]

Sam, oh Sam, oh Sam...
You da man!
Been following along this speed boat resto since it followed you home and I am digging the lines...
The wood would look Amazing!
I have no doubt it will turn out to be, yet another "sphelps" masterpiece!
I read where you asked about the bent trailer tongue and the metallic finish on the hull...
First the bent trailer tongue...
If you get a long enough piece of heavy tubing/pipe or square steel, you could clamp it to the tongue using some U-bolts at 90 degrees to the tongue, then, provided the leverage of the persuader bar doesn't lift the wheels off the ground, in which case you would have to weigh it down or anchor the trailer frame to the ground, you should be able to twist the tongue back into alignment with no ill effect on the strength of the frame...



Depending on the material its made of, I would avoid using heat of any kind...too many variables to deal with...physical force/pressure should put that back in alignment...

And as far as the metallic finish, you should be able to get good results by practicing with your spray gun, some metal flake and some inexpensive clear coat...
Mix up a small batch and spray on some surfaces all while trying to achieve an even layer of metallic particles...when dry, check your results in full, direct sunlight...adjust your technique until you feel confident with the patterning of the metal flake/metallic.
Make sure you practice on both vertical and horizontal surfaces to be sure to use the same technique...
Your goal is to get an even pattern of flake with the least amount of coats ...
Then, if/when you decide to refinish the Borum, get the actual materials you are going to spray, do a couple of small test patterns to get familiar with the product, and go to town...
The basic formula for shooting flake is a compatible primer base, base color, flake mixed in the clear, final topcoat of clear...make sure everything comes from the same manufacturer to avoid compatibility issues...
Some variations use a translucent base color with flake mixed in...
Keep in mind that shooting flake is a one time proposition and the entire project NEEDS to be done at the same time so that consistency in flake patterning rules...
Custom flake jobs are rarely ever "Matched" due to the way each individual shoots the product, along with number of coats, types of paints, etc, etc...unless the original painter has a really good memory, or documented each step, even they would have a hard time repeating the finish...
Well, one thing's for sure...
I'll be following along...
All the best,
GT1M

 

[zool]

hmm, how did I miss this one Sam!...awesome find...it looks like it would have at least 3 or 4 sq inches of hull in the water at wot

Looks a little like a Hawaiian....

 

[Willyclay]

This thread keeps getting better. Gus just rescued an unknown number of trailers. IMHO, the iboats.com forum is the single, best resource for recreational boaters!

 

[sphelps]

Arch,GT, Zool, welcome aboard ! And Wc your absolutely right about Gus and the forum ... Life wouldn't be quite as much fun without this place ! :joyous:

Now I gotta throw Gus a curve ball ..... Its not just the front square tube that's twisted on the trailer ... It seems like it must have taken an impact on the starboard side of the A-frame around the rear brace point of the tongue ... Both sides of the A-frame channel are bent to port about an inch along with the twist .. That's making it a bit cockeyed ... Gunna be hard to bend it back with out anchoring it down really well .
And as far as the metal flake paint . Not sure what direction I go . If I do the wood inlay I don't think I would use the flake idk ... One thing for sure the paint thats on there now is gunna have to be stripped .. Those bubbles are everywhere on the cap but I didn't see any on the hull . No way I'm gunna take a chance of it bubbling back under new paint .

 

[Corjen1]

Could you use a hydraulic port a power to straighten the bends,then cheater bar to straighten the tongue?

 

[sphelps]

I don't have one of those but looks like it may work . Maybe a make shift offset Ibeam long enough to span across the bent area and far enough offset to wedge a big jack in between at the bend . The only thing is you would need to cut the brace out at the back of the tongue tube . So you wouldn't have to bend both channels at the same time ..

 

[archbuilder]

I'm not sure I totally follow, but it doesn't sound like a simple fix. Port-o-powers are great, we used them in the body shop a lot. You just have to be careful not to tear up some other part when you are using them, lol! Seems like I end up using a little bit of everything when fixing stuff like this.

 

[sphelps]

Basically instead of anchoring the trailer down kinda isolate the bent part with some large blocks of wood or something . Place an I-beam across the blocks creating a void for the jack right where the bend is . i would need to fasten the the wood blocks and beam around the frame on both sides so when you pump the jack it should push the bent area back in straight maybe .. If that makes sense ....

 

[GT1000000]

Now I gotta throw Gus a curve ball ..... Its not just the front square tube that's twisted on the trailer ... It seems like it must have taken an impact on the starboard side of the A-frame around the rear brace point of the tongue ... Both sides of the A-frame channel are bent to port about an inch along with the twist .. That's making it a bit cockeyed ... Gunna be hard to bend it back with out anchoring it down really well .

You know the next thing I am gonna ask for is some good pics of the affected areas...

 

[sphelps]

Here ya go ...


Its bent right where the tongue tube ends at the cross brace ..

 

[sphelps]

I think friderday's response would be to "just back the truck into the other side silly " !!

 

[nurseman]

I think friderday's response would be to "just back the truck into the other side silly " !!

You mean that wouldn't work?????

 

[GT1000000]

From the looks of the pics, that wasn't a driving accident, Per Se, that looks like a backing and jackknifing too far, that caused ALL of the damage...including the twisted tongue...
I wouldn't be too worried about the way the frame is bent, except for when going down a very narrow lane, the trailer is probably going to crab behind the tow vehicle somewhat to the left, maybe a little into on coming traffic...but, like I said, a VERY narrow lane...probably won't crab more than a few inches to the left...
Worst case scenario, if it crabs too far, you should be able to compensate for it by adjusting the axle...
The structural stress on those frame members is in a vertical direction...so there shouldn't be any structural issues to worry about...
If you were close by, I could slap that puppy on our frame machine and straighten it out, but other than the crabbing concern, I wouldn't worry about that...
The tongue twist, I would...
But hey, if you think nailing it with your truck from the other side would work...:lol:

 

[friderday]

Correctomundo, Sam!! Notice that most boat launch parks always have more than one ramp. This is exactly why the architectural ramp engineers get paid the big bucks. One is a left sided ramp and one is a right sided ramp....AND for those who are nerdy enough to have straight trailer tongues, the center ramp is always the straight one. There ya go boys!! Girls rule and boys drool!! Oh, and nothin' fer nothin', am I the only one that noticed the REAL problem here???? You're gonna need a new strap...EW...mildew!!!

 

[Daniel1947]

With your permission sir I would like to subscribe and follow along. I am getting the impression that this will be a thread for the ages. Just like Gus's GT1M, Corjen1, Nursemas and hundreds of others. Friderday....now I know why my boat always steered to the left, I was using the wrong ramp to launch. Should have used the "right" one.

 

[sphelps]

Welcome aboard Daniel !! Don't know if this restoration will be for the ages but I'm sure it's gunna be ages before It's ready for water ... :lol:
Still have the girls Ouchita to finish up and have 2 other boats lined up before I can get real serious about digging into this one .. When the girls boat is done I will probably start a thread on the manatee fishing rig that I have planned along with doing a quicky put back together of my sil's boat ..
I must be insane !! :der:

 

[GT1000000]

I must be insane !! :der:

Not in my book...

 

[Daniel1947]

Crazy maybe, but not insane....If I wasn't sharing the "girlfriends" house, and she wasn't the wonderful woman she is (looking for some brownie points here) I probably wouldn't be attempting my rebuild. Of course if she would buy a new house with a lot larger garage, I might actually get a couple more boat projects going. Hmmmm, maybe that is a little :der: crazy.

 

[sphelps]

Daniel , If your girlfriend would do that I think she would be a definite keeper !!

Made a little introductory restoration video for the Bobcat if anyone is interested ..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvhilHou5hQ&feature=youtube_gdata
Also did some rough calculations on a possible Seacast transom /stringer pour ..
A little over a 1000 bucks for all the material .. Seems like a lot but after weighing in the time and labor maybe not so bad .. idk ..
If the center keel stringer is good I might save a few gallons..

 

[nurseman]

Thanks for the vid Sam! That should be a fun project, looking forward to seeing what you do with her!