1972 15' Nova rebuild

[ezmobee]

Looks great!

 

[MNhunter1]

Couple questions for the Starmada (at least those with a closed bow):

A) anyone find a replacement solution for the thin foam like padded tape stuff used between the wood bow supports and the aluminum bow skin as a vibration dampener?

B) how is everyone securing the dash pad/cover without the fasteners visible. Mine was missing and just had carpet glued in its place, but I'd like to add one back.

Thanks!

 

[ezmobee]

A) How about this? https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dow-STYROFO...-ft-L/50071521 or similar

B) I don't think I know what you mean by dash pad. Maybe my Jupiter didn't have whatever it was. My fasteners were visible when I replace my dash panel with PVC board and I don't think it looked bad.

 

[MNhunter1]

How about this? https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dow-STYROF...e-Roll-Insulation-5-5-in-W-x-50-ft-L/50071521 or similar

Ah ha, perfect! Thanks ezmobee! I was leaning towards some of that deck joist tape similar to butyl window flashing, but it doesn't really have much padding to it...and costs a bit more too.

 

[MNhunter1]

Worked like a champ!

 

[MNhunter1]

 

[Watermann]

Hey she's coming together nicely!

 

[crankbait cowboy]

excellent work mn, looking great, and thanks for the heads up on checking out pedestal bolts before I get to far along

 

[MNhunter1]

B) I don't think I know what you mean by dash pad. Maybe my Jupiter didn't have whatever it was. My fasteners were visible when I replace my dash panel with PVC board and I don't think it looked bad.

Here's some examples of the dash cover I was referring to from other Novas. It's a 1/4"-1/2" piece of ply wrapped in vinyl and mounted to the top of the dash. Just wondering how to best secure it with the fasteners hidden. I could easily do some exposed rivets, but the look with the hidden attachment method seems so much cleaner. Maybe a few of the t-nuts with really short bolts from underneath??

 

[No-AH]

When I built my 2 consoles I had the same look before the bowectomy in my holi, I cut 1" wide pieces of 1 1/4" x .125" AL angle and drilled/SS screws/riveted from underneath wherever I could easily get too. The vinyl was laid over the panels, glued and stapled underneath beyond where they would meet the other panels. I invested in an upholstery stapler and 1/4" SS staples.

 

[MNhunter1]

I suppose it's about time for an update...

Took a week off of work to enjoy the MN spring turkey season. Put a buddy on a nice bird on Weds, filled my tag on Friday, and got my buddy's father-in-law his first bird on Mon. 3 nice Toms in 4 days of hunting. I didn't put mine on the scale, but the beard measured out at 10.5" and spurs pushed just over an inch.



On the Nova, the splashwell is now in place, yet I still need to drive in all the transom screws with some 5200 and bead the seam. Side panels are all mocked up and ready to fix into place, and the dash pad has been cut out of a 1/2" sheet of PVC which I still have to decide what color to paint.







Still undecided on what to do with the inside of the shelves behind the side panels. I was originally thinking Nautolex or vinyl, but now I'm leaning towards either painting or leaving it bare/utility. Should probably make up my mind before I secure the panels in place.

What's the consensus on attaching the kick plate to the floor? screws or rivets? Leaning towards the rivets, but I might be pushing it close on what I have left of the longer grip range.

Also yanked out one of my seats to see how the colors match. Not perfect, but close enough



On a side note...I'm not sure which is more of a pain...the aluminum flakes all over the garage from cutting, or that of the PVC. I took a router to ease over the edges of the PVC dash pad and man what a mess that made.

Oh yeah, I also got the windshield t-bolts all mocked up and locations marked for where to punch them through the new rubber seal. Not sure what I did with all my original ones, but picked up some new ones from Rockler and a little work on the bench grinder to perfect the fit a bit allowed them to slide right in. After all the work, I realized they are zinc coated steel, so not sure if I'll still use them or look for a stainless or aluminum alternative which may be difficult to find. They'll be essentially protected, and I could always hit them with a coat of paint, so it might be a non-issue. At least now with the windshield and dash pad all mocked up, I can throw some paint on the bow cover.

 

[Watermann]

Hey that's a nice gobbler you whacked!

Nova is looking super, you're getting close to making a wake. :thumb:

You can't rivet the toe kick to the deck, there's nothing for the bucktail to grab onto underneath except ply. I used SS screws on mine in the Chief and the one on the SS but that one is an odd design.

 

[ezmobee]

Looks awesome!

 

[Candutch]

Nice Tom MNHunter, I'm so jealous! They are only on draw here in Alberta and I have been putting in for 6 years now and haven't been drawn yet.They are open in British Columbia and I have an RV site out there now so I was thinking about doing some scouting around there. It's a little pricey as a non-resident but it may be my only chance to go turkey hunting.
Boat is looking fantastic as well, you've done some very good work.

 

[MNhunter1]

Windshield is mounted, dash pad complete but yet to be installed, rub rails attached. So what's the secret for re-installing the original rub rail inserts? Slide them in the same way I removed them or work them in with some sort of tool? Anything work best as a lube? I started one side of the inner rails and it's a pretty tough go after about the first foot or so.





Used WM's trick with the modified LF rivets for reattaching the rub rail. Went with 1" grip range and they worked like a champ. Stuck with the bolts where access to the back/nut was easy, but the rivets made easy work of the rest.



Love the lines of the Nova!

 

[coostv]

Coming together nicely!

 

[Tnstratofam]

She does have a James Bond/ 60's sports car feel to her. Especially with the rake of the windshield and the subtle color contrast with the alluminium trim.

I like it alot!:thumb:

 

[Dabbler_E]

Clean! It's looking sweet. I've heard that dish soap is the thing to lube the rub rail inserts

 

[Watermann]

Oh yeah looking real good! :thumb:

It helps with 2 people to the get the insert back in the rail, having one guy feed it in straight and push while you pull. Since I had some extra to cut off, I cut a bevel like an arrow in the end to thread. I also drilled a hole about a half inch in from the end of the insert, took a long 1/4" machine screw and inserted it through from the backside for a handle of sorts to pull better. If you don't have a screw with a wide enough head you can put a washer on it and a nut on the outside to sandwich the insert and you can pull like mad then.

 

[MNhunter1]

Alright...I'm trying to wrap my small brain around all this electrical wiring stuff. It's giving me a headache. Here's what I'm looking at, sans motor/controls/trim gauge which will be accommodated through the main wiring harness:

Single battery
bilge pump w/ float switch (2.5amp)
bow navigation light
stern anchor light
led cabin courtesy lights
12V auxiliary/lighter outlet (15amp)
radio (audio, no VHF) (15amp)
horn (10amp)
Hummingbird 798 FF/gps (3amp)


From the battery in the stern, run a 6 or 8 AWG positive cable to the Blue Seas 6 circuit fuse panel mounted under the dash/bow.

From the fuse panel, 16 gauge wire to:

1) radio
2) fish finder
3) 12V accessory plug
4) switch panel (navigation, anchor, courtesy lights)
5) switch panel (bilge pump)
6) switch panel (horn)

From the switch panel:

run individual leads to a terminal block under the dash/bow, terminal block leads to each accessory (nav light/anchor light/courtesy lights/bilge pump/horn)
run grounds from each switch panel indicator light to a negative bus block
run ground from each accessory back to the bus bar
6 or 8 AWG from negative/ground bus bar back to the battery

Bilge pump float switch will be directly wired to the battery with inline fuse.

Questions:
1) Do I need a battery switch for a 15ft boat with a single battery?
2) Do I need an inline fuse close to the battery? If so, what size?
3) Can I feed three separate switches for my lighting (navigation/anchor/courtesy) into one fused circuit? 15amp fuse?
4) Can I use jumpers for my switch panel indicator light grounds and run one main ground to the bus bar?
5) 6 or 8 AWG for main battery runs?
6) Is 16 gauge wire sufficient for all switch panel wiring and accessory runs?
7) Anything I missed?

Thanks!