Another bowrider to center console conversion

[m2bueller]

I'm in the process of gutting a 1983 Chris Craft Scorpion 168 (19'6") bowrider and converting into a center console. I've been working with fiberglass since the mid 70s so this is pretty straightforward. I will be building my own console. It will be glass over plywood.

So far I've been removing the side consoles and the bow seating area. I'll be filling in the area cutout with an underlayment of 5/8 exterior grade ply covered with 1708 mat. I will be leaving the far forward bow section for an anchor locker.

The deck is amazingly strong. There is a couple of places that they went light on the glass mat (under the original seats) that I will be laying out new decking.

I'm debating whether to pull the belly tank out to give it a thorough cleaning. This would require cutting out the center section of the deck just in front of the motor. If I go to that trouble I may cover the whole deck with ply and seal it with an even layer of glass mat. I know I'll be putting a layer of mat over the inner hull sides. When the boat was built, they sprayed a light coat of chopped glass over the foam and then planed it down to level enough to carpet over. Without the carpet it's pretty ugly.

 

[maxum247]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I wished many times that I had pulled the the tank on mine. It had sat full of gas that had evaporated down to about 10 gallons over a dozen years time. I finally got all the mess out of it this year, I think. I've had the boat about five years and most of the first two summers were spent getting on plane just to run out of gas to idle, pump the ball, get on plane and run out of gas to an idle all over again, well you get the idea. In my case there must have been a gallon of stuff in there that kept breaking loose after I'd clean the tank and adding fresh gas would break it down again and again as it sloshed around.

Be careful not to cut into the tank if you decide to remove it, make your cuts shallow, and allow yourself plenty of room around the tank and don't forget to locate the fill hose and vent line before cutting the deck so you don't cut into those if they run under the deck!

max!

 

[jonesg]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

Pull the tank for sure, make everything accessable.
That means install a big tank hatch.
Redo all hoses with new lines.
Very cheap prices here...>
http://foreanftmarine.com/3FUELSYSTEM.html

Coast guard says no more stinkin rugs in center consoles

 

[m2bueller]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I'm sold on pulling the tank. If you look at the first pic, you can see along the starboard side the fill and vent hoses exposed. Originally they were covered by the console. In the center of the deck is a black hatch. That is the access to the fittings on the tank. I've got about 3" between the deck and top of the tank. you can see the leading edge of the tank in the second pic through the ski storage in the floor. I'm toying with the idea of reversing the tank and running the hoses out the rear port side. Once I pull it out, I'll have to see if it's symmetrical fore and aft.

Any suggestions on how to make a removable panel that large in the section of the deck that will be pretty high traffic and needs to be strong?

 

[maxum247]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

Any suggestions on how to make a removable panel that large in the section of the deck that will be pretty high traffic and needs to be strong?

I don't think building a sturdy panel will be a problem.
I think the real challenge will be building a channel of some sort in the deck so water can drain away while the panel remains flush with the deck surface.

max!

 

[m2bueller]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I cut open the deck over the tank this morning. I took it easy, 1/4" deep at a time. My measurements were really close. I took the whole cut out in one piece. Should I decide to, I'll be able to use the cutout as a template. I was thinking last night on how to make a lip on the hatch so it could be removed. I'm thinking I'll take a piece of 3/4 marine grade ply and reinforce it with some 2X3 ribs crosswise underneath. To create a lip, I'll use extruded aluminum channel like they use in flooring called T molding screwed to the hatch and the deck..

Once I pulled the tank I got the surprise I was not looking forward to. There was a 3/4" ply panel between the tank and the sump area. I say was because there wasn't anything left of it other than the fiberglass skin. What I think I'll do is cut out the small section of deck that divided the tank area from the sump and build a bridge section using a PT 2X4 glassed in place. I think the reason this piece failed was because there was only a 1" drainage whole at the bottom. One oak leaf finding it's way under the deck is a sure cause of water backup down here. This will also allow me more room to run the cables for the console in a more direct route.

I'm going to be limited to how much I can work on the boat for the time being. It"s already mid 90s down here and there is no shade where the boat is parked. I can only work on it early in the morning or late in the evening.
I think I'll have to make some sort of temporary canopy for it out of tarps and PVC tubing. With the afternoon thunderstorms we get down here the inexpensive sunshades get ripped apart in a heartbeat.

 

[maxum247]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I'm wondering if you can frame out around the underside of the tank opening with 2x4's, cut a drain channel in each say a 1/2" deep by 3/4" wide and coat the 2x4's with epoxy to waterproof them and glue them to the under side of the deck opening so each drain runs straddle the edge of the deck opening and the outside edge's of your deck panel with exit drains to the rear of each channel so the deck water will drain into the rear of the tank compartment and then drain into the bilge area via a 1" pvc drain installed in the rear of the tank compartment.
The problem I see with this design is, you would need to pull the panel once in awhile to check for debree and clean the channels but would do away with the need for a lip and simple to build.

max!

 

[jonesg]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I'd use a vinyl seal around the opening, make a hardwood lip to sit the hatch on. Glass and screw the lip in place. Bolts are better.

the problem is he didn't cut the opening wide enough to accomodate a hatch lip AND get the tank in and out. If a new tank is going in, with all new lines then I would consider glassing it closed again.

or find a junked boat with a nice big molded hatch and use that.

 

[m2bueller]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

Thanks for all the suggestions. I've taken them all to heart and weighed the pors and cons of everything.

the problem is he didn't cut the opening wide enough to accomodate a hatch lip AND get the tank in and out. If a new tank is going in, with all new lines then I would consider glassing it closed again.

By "He" I guess you mean me. It's tough to tell from the pics but the tank was bolted to the stringers on either side. There is no room to make the opening any larger and stay within that section. That being said, there is also no room to create any bracketing from underneath a hatch without building out over the edges of the tank. I also don't relish the idea of trying to remove decking over the stringers unless I absolutely have to.

Another thing you can't tell from the pics is that the tank didn't sit on the hull. It was raised about 2" up. This allowed a free flow of water from the bow all the way to the sump with the exception of the rotten piece of wood I found. The front of the compartment where the tank was located is open to the old ski locker. This section was never meant to to be water tight. My plan is to replace the "dam" with a bridge to stop the rot from even happening again. This water water will flow away instead of puddling there.

Given what I'm dealing with here I decided to back cut the edges of the deck to a 45 degree angle. I will also do the same to the replacement patch. I'm planning on sealing the patch with glass. I'll be using new hoses and wires. I've inspected the inside of the tank and it looks brand new. Thankfully the PO took the time to drain it before starting the rebuilding process.

I'm also considering laying new ply and glass over the entire deck to level it out some. This would solve the problem of the deck not being level and would also shore up the sections of deck that weren't originally mean to to support weight. I'll back prime the ply with epoxy and lay an even coat of glass over the whole deck and up the sides.

 

[jonesg]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

do you know what the substructure is like beneath the rest of the deck ?
(or don't you want to know!)

It would be nice to build back some sort of hatch arrangement.

Did that old tank leak ? mine did, it was a 50 gallon galvi .

 

[m2bueller]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I can get to about 80% of the rest of the substructure. I haven't found any other rot yet. I may drill a few more holes with my 6" hole saw to check a few other places as well. To tell the truth, if I find there is enough rot to need to replace the stringers or deck, I'll get rid of the boat. That's way more project than I wanted to get into.

No, the tank doesn't leak. I filled it up with water and set it on top of newspapers overnight with no wet stops. The tank is aluminum so I don't have to worry about rust at least. I have no concerns about the tank at this point.

 

[venxxxxx]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

bump... any updates?

 

[Deanscorpion]

Re: Another bowrider to center console conversion

I can get to about 80% of the rest of the substructure. I haven't found any other rot yet. I may drill a few more holes with my 6" hole saw to check a few other places as well. To tell the truth, if I find there is enough rot to need to replace the stringers or deck, I'll get rid of the boat. That's way more project than I wanted to get into.

No, the tank doesn't leak. I filled it up with water and set it on top of newspapers overnight with no wet stops. The tank is aluminum so I don't have to worry about rust at least. I have no concerns about the tank at this point.

I also have a Chris craft scorpion which I am converting to outboard with centre console, any more recent pics