I don’t think I’m in denial, we’ll see how it goes when the floor comes up. Sort of a hope for the best, mentally prepare for the worst kind of situation. One step at a time.
Most of the floor is still solid. I have one roughly 6” x 6” soft spot and a patched spot from a prior owner that I'd like to re-do. So figured I’d just do the whole floor and learn along the way. Stringer work doesn't seem too bad. I just don't have a good setup for pulling a motor - garage ceiling is way too low (so low that I have side-mount openers for my garage doors), and I don't own an engine hoist. And winter is a complicating factor as the boat will likely be stored offsite (inside cold) to keep it out of the snow.
I didn’t do the tap test myself, a family friend that owns a boat dealership did for us - their opinion was that stringers and transom were still solid, but given the boat's age, they're likely damp. So far that lines up with the core I got from the top of transom, but I understand the tap test doesn't tell all.
I’ll plan on making a new thread for the floor and/or more extensive rebuild it if comes to that. Taking it one step at a time as this kind of work is new to me.
@jonny rotten we're thinking of doing the same. Would like some adjustability from the captain's seat between me and the wife on the driver's side, and more room behind it for a cooler or some gear. We like the passenger-side back-back seat and will probably update it with a replacement unit. I already rebuilt the two rear seats next to the doghouse with 1/2" HDPE and new foam and vinyl. The rest of the interior will probably be a combination of new and old material as it's not all bad.
