Is it worth restoring Update (Yes lets get started!!)

[72chevelle]

First off, Me and this boat have a long history. I am a car guy and as many of you can probably attest too we need to stay the heck away from boats without researching first. this is exactly what I did. I bought an i/o with a blown motor, pulled it rebuilt it and added probably too much horsepower. So the motor in this boat is brand newly rebuilt and has and MSD box MSD distributor and brand new Holly Marine Carb. One good thing is I was smart enough to use all marine parts. Now comes the bad parts. The floors are really spongy up front and there is a visible drop where the gas tank is. I imagine if I choose to fix it I will be one of the many threads going on that are replacing the stringers transom and other supports. I have attached pictured of how the back of my boat is laid out. The rear seats have a piece of fiberglass that they are fit into. Do i just leave this hanging there and take the floors out around it? Also This boat has the OMC outdrive on it which has been badmouthed quite a bit on other forums. If I pull the motor and drop the lower unit to replace the transom should I go ahead and convert it to another setup? Basically i want to see if it is even worth working on. I have got loads of money in the motor so I would like to fix it. If I choose to I would like to. A. redo the floors and go with a textured gel-coated floor or something like that (just don't like carpet) B. Paint the exterior brown stripe blue so it looks more modern. is there a way to make the yellowed gelcoat white again? C. Re-upholster the boat with white and blue. My thoughts are anything in my price range (2 to 5 grand) will end up having the same issues as this one so I might as well just put that money in this one and have a great boat.

 

[Woodonglass]

I would NOT go back with an OMC outdrive. Totally obsolete. MercCruiser would be my choice. Check Craigslist. You'll need to totally redo the transom but that prolly needs done anyway along with the stringers and bulkheads by the sound of your description. Your pics did not post so it's hard to SEE what you're working on. Since you've invested in the motor, I'd say you could spend another 2-3K and have her back in the water and looking like she was Brand New!!!! For sure you could for $4K. When you consider the prices of New Boats, I'd say you'd be WAY AHEAD of the game to go ahead and do a total restoration IF, BIG IF, you like the style and layout of the boat and want to keep her for a while. You will NEVER recoup your money that you invest in restoring her. The only way will be from the enjoyment and use you get out of her and the savings over a New one!!! Get a Free Photobucket account and then use the IMG Code to copy and paste those pics into iBoats.

 

[72chevelle]

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://s1259.photobucket.com/user/reynola6/embed/slideshow/Boat"></iframe>

Lets try this

or this

http://s1259.photobucket.com/user/reynola6/library/Boat

 

[72chevelle]

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://s1259.photobucket.com/user/reynola6/embed/slideshow/Boat"></iframe>

Lets try this

or this

http://s1259.photobucket.com/user/reynola6/library/Boat

 

[Woodonglass]

Yeah, but.. if you click the pick you'll see the IMG Code. Copy it and paste it into your post and you'll get this...

 

[72chevelle]

Lets try this



http://s1259.photobucket.com/user/reynola6/library/Boat

 

[Woodonglass]

She looks to be all there. Like I said, If you like her Styling and could live with her for a few years and you don't mind Hot, Itchy, tedious work You could bring her back to like new, OR BETTER, condition for under $5K. Your decision

 

[72chevelle]

Lets try this

 

[72chevelle]

As you can see I am better with a motor than a computer

 

[sphelps]

As WOG posted use the IMG code over in the box on the right of your pic . It will flash copied . Then when you want to post it right click and paste .

 

[72chevelle]

So I have concluded it is time to start tearing stuff out. This will be a couple of year project. Next June I am getting married so every dollar I have is going toward that. But from now until then I am going to work on demolition and sanding all the old fiberglass off. One thought I had was to completely delete the ski locker because I do not ski and it seems to be a great place for water to collect. As I am tearing out the floor up by the bow do I need to put a brace between the glovebox and the drivers console to keep them from sagging in? I will try and find a donor boat with a Mercruiser drive and a gm v8 to basically snatch all the lower unit and exhaust I can use. Has anyone ever done this conversion before? I imagine I will need to beef up the transom to support the pressure of the lower unit.

 

[72chevelle]

Well it appears the P.O. knew about the floor rot. I am not sure if the photo will come out but they def scabbed a 2x6 under the floor and put new carpet over it. Honestly I know Karma is going to get this guy. How could you feel good about doing this to someone, and he runs a marine upholstery shop so I know he knew it was the wrong way to do that.

 

[72chevelle]

well looks like i figured out what started the rot of the floors, they gas tank must have been replaced or needed servicing so the floor was cut out over the tank and a piece of pressure treated was put in its place. Leaving all the end grain exposed on both boats and no glass laid on the pressure treated plywood (not that it would have stuck)

 

[72chevelle]

Ok so I got the seats stripped out and all the trim, now i need some help, I ma looking at the rear seat section and the front seats and wondering if there is a way to keep from cutting those out as well? They are gelcoated and look nice still. So I have a few questions.
1. Can this boat be split and the cap removed and if so how can you keep it in one piece while removing such a huge piece of fiberglass with no support.
2. If It cannot be removed as a cap should I just cut it back to the top and try and blend the gel coat later to match?