My first Hull Restoration.

[sutor623]

Ok guys, last year I traded my nice little jon boat for a P.O.S. Don't know what possessed me to do it, but I guess I wanted a project. Dude gave me a bow, tilt and trim, fishfinder, trolling motors, all types of stuff because he wanted the boat gone. I KNEW I was going to have issues with it, but for some reason I let he and my dad (who almost seemed to be on his side:facepalm talk me into doing the trade. I took the boat out behind the house in late October, and it almost sunk on me. There was so much damage under the boat that it was crazy. Rotten floors, transom, horrible paint job, what a chore. Anyways, I decided to just post up the process all at once instead of a play by play. Bear with me, pics will be up in a few, as you can only post one on your threadstarter. And keep in mind that this is my very first restore

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

This is the boat when I got it. It was a '76 fiberking bomber converted to a duck boat, although I'm not sure how much duckhunting the P.O. did at the bottom of the lake. This boat is kind of odd, because all it had was a fiberglass stringer in the center of the boat. Since the foam broke down, and the wood floors were rotten, there was no support, and the bottom of the boat had huge long cracks in it. I had actually started with fiberglass repairs from the INSIDE of the hull.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

This is dad and I pouring the sweet 2 part foam and dropping in the floors. What a pain it was to keep everything tight and level. We drilled relief holes, although this time I would have drilled them bigger around. You can also see how rough of shape the bottom was in.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Here I am leveling the floors, and preparing for a full coat of poly. That was not so hard, I just got the boat level, and poured resin in sections. You can see how much nicer the bottom of the hull looks as well.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Fresh coat of one part epoxy. Transom took a lot of work to get looking clean and feeling structurally sound. Now I believe it will handle that weight of a new outboard. It is funny because you can see how the trees shifted from fall last year, all the way through spring this year. Now I am just deciding if I want to keep the boat or sell it. It is just at about my tow limit without batteries or motors.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Oh, and here is the carpet all finished.

 

[idonthaveaname]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

WOW! You guys have really put a lot of work into this project. Looks great! You should be proud. When I saw the first pictures, I just rolled my eyes, but getting to the end was a pleasant surprise!

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

WOW! You guys have really put a lot of work into this project. Looks great! You should be proud. When I saw the first pictures, I just rolled my eyes, but getting to the end was a pleasant surprise!

Thanks man, that means a lot!! I was hoping you guys would get a kick out of it. It has definitely been an experience that I never will forget!!

 

[rickryder]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Here I am leveling the floors, and preparing for a full coat of poly. That was not so hard, I just got the boat level, and poured resin in sections. You can see how much nicer the bottom of the hull looks as well.

The boat looks great!

I just had to ask about the poly??? Was there any fiberglass csm or biax used? poly alone will just crack... Unless I missed something.

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

The boat looks great!

I just had to ask about the poly??? Was there any fiberglass csm or biax used? poly alone will just crack... Unless I missed something.

Thanks man!! Yeah my dad was in charge of the floors. He used some special resin with tons of cloth mat. He has fiberglassed over wood before, Ill have to ask him what he used. He did some of the work when I was at my job.

 

[rickryder]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

That good..... as long as there was some fiberglass then your good to go

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Now to do something about that raggedy azz trailer......

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

So guys, my wife does not want me to have 3 boats. I have decided to sell this one, and my current best offer is $1100. What do you guys think about that? I have around $500 into this boat, and tons of hours, but lets face it you can only expect to get so much out of a 1976 hull.

 

[ricohman]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Great work! A your pictures are nice and big unlike the usual tiny thumbnails.
As far as price goes, you are giving away your labor if you sell it for $1100.
But there are worse hobbies to waste money on.

 

[idonthaveaname]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

So guys, my wife does not want me to have 3 boats.

And?

Seriously...without a motor? I would start the offers at about $2000. Of course, it depends on what is selling around you--I sold an open seating 12 foot fiberglass v-hull w/trailer for $1200. Check Craigslist...search under boats by entering the length of yours. Say SEARCH: 16 in title only. That will pull better results. Review pricing and condition and price accordingly.

What about steering? Tiller or will you finish it up with a console? Makes a big difference in pricing. Still...awesome little boat!

 

[sutor623]

Re: My first Hull Restoration.

Thanks for the input fellas. Well I do want a somewhat quick sale. The boat is set up for a tiller steer, but that is because there are a TON of electric lakes and ponds around here, so lots of people like the portability of the tiller steer. And according to CL, my boat and trailer is worth more than $1100, but I havent had a whole lot of interest at the $1250 price that I have it posted at. I just thought I'd see what some experienced boaters would see this boat going for. Pictures are very forgiving, the body is not immaculate, but looks good. A few chips here and there that I neglected to bondo up. But all in all it is going to make someone very happy!!