Well, Let me first tell you about myself. I am a 30 something year old self proclaimed jack of all trades and master of none. I enjoy pittling with things and seeing progress in work. I currently work as a paramedic on an ambulance in Tulsa OK, but this job is a means to the end job of a Firefighter/Para at TFD(My dream job), which I start in may/june. I am a father of 2 beautiful girls, and husband to a fox who thinks she is the boss.
Ok so here is where this all fits into this forum. Early in my marriage I coerced the "boss" into buying a boat. We drove to St Louis and bought a Larson 206 SEI. I grew up on the lake but had very little knowledge of newer boats. I grew up skiing behind my dads bass boat. The boat was a blast, well for two summers until the deck became even softer than it was prior to the purchase, and the boat became so heavy that getting onto plane sucked down half a tank of fuel. After further inspection last year, I found that the boat had a ton of wet foam, shotty deck replacement from PO, and the wood in the transom could be penetrated with a finger. Needless to say, the "Boss" swore off boating or any thought of buying another boat. So being a great husband, I begin shopping and researching repairs(where I found the iboats site). I have been reading here for quite some time and have been hesitant to get started on my project because I know what a lot of you make look so easy is actually more work than that larson is worth to me. I wasn't a fan of the boat itself anyhow.
So this is where it gets funny. The boat has a great VP 5.7GL and SX outdrive. I never had a problem with the motor or outdrive and knew that was invaluable to me. I kept my eye on CL and EBay looking for a decent project boat w/ cracked block or no motor at all. Then one day it happened. I found a Tahoe 202 on EB. Problem was that it was in Miami FL. Boat was theft recovery and was stripped of all mechanical, guages, dash, and anything else that I already had. So before FriscoBoater made the trip to Disney, for a boat that needed some work, I once again coerced the "boss" into taking a family vacation to florida and just so happened to have pulled my empty boat trailer down with us. Picked up the Tahoe for 1k and felt it was a steal. All cushions there and intact but need redone. Just a quick swap and some "minor" gelcoat work, and we would be back on the water. I have had many Ideas since I began this project and done more reading than working, I stumbled upon Ooops's novel on here which took up the better part of a month(slow reader), and learned some valuable info. I decided to replace all the hard to reach components on the 5.7 and have really found that "Ayuh" Bond'o has answered just about any question regarding the motor in a previous post. I just finished reading some more of YD's amazing info on glass repair. Don S is the man who I look for for all of the direction on where to find something else that isn't easy to find. There are many others on here that I read but the point is I have yet to have to post any questions because you guys are so dang awesome at answering q's and putting all this great info out here.
I have been working on the switch for a while now and am finding out that this site has made me somewhat of a perfectionist. I have been taking pics and will continue to post my progress here and hope that it will help someone somewhere feel that no project is too big with the help of those on this site. Also know there is already an answer for just about any question that someone new has here already.
More to follow with pics as to my "project", but just wanted to start out by thanking all of you guys(too many to mention all of), who have already helped me more than you know without ever knowing it. You are an awesome group and I hope to one day have the knowledge to continue this legacy you have began.
Very Respectfully,
Mike
Ok so here is where this all fits into this forum. Early in my marriage I coerced the "boss" into buying a boat. We drove to St Louis and bought a Larson 206 SEI. I grew up on the lake but had very little knowledge of newer boats. I grew up skiing behind my dads bass boat. The boat was a blast, well for two summers until the deck became even softer than it was prior to the purchase, and the boat became so heavy that getting onto plane sucked down half a tank of fuel. After further inspection last year, I found that the boat had a ton of wet foam, shotty deck replacement from PO, and the wood in the transom could be penetrated with a finger. Needless to say, the "Boss" swore off boating or any thought of buying another boat. So being a great husband, I begin shopping and researching repairs(where I found the iboats site). I have been reading here for quite some time and have been hesitant to get started on my project because I know what a lot of you make look so easy is actually more work than that larson is worth to me. I wasn't a fan of the boat itself anyhow.
So this is where it gets funny. The boat has a great VP 5.7GL and SX outdrive. I never had a problem with the motor or outdrive and knew that was invaluable to me. I kept my eye on CL and EBay looking for a decent project boat w/ cracked block or no motor at all. Then one day it happened. I found a Tahoe 202 on EB. Problem was that it was in Miami FL. Boat was theft recovery and was stripped of all mechanical, guages, dash, and anything else that I already had. So before FriscoBoater made the trip to Disney, for a boat that needed some work, I once again coerced the "boss" into taking a family vacation to florida and just so happened to have pulled my empty boat trailer down with us. Picked up the Tahoe for 1k and felt it was a steal. All cushions there and intact but need redone. Just a quick swap and some "minor" gelcoat work, and we would be back on the water. I have had many Ideas since I began this project and done more reading than working, I stumbled upon Ooops's novel on here which took up the better part of a month(slow reader), and learned some valuable info. I decided to replace all the hard to reach components on the 5.7 and have really found that "Ayuh" Bond'o has answered just about any question regarding the motor in a previous post. I just finished reading some more of YD's amazing info on glass repair. Don S is the man who I look for for all of the direction on where to find something else that isn't easy to find. There are many others on here that I read but the point is I have yet to have to post any questions because you guys are so dang awesome at answering q's and putting all this great info out here.
I have been working on the switch for a while now and am finding out that this site has made me somewhat of a perfectionist. I have been taking pics and will continue to post my progress here and hope that it will help someone somewhere feel that no project is too big with the help of those on this site. Also know there is already an answer for just about any question that someone new has here already.
More to follow with pics as to my "project", but just wanted to start out by thanking all of you guys(too many to mention all of), who have already helped me more than you know without ever knowing it. You are an awesome group and I hope to one day have the knowledge to continue this legacy you have began.
Very Respectfully,
Mike
