The well traveled 1979 Starcraft 18' V5 SS

[Decker83]

The floor looks great..
If the guy does a good job welding and the pressure test is good, that's all I would do to the tank..

 

[Candutch]

Everything is looking great Rob. At the rate you're going you will splash before me.

 

[dozerII]

Sorry I can't help you on the Pour15 as I have never used it. I;m thinking once the tank is repaired it is not going to be sitting in water and wet foam and should be good.

 

[oldhaven]

My experience with motorcycle tanks, and that of a lot of my friends, is that unless it is done perfectly, lining a tank is a recipe for expensive repair or replacement down the road. Two years ago I had to get a specialist to remove a failed Kreem lining from a 1948 vintage tank I was going to use. The last thing I wanted was a ruined engine from debris in the fuel that I had just spent a lot to restore. Boat motors can be more easily protected by big efficient filters, but I still have a bias against linings. POR-15 lining is among the best, but how to properly clean and prep an old metal tank without tearing it apart is a touchy problem, and if you are going that far, why line it at all.

Ron

 

[Watermann]

Thanks for the input, yeah Ron you reinforced my apprehension about using that tank liner stuff. A good cleaning of the inside I think is the best way to go and a 10 micron spin on fuel filter should do it from there. I use only non-E premium fuel and no additives snake oil in my boats so I shouldn't have an issue with that stuff laying on the bottom. I'm thinking that water and grime in the tank must have caused the corrosion. I may run some Seafoam through the old Merc but I've never added it to the tank before.

 

[laurentide]

I bought all the POR 15 tank kit stuff and it's still sitting in my shed. No issues at all so far with my 42 year old steel tank. The filter always looks clean, too. Another vote for "if it doesn't leak don't 'fix' it."

Edit: BTW, the boat is looking incredible. Another great job in progress!

 

[Watermann]

This may take a while, went by the shop that has my tank to check in and it was still laying where I dropped it off 2 weeks ago.

Good thing I'm not really in a hurry. Fellow said when I dropped the tank off that it'd be a few days, I'm thinking 3 weeks might be a bit optimistic now.

At least it's giving me some time to seal up the decking and add the pedestal seat support backers on the undersides. I got to set the drivers console in and frog tape it to the gunnel so I could get the support placement right. It felt good to sit on a 5 gallon bucket making motor boat noises. :lol:

I glued on a 12" x 14" piece of 3/4" on the under side where the helm and nav seats will bolt down. The plan is to use machine screws and T bolts. The foam board will be notched out well so it will add support too as I don't have any fishing buddies under 250.

 

[Dignified09@gmail.com]

This is an awesome rebuild you got going on, I just got done reading all of it.

Really nice paint job you got there, Mine will be similar to that actually color wise. I already have the black laid down waiting to be set back on the trailer. I have images in my head that are exciting to think about.

Also that trailer is !!! Mine is 85% complete as well.

You have been doing a really nice job, Watermann, great detail and time into this.

Question on those bunk procedures, did you counter sink holes on both sides? for the nut as well as the head of the bolts?

Also, I have HEX BOLTS, NOT LAG SCREWS. Will these work in substitute for Carriage Bolts with the same procedure followed?

Thanks.

 

[Watermann]

The side for the nuts is where the steel bunk bolsters are tightened against the bunk so no need to do any counter sink for them.

 

[g0nef1sshn]

The side for the nuts is where the steel bunk bolsters are tightened against the bunk so no need to do any counter sink for them.

Got me thinking now. When I took my old bolts off the trailer they were SS lag screws? So I got new ones and used those to hold the boards on. Any thinking as to why that would not work and there is no need to counter sink anything? They held the original bunks down 15 plus years. (If they were original but from the story and age of the trailer I dont have a reason to believe they were not?)

 

[Watermann]

I'm not saying that lags won't work, just that bolting anything on is a more secure way of mounting the bunks, especially for heavier boats.

 

[Dignified09@gmail.com]

I guess I could've guessed on the answer to that question by looking at the trailer itself haha, funny.

Watermann how we're you using the rustoleum rust remover? I'm picking up some today as I have many pieces similar to yours.

Just pouring some on the piece and scrubbing it?

 

[Watermann]

Yeah I ran a wire wheel over the area before treating to remove any loose stuff and brushed on the remover following their instructions. Just don't let the stuff dry on the surface, it's a real pain to wash it off if you do. You have to rinse it off with water which of course seems counter productive getting it wet so I used my pressure washer. After the dissolver I used rust reformer and then rusty metal primer over that before painting. I sure hope that trailer stays nice for a while to make up for all the work done.

 

[Dignified09@gmail.com]

The bottle says 30 mins on the front but 3-5 mind for aluminum on the back. A little confused as to how long I should let it on. Some pieces have the glue adhesive on them other have the rust and some have both

 

[Dignified09@gmail.com]

I've got the hang of the rust dissolver product, the 30 mins on the label refers to steel and iron, but I will vouge for this product as long as I'm talking about it, I had pieces covered in adhesive and some with good rust on them from the rivets.

Cleans up aluminum real well, although I wish I could have found it in gallon form, I only find quarts.

Did you use the bottle of reformer or the spray can? The spray can seems more controllable

 

[Watermann]

5 weeks my fuel tank was at the welding shop and as a last ditch effort to get them to work on it I decided to try and bring them on board with what I'm doing. I showed them pics of the SS and explained how I was up against a wall now and can't go any further in my rebuild until I get the tank. 2 days later I went by and the welder wanted to talk to me. He had done a magnificent job welding the new bottom on. He said when he had the bottom off he scotch bright shined up the inner sides of the tank and found no pitting. Then the bad news came....he said BUT after welding it up and pressure testing, the sides blew out about a dozen pin holes. He said he couldn't believe it as there was no visible pitting. I could tell he really felt badly as he apologized to me twice for it.

As I knew and should've stuck with in the beginning the tank was garbage but I had the hope they could just replace the bottom and all would be good. No such luck so now I'm back at square one and on the hunt for a new tank again. At least they didn't charge me for his time and labor only the material used.

 

[dozerII]

That really sucks Rob. If I remember right that tank is only about 3 or 4 inches thick right? Have you found any close to the right size?

 

[jbcurt00]

Bummer about the blow out.

I had bookmarks for 2 or 3 custom tank manufacuters on my primary computer, but the laptop motherboard gave up over a year ago.

IIRC they aere all on the east coast, so shipping would make an expensive tank even more so.

How many tank places did you get prices from before deciding to try and repair the old one?

 

[Patfromny]

Ouch, that just sucks. Looks like you're gonna learn a bit about plastic tanks in the next few weeks. Sorry bud. This is the kind of stuff that always happens to me. Although I'm a bit lighter in the pocket in the end, it does always seem to work out one way or another. Good luck with your search. If you want to repost the dimensions I'm sure you'll have a few of us helping in the search.

 

[laurentide]

That sucks. Have you priced custom aluminum? There are a few shops in the PNW, as you probably know. I'm guessing twice the cost of plastic but it'll be the perfect size and shape. But also more down time for fabrication. But, hey, you've got two other boats to use