Where do I belong? Alum Goods 1687, SS16 Clone?

[renns]

OK folks, the splash happened! We had a chance to get back up to the cottage this weekend, so during the week I quickly got the boat buttoned up, strapped down, loaded, and north we went. My son did the trailer maintenance, and we had an uneventful trip. Winds were very strong though, so I ended up taking the top off the boat, and loading contents into the tow vehicle. That eliminated the flapping in the areas where the cover doesn't fit perfectly due to the windscreen re-fit. The 30mph quartering crosswind didn't help much.
Once at the water, the launch was no problem. The Yamaha purred nicely as we battled the whitecaps to get to our water-access property. Docking was a challenge, as there was another boat already on the upwind side. We needed to sneak into the spot on the downwind side, with the strong winds blowing us towards the rocky shoreline just beyond the dock. After a couple missed approaches and frantic reverses., we managed to get the mooring lines in place, with no damage to dock or new boat paint!
My phone died, but my wife has some pics I'll get added here for any spectators!
Remaining tasks:
1.) Finish mounting snaps for mooring cover.
2.) Sort out retaining method for front cushions, maybe like @Rasdiir posted.
2.) Build boxes and mount the aft folding seats.
3.) Fix Garmin 'Transducer not found' error. Hopefully just a connector issue.
4.) Skirt or sliding panels (admiral votes for sliding panels...) to cover the area under the splashwell.
5.) .... All those new ideas we'll have once we've used the boat a bit more!

Thanks again for the all the advice folks!

 

[classiccat]

STARCRAFT ON THE WATER!

Congratulations!

Looking forward to the pics!

 

[Rasdiir]

Congrats on the splash!

 

[renns]

Here she is, sitting at the dock. Still crazy windy this morning, and cool temps. Was hoping for some cruising on calm water, but this may not be the weekend for it!
Lots of other projects at camp to deal with but the boat snaps need to be sorted out before we leave, as she's in the water for the season now and I prefer rain to stay out if possible.

 

[BWR1953]

Congrats!

 

[Moserkr]

Looks great sitting on the water. Congratulations on the splash!!!!

 

[renns]

Good news! The bilge was bone dry after 48 hrs in the water. It's now moored at the cottage dock until our next trip north. The Garmin Striker transponder issue was due to operator error - old eyes didn't key the plug in the correct orientation. It's all good now. Extra snaps were added to hold the top in place, and it looks like it should shed water pretty well.

I'm loving the fuel injected Yamaha. That thing starts exactly the same every single time, whether sitting for the winter, or 15 minutes. No prime, choke, smoke, mixed fuel... Now we just need an upgrade for a tiller boat, and we can leave the mixed fuel for the chainsaw. Maybe next year?
Here's a few pics from the admiral's phone:
Moments before the 'splash'!

Loading up with gear to transport to our water-access cottage. We launched from a more remote public launch site rather than the marina, so there'd be less spectators to watch us fumble our way through the process! Fortunately, it all went pretty smoothly, and there were no technical glitches.

Some clown trying to land with strong on-shore wind. 'Put her in reverse, Terry!'


A brief run at full power showed about 32 mph in mild chop. I did swap props this winter, and my tach is still not working, so I'm not sure where I'm at on the rpm side of things. Better add the 'fix the tach' issue to my earlier list.

 

[classiccat]

Congrats on the dry bilge and the multitude of little, post-splash victories!

That boat looks perfectly suited for that gorgeous lake.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Awesome R, great pix!! Boat looks killer, so does your lake. High and dry too!

 

[piperjoe]

Just found this! What a great looking boat with the aluminum and blue paint color. I will read this entire thread and hopefully glean some helpful information for use on our boat. I am particularly interested in the engine as I consider making a change from my gas guzzler 80 hp Johnson that requires a gas and oil mix. Congratulations on splashing your boat...I'm jealous!

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[renns]

Hey gang, it's been a busy summer here, but I thought I'd post up a few pics. The SS16 clone is exceeding our expectations, hauling gear and passengers around our lake and river system with ease.

Buttoned up for night - the modified mooring cover fits pretty well over the taller windshield we installed last winter. I treated the material with two coats of Scotchbrite waterproofing, and it sheds the water pretty well. It's been neat watching the water flow down along the top of the gunnels, and overboard at the rear. Some does manage to get inside during heavy rains, as that's the only time the bilge seems to pick up water.


The Yamaha continues to run flawlessly. That outboard is the whole reason we ended up with this boat. It was the 'buy an outboard, get a free boat' kinda deal.

Lots of fun dragging family and friends around the lake!


Sightseeing - we spotted a bald eagle devouring it's catch on the shore early one morning. Unfortunately we spooked it before we could get a picture.

We bought a ladder that hangs over the side to get our rock jumpers back into the boat afterwards.

Loading up the guests and gear after a successful weekend.

Loaded up for the return trip.


And resting under the mooring cover waiting for the next adventure.

To those still in the midst of the restoration/repair project - hopefully the pics will provide some encouragement!

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Beautiful boat and amazing photos R! Great to see you having the best of times with it…looks like your efforts paid off