A Labor of Love

[Fishtails]

Well.....I didn't really love all the labor actually :?

So, who has an older boat that they have restored, or just done a lot of handiwork on ?? I bought our boat Lucky Enuff a little over a year ago, and I had no idea how much time, effort and $$ went into restoring a boat.

She's not totally done....maybe 85% completed. I just installed twin rebuilt mercruiser 6 cyl. 165 engines w/ electronic ignitions, Don Cook is installing the outdrives they just rebuilt and aligning the motors. I installed dual station Sea Star hydraulic steering, all kinds of new parts & gadgets, gutted and restored the boat interior, completely restored the exterior in yacht white, etc, etc, etc.

About 350+ hours later and way to much money, I'm calling it "Almost done"! Hopefully she'll now provide years of dependable service, as I plan on keeping her for awhile.

Restoring this boat was fun, but I rank it in the same category as building my house as something I'm glad I did once.....but will never do again. :shock:

[Just Fishin']

Looks AWESOME! You will enjoy her that much more after doing all that work. Best of luck.

[Legacy]

the boat looks nice but you realize that your never really "done" with a boat. just when you think you are, you think of new things to do. thats why they say "if you dont like money than buy a boat"

[MANIAC]

Nice rig Rod!!

[Billy V]

Looks great Rod! Don Cook does nice work.

[Fishtails]

Thanks guys.....I know one thing.....there ain't hardly a crack or crevice on this boat I don't know.....I kinda like being that familiar with the only thing between me and lake bottom

And you noticed I said almost done, didn't ya Legacy. I just gotta stop, but there's a few more things to keep me both busy and poor!

Here is a picture of the Sea Ray interior when I first picked it up . It was in decent running condition and got us through the season last year, but needed lots of cosmetic TLC. That's a big engine box, eh? We actually use it as a rigging station and a seat when we're on the move, and it's strong enough for two big guys to stand on without a problem.

Before restoration

After restoration:

[unkeljim]

Rod, She looks great! Good luck with her.

[JAYSPORT]

Hey, Fishtails

Your boat looks sharp. Very nice job.

Jay

[borderline 350]

Dear FishTails,

You should be very proud of your accomplishment. You have invested much time and work into an excellent 24' hull and Boat (Searay). This hull will run head on into 4' seas on Lake Ontario without cracking or failing. Yes home building is the most difficult & expensive undertaking, and then there is boat rebuilding. Another time consuming & expensive undertaking. I too, built a 2000 sq. ft home from pouring the footers to the ridge cap, 2 1/2 years of hustle! THEN I started rebuilding boats, 19' then a 22', then a 1979 24' Searay hardtop....!!!! Then I bought a new 27 Searay FBSF and put my own engines in... and finally I built one from scratch...A 23' aluminum NW style Jet Boat...another 1 1/2 year project that cost $60,000. I am now retired and enjoy the peace & quiet!! I did enjoy all the work, because it was very rewarding personally.

I am sure you will enjoy the boat, just don't forget to put the drain plug in when you launch it! (You are not qualified until you do it once!)

AND ONE FINAL tip about your Searay project. Be sure and remove the fuel pick-up pipes from the fuel tank. If they are plastic tubes pressed onto the elbow, PUT IN NEW ONES with a rigid aluminum tube. The plastic ones fall off and you will have no fuel supply!!! Been there & had a real problem finding that one!

Best Wishes for a successfull launch!

Jet Boat Bill

[Fishtails]

Thanks for the kind words Bill. I do think I will really enjoy it once I get over the sting of the mechanical bills I'm getting hit with right now. For a 24ft boat, she does handle big water very well. Trying to get it done right is very hard on the wallet.....as you of all people know!! It seem's like the mechanics find one thing after the next to fix or replace. Hopefully, it will be ready for me by the weekend. I restore things for a living, but this was my first boat, and probably my last. At least to this degree!

Thanks for that tip Bill. I may not get to look into that till fall, but in the meantime at least I have it on my mind just in case. I can imagine that one would stump me! Do I replace just the stem, or is it wise to replace the Alum. fuel tank? It has the original tank and I had been thinking it might not be a bad idea to replace it one day.

I'd love to see that boat of yours sometime!!!!!

[borderline 350]

Dear FT,

No, you don't want to replace the tank! VERY EXPENSIVE! Replacement belly tanks must be custom made....$1000 range!!.Just pull the small access panel off the floor just ahead of the engine compartment. Under there, you should find the fuel lines running into some 1/4 pipe elbows. Pull the lines off and remove the elbows from the tank. If they have plastic (rigid polyethylene) tubes, replace them with aluminum rigid tubing the same length. A small plumbing job, but very important!

Sincerely,

Jet Boat Bill