# Boat #3 - Beginner Rebuild



## Scallen2112 (Apr 6, 2018)

My wife just shook her head, turned, and walked back inside without a word.

Boat#3 (is it even possible to have too many boats) wont be ready to fish for at LEAST a year, probably more. But, the build will be fun - especially since I have never done this before. Looking for ideas to make it a totally custom fishing machine that is a cross between a center console and a bass boat. So, what's your favorite feature you have seen in a small center console?


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## baddave (Apr 6, 2018)

baitwells w/access from both ends / walking space/ rod storage /room for a big tackle box and still have walking room/ sonar w/ gps/gps trolling mtr is super cool/ on board battery charger/raw water wash/ all stainless steel hardware if you think you might bay fish


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## Ihunt (Apr 6, 2018)

A bigger trailer? Looks too small.


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## jimbo4116 (Apr 6, 2018)

Trailer definitely needs new bunk system at the least.

Horizontal Rod Storage.  Accessible battery storage up front for trolling motor.  Easy access fuse panel.  Platforms front and back.  As much storage as possible for the necessities like PDFs, tool box, Flares, ETC.


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 6, 2018)

Ihunt said:


> A bigger trailer? Looks too small.



That was just to get it home. It is now sitting on wooden cradles for the rebuild process and the trailer is for sale on Craigslist.


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 6, 2018)

jimbo4116 said:


> Trailer definitely needs new bunk system at the least.
> 
> Horizontal Rod Storage.  Accessible battery storage up front for trolling motor.  Easy access fuse panel.  Platforms front and back.  As much storage as possible for the necessities like PDFs, tool box, Flares, ETC.



I am going to change the layout for platforms front and back, like a bass boat. I was a mechanical designer before I retired, so once I get it hogged out and start the transome, I am going to play around with it on Autocad and see how many feature (that I think I am capable of building) I can stuff into it.

I think I can get three rod tubes per side running into the front deck. I may or may not put a few on the side of the console.

I am going to have to figure out how to build front and back decks with waterproof lids that will drain around and away when I hose and scrub it down (like I had on my bass boat). Not going to be easy, as I will probably have to mock it up in wood, build a mold, and then lay it up with a foam core.

I have a 32 gig thumb drive for the PDFs....


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## Ihunt (Apr 6, 2018)

Good luck


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## jimbo4116 (Apr 6, 2018)

Scallen2112 said:


> I am going to change the layout for platforms front and back, like a bass boat. I was a mechanical designer before I retired, so once I get it hogged out and start the transome, I am going to play around with it on Autocad and see how many feature (that I think I am capable of building) I can stuff into it.
> 
> I think I can get three rod tubes per side running into the front deck. I may or may not put a few on the side of the console.
> 
> ...



Vertical holders on the CC look good going down the road but stored rods get in the way when fishing.  MHO.


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 6, 2018)

jimbo4116 said:


> Vertical holders on the CC look good going down the road but stored rods get in the way when fishing.  MHO.



Yeah, I've snagged a couple casting in my day, so probably not. This is why I don't like T-tops on smaller boats.

Got a good bit done today. Got it off of the trailer and onto supports. I will build a front full cradle when I start working in that area, but for a while I will be concentrating on the stern as I rebuilt the transom. 







Yeah, I would say it's time for a new transom






That's one big block of foam!






Got most of the structure removed in the back, and almost ready to start tearing the transom apart.


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## Lukikus2 (Apr 6, 2018)

My favorite feature on a offshore boat is a high transom.


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 6, 2018)

Lukikus2 said:


> My favorite feature on a offshore boat is a high transom.



It's not going to be offshore ( I have a Hydra Sports 2500 WA for that), but I was thinking about raising the transom some. I'm not a big fan of those deep cutouts. I think it was set up for a 20" shaft motor, so I guess I could rais it 5" and use a 25.


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## saltysenior (Apr 12, 2018)

Lukikus2 said:


> My favorite feature on a offshore boat is a high transom.



mine is a secret compartment to hide a fish 1/2'' short


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 13, 2018)

saltysenior said:


> mine is a secret compartment to hide a fish 1/2'' short



LOL...that would have to be a BIG compartment. I swear, all the trout in this system are 13-1/2" long.

I'm working on the plans in AutoCAD while I tear out the transom, floor and stringers, so that by the time I get the transom rebuilt I will know what I am puting in the rest of the boat. I'm actually thinking about adopting a feature from a G3 aluminum boat:

This is the seat in the up position






And this is when it is lowered down to increase the deck






I'm thinking of doing one more in the middle with dry storage and a fish box to the sides.


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## Steve762us (Apr 13, 2018)

How do you keep track of the weight of 
proposed additions, vs freeboard?


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 13, 2018)

Steve762us said:


> How do you keep track of the weight of
> proposed additions, vs freeboard?



The layup I will be doing on stringers, decks and components will be two layers of 1.5oz CSM and two layers of 1708 whetted to approximately 1:2 by weight. That brings the layup to approx 12.7 oz (0.8 lbs) per square foot. The plywood is approx 60lbs per sheet or 1.875 pounds per sq.ft. So 2.68 lbs (say 3 even to be on safe side) per square foot of glass covered plywood.

That's 36 lbs per cubic foot, where water is about 62 lbs per cubic foot. That will work into positive flotation and how much foam I will need. My AutoCAD layout tells me I have 68 sq. ft at the waterline mark on the hull. Looking for inches of freeboard, 68 sq. ft. converts to 5.67 cubic feet per inch x 62 lbs (water) = 351.54. So for every 350 lbs I add, the boat will lose an inch of freeboard. Right now I have 22.5"

I will be watching it, as I also have to calculate the foam.


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## Steve762us (Apr 13, 2018)

Oh, I'm concerned you may be jumping into this
without considering the ramifications.  

The 22.5" current freeboard is at lowest point
(presumably the transom), yah?

How about motor--going to larger, or from 2S
to 4S?


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 13, 2018)

Actually, the 22.5" freeboard is from the water mark left on the hull in it's previous configuration, which was about at floor level, and no, that is measure on the sides. I am raising the transom from 20" to 25" which will put it 8" lower than the gunnels. The boat was rated for a 150, but I will be putting a 90 or maybe a 115 two stroke back on. The center console will be shrinking, but I will be adding a rear deck. The floor will be raised 3" with the accompanying increase in foam. The 115 Etec I am looking at for it weighs 390 lbs, so I have to make sure to design in 6.5 cu.ft. of foam in the rear as well to achieve level flotation if swamped. Yeah, I'm not just loading it down without thinking about it.


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## Steve762us (Apr 13, 2018)

I think a lot of older boats were 'transom rated' for 2S motors, where the Coast Guard came up with their max-hp figures (somebody school me if this is wrong), and the 4S is a lot pudgier, hp to hp. 

You probably already got it in the mix, fuel/tank weights, and baitwell--15 gallons is about the lower useable limit, with good
aeration/exchange. On the baitwell, if you can rig it to pump/fill 
on plane, is a useful feature, to help keep shrimp alive.


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 14, 2018)

Trying to find a way to put a poly fuel cell under the floor, and still have the stringers I need and drainage to the bilge, and routing for all the lines to the motor, and pump, and wells, and..... i think I need a bigger boat.


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## Steve762us (Apr 15, 2018)

Sometimes options can give 
you a headache.


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## Riplukelee (Apr 15, 2018)

This is an awesome thread!!!


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## pine nut (Apr 15, 2018)

I had a Scout 185 CC and I could walk all the way to the transom.  It had a live-well on the port side and Battery stowage on the right.  It had sculpers that made clean up a lot easier than the Pathfinder I have now.  I liked the access to the motor and the stern but the clean up without fear of something stopping up the below deck tubing that drained the floor.  It was self bailing which I really enjoyed by knowing it would not sink  left in the water overnight.  It was light weight and floated like a cork.  

Before this boat I had an old 73 model Cobia 18 1/2 ft.  I put in a new transom and new stringers and floor.  The original floor was about 1/2 "  I went back with a 3/4 inch floor whick was probably a mistake because it was so much heavier.  I also cut 2" holes in every floor compartment and foamed the entire bottom, replaced the plugs and fiber glassed them back in.  All wood below decks was fiber glass encased before being placed below deck.  Made a boat that was good underway and could have taken two direct torpedo hits and not sunk but was HEAVY!  I put a lot of money and time and effort into it, but when I went to trade it for the Scout I got really burned.  It was still a 73 boat.  Just sayin'  Good luck with your build!


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## Scallen2112 (Apr 15, 2018)

Thanks, Pine Nut. This one is more about learning and giving a retired guy a project to work on. I'm not even sure I'm going to keep it after I get it done. We have a Hydra Sports 2500 WA that we can take on the Atlantic, but we cant get it up in the shallows or back in the creeks. We have a 16' Tracker Panfish that will take us way back in the creek, but it can get real dicey real quick in just the rivers when the wind starts blowing and the tide starts running, so we are limited in it to fishing really smooth days. So we are going to see if this one gives us a happy medium for trout and redfish in the sound and the rivers. If it works out, we may or may not get rid of the Tracker, as I don't want to maintain and insure three boats.

On the build side, I got all the wood out of the transom and it sanded down. Now to make the template and cut the two plywood slabs for the transom. I'm going to coat them with a couple coats of epoxy then sandwich them together with a layer of chop strand between them. Before in stalling, I am going to use a little thickened epoxy up against the outer skin to help fill dips from grinding and then a layer of chop strand and a layer of 1708 before clamping the transom in. The bottom and sides of the wood will be bedded in thickened epoxy (peanut butter) and filleted to ease the corners. Then 4 layers of glass (CSM,1708,CSM,1708). I'm raising it to a 25" transom, so I will have to grind a taper in the back skin out about 8" and wrap the glass over and tie in. A lot of fairing and sanding work ahead, But I would prefer the higher transom.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 11, 2019)

Back at it after kind of a bad year. I have the new transom in, all the old stringers and stuff removed about half way up so I can get back to building the back half, and now a plan. I went simpler than I was originally intending and deleted the back casting deck - opting instead to put in a swing-back cooler seat so I can turn around and fish (even troll) from the helm, but still have room to stand up.


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## mastercaster (Jun 12, 2019)

The facebook group  "DIY BOAT BUILDER AND REPAIR" has some very knowledgeable people and always ready to assist. I've built a couple wooden boats and loved it, I really want to do a boat like yours, but don't have the time. Maybe someday.
Good Luck!


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## watermedic (Jun 13, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> It's not going to be offshore ( I have a Hydra Sports 2500 WA for that), but I was thinking about raising the transom some. I'm not a big fan of those deep cutouts. I think it was set up for a 20" shaft motor, so I guess I could rais it 5" and use a 25.




Square off the transom and put a jack plate for the motor to mount on.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 13, 2019)

Too late. The transom is already in. I raised it to 25", so I'll have to find a used 25" shaft motor for it. Probably would be a good idea, but an added cost on a very tight budget.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 15, 2019)

New transom is in, and has it's first tabbing and layer of glass. ALMOST done hogging out all the old rotten stringers, tabbing and foam. What a chore! I'm going to leave the little bit left in the front until later to help support the shape while I build the new stern structure.


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## bilgerat (Jun 16, 2019)

check out classicseacraft.com, Its a forum dedicated to restoring classic seacraft boats, theres tons of rebuild threads on there that can give you ideas and members who have restored many boats that will be glad to give you tips and advice


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## Riplukelee (Jun 16, 2019)

Lookin good man!!!!


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## Ihunt (Jun 16, 2019)

Looking good sir.


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## Mexican Squealer (Jun 16, 2019)

Looking good...just curious though...why not put all that talent into an older boat that would really gain value with the restoration...like a Hewes, ****’s Bay or Dolphin flats boat..or an old Seacraft hull. Nice job!


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 16, 2019)

Mexican Squealer said:


> Looking good...just curious though...why not put all that talent into an older boat that would really gain value with the restoration...like a Hewes, ****’s Bay or Dolphin flats boat..or an old Seacraft hull. Nice job!



Because I got this hull for $200 with a trailer and sold the trailer for 75. This is a boat to bridge the gap in what I already have. I have a, '87 Hydrasports 2500WA with twin Honda 150s. I use it out on the ocean and the deeper parts of the sound, but I can't really get it into skinny water. Than I have a 16' Tracker Panfish that I use back in the creeks, but I can only get it on the sound and larger rivers on really calm days. Had a few tense experiences when the tide was going out and the wind coming in and ran into 2-3' rollers stacked up trying to get back to the ramp. This will probably replace the Tracker altogether, give me more range, and let me fish more areas in the sound. I probably wont sell it when I'm done, as the build will probably last the rest of my life, so I'm not really worried about resale value. Plus, it's a cheaper learning experience and one day I am going to have to put what I learn into restoring the Hydra Sports.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 16, 2019)

I did just see a 20' Dusky listed at $750 that can probably be had for a lot less though. Gave a little thought to switching over to it, but I have already put a lot of work into this one.


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## Mr Bya Lungshot (Jun 16, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> I did just see a 20' Dusky listed at $750 that can probably be had for a lot less though. Gave a little thought to switching over to it, but I have already put a lot of work into this one.



Consider this what you just said and read it again.
I seriously doubt this boat will be what you really want to spend so much time effort and money completely restoring.
Considering the actual hours and down time versus buying a better condition boat and hitting the water sooner. I know you wanted a project but that’s some serious professional restoring needed for that hull.
With boats a dime a dozen you’d come out cheaper just buying something in much better condition. Bail out while you still can.


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## bilgerat (Jun 16, 2019)

work with what ya got!!! Im sure you will have a fine fishing machine when your done, Ive redone a few over the years, restored a few whalers back in My younger days and Ive had 3 Seacrafts over the years .you cant beat the ride of their hull design. the 20' was voted 2nd best fishing boat ever by salt water sportsman magazine.
https://www.saltwatersportsman.com/top-50-sport-fishing-boats-all-time/
heres a few pics of the 3 I had. old yeller was a 20' 1972 Seafari, Lil blue was a 1973 20 septer and the Fish you were here is a 1972  25" Seafari with twin 150 black maxes. I restored all 3 with the exception of the gel coat/paint. i tried to keep them as original  looking as I could.


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## bilgerat (Jun 16, 2019)

found a pic of one of my whalers I restored back in the late  80s
and this is My latest restoration, a 1989 Henry-O 170


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## Mr Bya Lungshot (Jun 16, 2019)

Nice restored boats. It can be done if you put your mind body and soul in it.


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## bilgerat (Jun 16, 2019)

its  hobby and a passion for me, plus aint no way I could afford a new boat outfitted the way Id want one.


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## Riplukelee (Jun 16, 2019)

Mr Bya Lungshot said:


> Consider this what you just said and read it again.
> I seriously doubt this boat will be what you really want to spend so much time effort and money completely restoring.
> Considering the actual hours and down time versus buying a better condition boat and hitting the water sooner. I know you wanted a project but that’s some serious professional restoring needed for that hull.
> With boats a dime a dozen you’d come out cheaper just buying something in much better condition. Bail out while you still can.


Scallen2112
I can relate. Nothing can compare to the satisfaction of creating what you are going to create. We don’t fish because it economical. It’s the process that I love most. I think it’s the same for the restoration. You have the boat and you get to complete the journey!!! Good luck man


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 16, 2019)

Mr Bya Lungshot said:


> ..I know you wanted a project but that’s some serious professional restoring needed for that hull.
> With boats a dime a dozen you’d come out cheaper just buying something in much better condition. Bail out while you still can.



Thanks, but that actually is the point. I'm retired and have nothing but time. Before I moved down here I had a woodworking shop in my basement, but there was no where to set it up here, so this is my new building hobby. No real downtime fishing - I still have the other two boats. The Dusky would also need stripping to bare hull.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 16, 2019)

bilgerat said:


> and this is My latest restoration, a 1989 Henry-O 170View attachment 973128



Oooo - I like the lines on that!


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## bilgerat (Jun 16, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> Oooo - I like the lines on that!


yea its a cool design, rides great!!!!,this is what it looked like when i found it, it was a free-bee!!


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## boatbuilder (Jun 17, 2019)

saltysenior said:


> mine is a secret compartment to hide a fish 1/2'' short



I thought The secret compartment was for the square groupers?


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## boatbuilder (Jun 17, 2019)

I will add another vote for horizontal rod tubes.

You will want to fish Christmas creek so Definitely go self bailing and Put in as much flotation foam as you can get in it.Make the floor higher than you think it will need to be. You will appreciate this when you get swamped crossing the St. Andrews.

Make sure you feed the livewell with one of the clamshell type strainers so you can give your bait fresh while running to the Hampton river or Christmas creek.

I would skip the deck hatches and just cut access in the bulkheads.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 17, 2019)

boatbuilder said:


> I will add another vote for horizontal rod tubes.
> 
> You will want to fish Christmas creek so Definitely go self bailing and Put in as much flotation foam as you can get in it.Make the floor higher than you think it will need to be. You will appreciate this when you get swamped crossing the St. Andrews.
> 
> ...



I'm not sure I have enough freeboard to make it self-bailing. I though about that at first, but with where the original water line was on the boat, the floor would be ridiculously high for the scuppers to clear the water.

Plenty of foam going in. The aft chambers alone will provide 465 lbs of positive flotation for the engine, and there will be quite a bit throughout the rest of the boat.

I might take it to Christmas on a calm day, but I have a lot of respect for how quickly St Andrews can get ugly. But then I can always take the back way across the sound and use the back entrance to Christmas on high tide.

Haven't been up to the Hampton yet - a little out of range in the Tracker. I like the South Brunswick.


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## boatbuilder (Jun 17, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> I'm not sure I have enough freeboard to make it self-bailing. I though about that at first, but with where the original water line was on the boat, the floor would be ridiculously high for the scuppers to clear the water.
> 
> Plenty of foam going in. The aft chambers alone will provide 465 lbs of positive flotation for the engine, and there will be quite a bit throughout the rest of the boat.
> 
> ...



What is the range of the tracker? It is only about 25 miles all protected inshore from golden isles marina to pelican spit each way. You can top off your gas tank at the Hampton river marina.


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## twtabb (Jun 17, 2019)

I wish I had the time and knowledge to do something like this.
Next time you need a project I will bring you my 1988 fish and ski barge. It’s not in bad shape but would like to repair some areas and probably needs some other work I am not aware of.
Keep the pics coming of the rebuild.


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## boatbuilder (Jun 17, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> I'm not sure I have enough freeboard to make it self-bailing. I though about that at first, but with where the original water line was on the boat, the floor would be ridiculously high for the scuppers to clear the water.
> 
> Plenty of foam going in. The aft chambers alone will provide 465 lbs of positive flotation for the engine, and there will be quite a bit throughout the rest of the boat.
> 
> ...




https://m.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-nature-of-boats-dave-gerr/1111947522?ean=9780070242333

I would also recommend this book. It has the quick and easy formulas That will help you figure out the waterline and how to balance everything.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 17, 2019)

twtabb said:


> I wish I had the time and knowledge to do something like this.
> Next time you need a project I will bring you my 1988 fish and ski barge. It’s not in bad shape but would like to repair some areas and probably needs some other work I am not aware of.
> Keep the pics coming of the rebuild.



LOL - I'm a total newbie jumping in head first! I'm getting a lot of information from build threads and asking questions on The Hull Truth and from a channel called BoatworksToday.

I'll definately get that book BB. Thanks!


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 17, 2019)

boatbuilder said:


> What is the range of the tracker? It is only about 25 miles all protected inshore from golden isles marina to pelican spit each way. You can top off your gas tank at the Hampton river marina.



I've got about a six gallon tank. If I run from the launch under the bridge on the McKay, run up Hawkins creek and then up to the artificial reef at the mouth of Jove creek and back, I have used a little over half my tank.


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## boatbuilder (Jun 17, 2019)

Scallen2112 said:


> I've got about a six gallon tank. If I run from the launch under the bridge on the McKay, run up Hawkins creek and then up to the artificial reef at the mouth of Jove creek and back, I have used a little over half my tank.



You would need more than 6 gallons to get to the Hampton river.

Or use the ramp behind the red barn.


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## Scallen2112 (Jun 17, 2019)

boatbuilder said:


> ...
> Or use the ramp behind the red barn.



I keep meaning to go back in there but haven't done it yet.

I'm putting a 25 gallon tank in the CC


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## Scallen2112 (Jul 5, 2019)

Finally!!! I have all of the floor and old stringer system out. Once I clean it up I can start the actually build. I thought I would never get here. The amount of actual dirt that used to be stringer was astounding, and Nation Geographic wanted to do a special on the biodiversity of this micro-ecosystem, but the delay was not worth the money they were offering.

8::40 am



12:20 am


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## Scallen2112 (Jul 10, 2019)

Got the "knees" that, with the first bulkhead, form the rear flotation chambers bedded in, filleted, and tabbed on the inside today.








I ended up doing them two different ways. The first one I did with the same mix I used at the bottom of the transom. Epoxy thickened with cabosil and mixed with 1/4 glass fiber. This is extremely messy, almost impossible to get a nice fillet, and requires a lot of sanding with a dowel wrapped in sand paper to smooth out the fillet radius if you do not get it tabbed while it is still a putty. For some reason, I forgot about that until after I got it mixed up and only managed to get one side tabbed before it hardened. I wont be doing this again.






The other side I fit up to leave about a 3/32-1/8 gap below and behind it, mixed up a small batch of putty without the chop glass, and put it down in a blank caulking tube. I cut the end to about a 3/16 hole to start and used the caulking gun to squeeze the putty in from one side and out the other. When I had good squeeze out the entirety of the other side, I cut the nozzle back a little more, ran a larger bead all the way around both sides, and used a rounded stir stick to form it into a fillet. Easy peasy. You have to have it in position and ready and work fast for this. The tube was getting a little warm as I finished up. I threw it on the trash pile and watched what was left in it deform the tube from the heat.







I am giving some serious thought to using polyester resin from here forward. I only have two 2-1/4 gallons of epoxy left out of six, and no epoxy has touched the hull from this point forward. The bulkhead already has a layer of 1708 on the face put on with epoxy, but I think I could leave an 1/8" gap at the back of the stringers and, once dry, use the remaining epoxy to bed that and tab them to the bulkhead. I'm just worried that the polyester wont adhere as well to this old hull as the epoxy does, and I do want it to be strong.


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