re: I need some advice on classic boat restoration

After reading more on the whaler forums, it seems like a few people have used the TotalBoat stuff, and it seems to be easiest. There is only one distributor, so all of my questions would go there.

I think I'll probably try the hull first since it doesn't look as bad. Sand to see how far the damage goes, and assess from there.

Do you think I should just go ahead and drill a hole in the bottom of the transom to see if anything drains out? Completely rigged out like from the factory with 3gal of fuel, a battery, and a 130lb engine, I can pick up the entire transom. It doesn't seem too heavy (for a boat). It's not easy, but I can pick it up.


Just looked it up:

Boat = 275-ish
Engine = 128
Battery = 45
Ancillary shite = maybe 75lbs


Total = 520lbs for the whole boat. I guess that feels about right

Was the boat just sitting out in the rain? or did it have a roof over it? The foam that they used way back in the day was not closed cell. There is no real way of drying it out unless the hull is stored in day storage for a very long time.

Just took the axle off. It fell maybe 12" off of the jack and cracked. Glad I made it home from Mississippi with this boat

make sure you wear long sleeves and pants and a respirator when you get to sanding and grinding.

You would be served well to put a good fan blowing all that away from you as you work.

Update on the boat since I finally got time to mess with it over the weekend. The engine stopped running, so I had to go through and replace/clean it part by part. It is smoking, smells like it is running rich, and will only run on 1/2 choke (not full or no choke). Spark is good, and I put new plugs in it. Checked each cylinder by removing individual wires while it was running. It slowly stopped running like it should have.

So far, I have:
Replaced starter solenoid
Polished up starter bendix shaft
New terminals on battery side of wiring
Checked all wiring
Replaced plugs (and gapped correctly)
Replaced primer switch
Rebuilt carb
Adjusted carb
Replaced water pump
New lower unit fluid
Replaced all fuel lines

So rebuilt the carb, with the exception of the main jet. Someone stripped it out, so I couldn't get the thing to unscrew. I soaked it, ran some wire through it, and blew it out with compressed air. Then, I ran some Seafoam through the engine, let it sit, and ran it some more on regular 50:1. The engine still won't run correctly, still smokes sometimes, and still smells like it is running rich. Plugs look perfectly normal. Fuel pump screen wasn't clogged, but maybe the pump could use a rebuild. It has no fuel filter.

Any ideas? I haven't ever had an engine be this much of a PITA

I did the very precise finger-on-the-plug-hole test, and it passed.

It was running fine...until the starter stuff needed to be replaced, followed by the carb rebuild, fuel lines, and Seafoam. Hell, it even had old fuel in it. Seems like the more I replace on this engine, the worse it runs


*Got it figured out. I guess the seafoam cleaned up something, because the pickup tube in the bowl somehow got clogged again. Running and idling pretty well now. Next step is putting it in the water

Ill buy it right now!

I had one growing up. My dad sold it while I was away at college at LSU. Still haven’t forgiven him to this day.

Great boat! Sand it down heavily. Paint w awl grip. Enjoy!

quote:

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Paint w awl grip

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I'm gonna use TotalBoat. They already have the Whaler blue color. They told me to put down 4 coats of primer, so that sucks, but I only have to put two coats of paint on it after that. I'll probably go with three though

Boat is all solid