Beginning my 1987 Fisherman 20 Restoration

[phatdaddy]

Fill the cavities with ping pong balls

Saw it in a Donald Duck comic book!!

[Pipe_Dream]

Looking awesome.

[oteps]

Originally Posted by phatdaddy

Fill the cavities with ping pong balls

Saw it in a Donald Duck comic book!!

I used to roadrace motorcycles. One race organization said we could only have a fuel tank that holds 4.5 gallons for endurance races. We filled the tank with 4.5 gallons of gas and the rest ping pong balls.

[Myfathersson]

Work is still progressing. With the drop in temps it's going to slow down quite a bit. But I got the welding on the trailer done, had a friend help me flip it over since my overhead welding skills are...lacking...



Then my neighbor helped me flip it back over. Carpeted up the new bunks and installed them:



Started stripping the rust off the two rims that need new tires by electrolysis:





And cut down the winch stand so that it can get extended to the proper height once I put the hull back on the trailer:



And once the new coat of paint was dryed I put the step treads back on the wheel wells:



And started tackling the sanding of the hull.











I wish I had one of these when I was a kid sanding down the bottom of dads boat every year to apply new antifouling paint:



And if all the hull sanding hadn't been enough I trimmed up the tank hatch opening excess glass from recoring the sole, and cleaned off the back of the gunnel strips and the tank hatch so they can be recored this winter:





A resupply shipment of epoxy is arriving tomorrow, I was down to only slow hardener which with the cessation of 90 degree temps made for a dead stop in any patching progress. I've got a few spots on the keel that I want to build up - it's obvious the previous owners beached her quite often, and fair out the gouges and scratches across the hull. Then I want to seal up the glass everywhere the gelcoat wore thru with a coat of epoxy before I prime and paint.

Given the new trend in temps it's looking like, barring an extended warm front, I'll put the two halves back together for the winter and pull them back apart, foam and paint in the spring. I decided that the gel coat on the gunnels is too thin so the whole shabang is going to get painted.

Next weekend I'll get the two new tires on and slip the hull back on the trailer, flip the cap, and pray that it all goes together the way it's supposed to.

My to-do list keeps growing but at least the BIG tasks have been completed.

[Myfathersson]

Well seasons change so time to button her up for the winter.

Got the battery trays glassed in place. More on those later...



And got the hull onto the refurbished trailer:



Will have to remake the forward bunk supports. Keel was sitting too low and only on the forward 1/2 of the bunk. I shimmed them up to where they will set. That'll do until she's ready to hit the road.

And sorted out the appropriate length for the winch stand and welded her back up:



Then early this morning hooked up the cap:



And flipped it right side up:



Lifted it onto some concrete blocks so I could wash it down:



And hoisted it to the sky:



And just like that they were one again:



Marrying the two back together went 100x smoother than I feared it might. Trailer lined right up, only had to shift fore and aft a couple times to get aligned, no side to side jockeying, and the lip snapped over fairly easy, it only took a little persuading with a light pry bar. Except for those pesky battery trays.

I matched the original size and placement of the trays to a tee. However, since I built my stringers 3/4" taller than the factory built theirs in order to minimize the thickness of adhesive needed, the trays are 3/4" higher than the original ones were. So the transom isn't set down tight. Thankfully the plan is to remove the cap again in the spring to finish things up, so I can simply trim the trays in place and re-glass that edge and should be right as rain.









Added some additional "rafters" to the lifting frame which will stay in place until the cap is permanently married to the hull to give good support to the winter cover:



And tucked her in for the long lonely winter:



Tomorrow I'm going to enjoy the first weekend day without a pressing task and kick back watching some football.

[phatdaddy]

Nice!!!! You also picked a great weekend to watch Michigan.

[Pipe_Dream]

Nice work!

[SkunkBoat]

[Slightly_Twisted]

Nice!!!!

[Crusty]

Nice boat. I just got a 1989 20 fisherman. I’m starting the same thing as you. We will have to stay in touch. I have the same motor as you. It’s a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. When I figure out how to post pictures, I’ll send you some.
Keep up the good work.