# Found my project boat - 16' Sea Nymph



## Tin Yachtsman (Jan 9, 2011)

After a few months of looking, I finally found a project boat that I like. Here's what I think I know about her: She is a 16' Sea Nymph "Traveler" with a 60 HP Johnson, a 50# Minn Kota foot controlled trolling motor, and a Sportsman trailer. The Johnson is a model J60ELCD, and if my Internet information is correct that makes it a 1986. The trailer is listed as a 1985 on the title, so I will buy that. The hull is listed as a 1985 on the registration, so again, I will go with that. I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but the hull ID ends in "85", so maybe that confirms the year. The hull is welded. It has a nice sized live well, a bilge pump, running lights, etc. I think I got a sweet deal on her at $800. The main problem is that she has been sitting up for awhile. The steering cable seems to be frozen or locked. The outboard is going to require some attention. It does turn over, but won't run. Probably carb re-building. I haven't decided whether I am going to try to tackle it myself, let my automotive mechanic buddy give it a shot, or take it to the local Bass Pro and let them work on it. The rest of what it needs is standard, such as new decking/flooring and carpeting, electrical re-wiring, and seating. But I am looking forward to the project. My plans for her are to simply spruce her up and get her back on the water. I will be changing the bunk layout on the trailer to get rid of the rollers. I did that on my 1436 Alumacraft trailer and really liked the results. The pictures are of the "Fresh from the Yard" variety. The only thing I've done to her since these were taken is clean out the leaves. I appreciate all input or suggestions, especially from owners of similar models. If you spot something in these pictures that I need to be aware of, please point it out to me.


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## LonLB (Jan 9, 2011)

I would say you got a GREAT deal.


Nice boat.


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## BYOB Fishing (Jan 9, 2011)

I like it! Can't wait to see your progress! opcorn:


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## jasper60103 (Jan 9, 2011)

Yea, that's a pretty solid looking rig. Good deal for sure. Look forward to your progress. Enjoy!


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## Zum (Jan 9, 2011)

Looks more abused by the waether then use.
Nice find,should spruce up nicely.


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## captnchris (Jan 16, 2011)

Your galvanized Sportsman trailer (Steelco) is as good as they come. I learned this summer that the company in Santa Fe, TX, no longer exists.


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## basstender10.6 (Jan 16, 2011)

great boat, you can do a lot with that 8)


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## Nussy (Jan 16, 2011)

Can't wait to see this one play out I restored a 1980 Traveler last year. Check out the link in my signature, might give you some ideas.


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## jj97blazer (Jan 16, 2011)

I've redone my Traveler twice now. It's about to leave to get the motor runnin tuned up and checked out and everything before the season starts. I'll try to take some better picture of it and post them up for ya.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Jan 22, 2011)

Okay! First "progress" report. It's been tough to find much time to spend on the boat since I bought her. I think I've managed four hours over the past two weeks. My hopes of a quick and easy "spruce up" are looking pretty unrealistic now, too. And I probably could have found an easier part of the project to start with. BUT, aside from all of that, the work I've done on her has been fun. So I picked the floor to start with. I was hoping to pull up the floor in reasonable shape and use it as a template for a new floor. Yeah, not gonna happen. The driver's seat and livewell came out with only minor difficulty. I discovered the plywood under the livewell was very rotted and flaky. So I pulled up as much of that up as I could get out by hand. I drilled out the rivets that hold the console to the hull, unscrewed the dash from the console, and removed the console. My thinking here is that I need to make a nice diagram of the dash wiring before I disconnect the wires or I will never get it back together. The rest of the floor has become a challenge. It's glued very firmly to the foam flotation, and the plywood towards the front of the boat isn't as rotted as the back. So I ended up getting my jigsaw and started cutting out the plywood before it got dark today. 

First pic is of the area under the driver's seat where the livewell was.





Livewell out of the boat.





I made it this far pulling the floor out by hand. I disturbed a family of tree frogs and a couple colonies of termites in the process.





It's a big mess right now. Thanks for the words of encouragement and helpful links.


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## Critter (Jan 23, 2011)

I looks like a great project boat! I'm jealous you have nice enough weather to work on it. Right now it's -9 here, but the sun is out.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Jan 23, 2011)

Critter said:


> I looks like a great project boat! I'm jealous you have nice enough weather to work on it. Right now it's -9 here, but the sun is out.



Yeah, the weather hasn't been the issue. It's been family and work. I imagine it's hard to get much work done outside at those temps.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Jan 31, 2011)

Second progress report: I decided to change gears this weekend and re-wire the trailer lights. I am pleased to report that I got that done in just a couple hours. With that finished, I decided to take a crack at removing the decks. The lock nuts that attach the pedestal seats to the aluminum bracket under the decks were a pain, but most of them came off. The few that were really corroded were cut off with my Dremel. I also discovered that the bow appears to have been repaired. Please take a look at that and tell me if it was done properly.


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## mangelcc (Jan 31, 2011)

Nice find, going to be a great project!! Cant wait to see what you do to it!! Its always nice to see how fellow tin boaters turn around those project boats, bring them back to life!! Where are you from?????


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## benjineer (Feb 2, 2011)

Good deal. Galvanized trailer is probably worth that. We have a 2-axle Sportsman under an old '69 20' Seabird cuddy. Good trailer.


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## Flat Bottom (Feb 3, 2011)

I love the look of these style boats. Looks like it's in pretty rough shape, but that will make the finished product that much greater. Is that flat piece of metal? with the bolts on the bow what you were talking about when you said it was repaired? if so it doesn't look much like aluminum and i would do something else if i were you.


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## freetofish (Feb 3, 2011)

Because I am looking to up grade my jon boat and keep looking for a deal which it apears you have found, I must ask. Where did you find it. Craigs list, local newspaper add, or where... I keep looking and did find one I wanted but the guy sold it out from under me.. Oh well I guess it wasn't ment to be mine. I really would be intrested in knowing.
peace
ron


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## Tin Yachtsman (Feb 4, 2011)

Hi all. Answers to your questions: 

Freetofish: I found the boat on Craigslist. I went to look at boats as much as three hours away, but the one I ended up buying was 5 miles away from me. It took me a few months of looking to find the one I wanted. My experience on Craigslist is that you have to move fast or somebody will steal the deal from you. On the other hand, you have to make sure you're not getting scammed. I found a good seller that honored the fact I called first and gave me 24 hours to make a decision before he showed it to other buyers. Your deal will turn up.

Mangelcc: I live in Prairieville, LA, which is about ten miles south of Baton Rouge.

Flat Bottom: I'm not sure if the piece of metal bolted to the bow is aluminum or not. All I really know is that it appears to be a brace to prevent a cracked weld from spreading. How do you recommend that I repair it?

Tomorrow is my day off and I would like to get out and continue tearing down the boat, but the high will be 40 degrees and we have a 90% chance of rain. I think I will stick to an inside project!


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## Flat Bottom (Feb 4, 2011)

well there are a few ways you could do it. You could have a gusset piece welded over the crack essentially doing the same thing the metal flat bar is doing. If possible i would find and drill out the end of the crack (to keep it from cracking worse) and grind out the crack enough to get a good weld in it. Lots of other creative idea's that flat bar looks like regular metal, which will cause corrosion wherever it touches the aluminum over time. You can tell by scratching the surface of the flat bar, aluminum is soft and will scratch easily leaving a bright silverish color (new aluminum color) in the scratch.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Feb 26, 2011)

Okay guys, how do I get the steering cable disconnected? I've detached the nut on the right side of the motor and the rod on the left side. I sure thought that would do it, but it's still not coming out.


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## 427 (Feb 26, 2011)

Spray it really good with penetrating oil. Then it should just pull right out. Or may have to take something and stick through other end a tap it out.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Feb 26, 2011)

427 said:


> Spray it really good with penetrating oil. Then it should just pull right out. Or may have to take something and stick through other end a tap it out.



The entire rod should come all the way through, right? Thanks.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Sep 23, 2011)

Well, I'm a bit embarrassed by the fact that I haven't updated my project in seven months, and by how little work I've done on it in that time. I hope those of you with wives, kids, and full-time jobs can understand. I have been tinkering with it here and there, but there was never a full day to dedicate to it. A work buddy of mine gave me some of that aluminum alloy welding stuff that fixes tin cans and told me to give it a try. I was able to fix a hole in a Coke can with no problem....the two larger holes in my boat took many tries to get a decent seal. I had to take the trolling motor to a shop. The repair tab was expensive, $250, but still much less than replacing it. I have primed and painted the hull. I used self etching primer in spray cans and rolled on Parker's duck boat paint in the "Dead Grass" color. My wife affectionately refers to it as "Poo Poo Brown." I told her she doesn't have to ride in the boat if she can't fix her attitude! This week, I finally got some time off from work and have made some progress. I have cut out the plywood decks and floor and sealed them with spar urethane. I painted the floor and mixed some play sand in from my kid's sandbox reserve supply. I mocked it up and mounted the seat bases and trolling motor as motivation to myself to keep on the project. So now, from certain angles, she's starting to look like a boat again. I am off of work next week too, so I plan on getting much more done. A few current pictures:















And, as usual, I want to ask a question on something. The more I think about it, the more I think I am going to take out the live well. The fish I catch either go back in the water immediately or go in the ice chest. The live well was positioned across the boat under the driver's seat. I guess I could use it as a bait box or storage, but the idea of leaving it out and replacing it with pedestal seats seems the way to go. I don't have to wire it back up, I get more floor space, and if I need a bait bucket I can use a 5 gallon model from Wally World. Anybody care to tell me why that's a bad idea? One thing I would need to do is cap off the holes in the transom that used to go to the live well. Thanks for the advice.


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## mmf (Sep 24, 2011)

Hello and a good find! I was looking at your pix of the motor and noticed the badly corroded exaust cover stretching out to the block, I have seen this many times before as I am a marine mechanic and it is the product of electrolosis enhanced by someone running the motor in salt water and NOT running the motor in salt remover like "salt away" as should be done any time a motor is run in salt. The problem is small deposits will creep into the wee areas in the exaust cover cooling plate and baffle area and the cooling cover on the head and they are almost impossible to get out without removal of the covers/baffle. You need to tend to this corrosion immediately! It will completely destroy the aluminum and it will start to crumble apart. The bolts that hold the cover on are well known for breaking off too when trying to remove them, they MUST be heated with a small map torch to release them from the corroded threads.

Good luck with your project!


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## Tin Yachtsman (Sep 24, 2011)

Thanks for the post, MMF. Not the kind of thing I want to hear, but I appreciate you pointing it out to me. What method of repair do you suggest? You can PM me if you prefer. 

P.S. I'm a big fan of your build.


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## mmf (Sep 24, 2011)

Tin Yachtsman said:


> Thanks for the post, MMF. Not the kind of thing I want to hear, but I appreciate you pointing it out to me. What method of repair do you suggest? You can PM me if you prefer.
> 
> P.S. I'm a big fan of your build.


thanks Tin Yachtsman, other than removing the covers for inspection and replacing the gaskets, the outside needs to be cleaned/brushed good and then etched with some Jasco metal prep, it will get rid of the exterior corrosion, after it dries (overnight) rinse it off and let it dry completely then get some OMC self etching primer and prime the area with several coats followed by motor enamel.

As a note.......bolts sometime break off on the covers when trying to remove them then there is much trouble! Good luck!


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## Tin Yachtsman (Sep 29, 2011)

Today was supposed to be "Carpet the Decking Day", but after a trip to Lowe's and Home Depot, I realized that the only carpet they had with "marine backing" was charcoal gray and green. Neither color was what I had in mind, so I think I will order online. Bad planning on my part, I know. But the Teleflex steering cable arrived yesterday, so today became "Install the Steering Cable Day" instead. That only took 15 minutes, so I turned my attention to the rest of the steering, gauges, and dash dismantling.













I got everything disassembled from the dash except the tach. It looks like I have to open the OMC control box to disconnect the wiring for that. Is that right? 

I have three options that I can see for a new dash. I have plenty of 3/4" plywood left, and I could cut a new dash out of that and put some kind of trim around it. I also have some scrap 3/16" aluminum, but I am worried about it not being thick enough. My final option would be to find a nice piece of wood and stain it. Any suggestions?


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## Jay D (Sep 29, 2011)

Alunimum piece over the wood! =D>


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## Jonboat Jerry (Oct 1, 2011)

Tin Yachtsman said:


> I have three options that I can see for a new dash. I have plenty of 3/4" plywood left, and I could cut a new dash out of that and put some kind of trim around it. I also have some scrap 3/16" aluminum, but I am worried about it not being thick enough. My final option would be to find a nice piece of wood and stain it. Any suggestions?


I used a cutting board (available from Wally World) for my dash. Non conducting, cheap, and easy to cut.




Nother view





That's very good work on your rig T.Y. looks like it won't be long before you will be fishing it!


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## Tin Yachtsman (Oct 1, 2011)

You might be on to something there, Jerry. I think it's worth a try, anyway. I appreciate your optimism on the progress of my project. Fishing from it still seems months away to me. The work you've done on your project is outstanding. Thanks!


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## V8_TITAN (Oct 1, 2011)

I know you havent had it on the water yet, but would you say that there is plenty of room on that boat with the side console ? or would you rather have a tiller ? looking great so far. youll get it done soon enough.


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## Tin Yachtsman (Oct 1, 2011)

V8_TITAN said:


> I know you havent had it on the water yet, but would you say that there is plenty of room on that boat with the side console ? or would you rather have a tiller ? looking great so far. youll get it done soon enough.



It's going to be a big step up from the 14' jon I fish from now. With two people and supplies the 14' gets very cramped. The 16' has storage and much more floor space. I haven't measured the width on it, but two people sit side-by-side. I was comfortable with the tiller steering on my 14', but I am looking forward to using the console. I'm hoping that it's such an improvement that I won't soon get the itch to upgrade again!


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## mmf (Nov 15, 2011)

I remember your post now, you had the salt water corrosion. You are going to find alot of GROUNDING problems on that motor due to the electrolosis.

You need to do a spark test first with the plugs removed (easier on the starter and motor will spin faster), the ignition should at least jump a 3/8" gap and preferrably 1/2" gap. Make sure you have a good ground connection on your spark tester first where the negative battery cable connects to the block. If you have no spark on any cylinder, then you need to start at the beginning where the voltage for the powerpack is developed.....the stator.

PM or post your serial number.............


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## Tin Yachtsman (Nov 21, 2011)

mmf said:


> I remember your post now, you had the salt water corrosion. You are going to find alot of GROUNDING problems on that motor due to the electrolosis.



Hey mmf, thanks for the links and advice. I actually got the motor going today! Either I got lucky, or there was just a loose connection somewhere, because all I really did was basic stuff like replacing the plugs and checking wires. I had the muffs on the motor while it ran, and I just let it idle for about 30 seconds until I shut it off. I know you said I need to remove the exhaust cover and do some work on it, but I am not mentally prepared for possibly snapping off any bolts, so I am saving that for later. I moved directly to dropping the lower unit and replacing the impeller. I've been stuck before due to a bad impeller and I'm not going through that again. Even though it looks good, I'm replacing it. I took a few shots of my progress today. None of them are pretty...and I didn't even take a picture of the wasp nest that had been built inside the motor....but each picture shows progress being made.




This is the second time I've removed a lower unit, and it was still a PITA, but it went much smoother than the first time.




The impeller looks good, but it's going to be replaced anyway.




A little dry and rusted, but okay otherwise.




The wiring for the trolling motor is ready and waiting for me to stop screwing around and get this boat on the water. Thanks to the people who recommended genuinedealz.com as the place to go for wiring. They were great to deal with. I also have a "dash" which is a custom cut cutting board from https://www.cuttingboardcompany.com. No pictures of that right now, but I think it's going to be nice. And I guess while I am at it, I will mention that I purchased a switch panel from Gander Mountain. All kinds of things still to do on this project, and the holidays are coming up fast.


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