# My new project - 12' Sears Semi-V *Pic Update 3/21*



## Rick James (May 24, 2010)

So after weeks of lurking here, I finally have some pics to share of my newly acquired project boat.

I started with a new Harbor Freight trailer. So far I'm impressed with the trailer, however I gotta say I don't know how you could get a boat any larger than 12' on this unless you had the transom several feet behind the trailer. It's perfect though for a 12' boat. The factory bunks suck, that's one of the things I plan to modify pretty quickly. I've also ordered a pair of 2047 Bearing Buddys, I'd like to keep the stock bearings in as good of shape as possible. Right now it's setup with the factory dust caps, but I'll pull the bearings and clean everything, along with a repacking when the new Bearing Buddys get here.

The boat came from my Father in Law. He has had it since the early 1980's and it's been used very little. I have to do some research from the HIN and serial numbers, but my best guess is that it's a late 70's model. The boat is a Sears that is mostly welded, and a pretty heavy and well built boat. It's pretty wide and deep compared to other 12' boats I've seen. It's about 24" at the deepest part of the hull, and 46" across the widest flat part in the bottom, and 60" across the widest part of the gunwhales. 

It has some small dents in the gunwhales where someone probably tied it down too tightly on top of a truck or car, but other than that.......the boat is in great shape structurally. It will definitely need a new transom, and I'll be filling it with water this weekend to see if there are any leaks. If no leaks, I'll just start fishing it as soon as I can get it registered, and start modding as time/money permit.

Plans as of now, are to see how stable it is when standing on the benches, and then deciding if I deck the front off, or simply put in a slightly raised floor between the existing benches. If I can get a deck on the front, I'll deck to the back of the middle bench, and put in a couple of hatches and move my batteries to just in front of the middle bench. I'll also deck off the back bench to the transom and have a hatch for gas and access to a bilge. Plans are to wire it for a bilge, front and rear sonar, running lights, and a bow mount foot control trolling motor. I will also be applying steelflex to the bottom, and then painting the top section a different color for the two tone look. Not sure on colors yet.

I just picked the hull up yesterday, and unfortunately am out of town this entire week for work. I'm hoping to get some work done this upcoming weekend, and will post more updates when I have progress to share.

For now...........some pics!


----------



## DarkstarCrashes (May 24, 2010)

Nice, looks just like mine did except yours came in good shape, haha. Look forward to seeing what you do with it.


----------



## Rick James (Jun 2, 2010)

Well, I sold my canoe setup this weekend to free up some $$$ for this project. Now I've got a fire under my butt, no more fishing until I can get this thing on the water. :mrgreen: 

Did the leak test on Monday. Filled it to the top of all rivets on the boat. No issues and I'm thrilled to see this.

I've got a list of things I'll be working on this weekend. I'll be tearing out the transom for sure. Also the boat has some dents in the gunwhales from where someone overtightened some ratchet straps when mounting on their vehicle. I'm planning to fill these in with JB Weld like evattman did with his 14' "Lund".

I also just found an absolute steal on Skid No More. I just got two gallons shipped to my house for $50 - with 2 day shipping included. Found this on Amazon. After the JB Weld cures, I'll be applying the Skid No More to the entire interior, and up and over the edge of the gunwhales.

After the Skid No More is dry and cured, I'll get to putting the new transom wood in place and getting that all sealed up with stainless hardware and 5200.

If time permits, I'll also be tearing the factory dust covers off the hubs and installing new bearing buddies. I ordered the 2047 size with bras. I'll completely clean the hubs, and bearings, and repack everything with new grease before putting these on. I'll also be trying to get new trailer bunks on this. I want a longer full length bunk on both sides, I really hate the factory pivoting bunks on this thing, the only thing supporting the front 8' or so of the boat is the roller above the eye on the front of the bow. This will hopefully be a bit more secure when I get the new bunks on.

I'll post some updates when I'm done with these projects this weekend. Hopefully the weather holds out for me so I can work outside. [-o<


----------



## Rick James (Jun 4, 2010)

Tonight I ripped out the old transom, transom brace, and rivets, and washed/scrubbed the inside. I also filled the dents in the gunwhales with JB Weld Waterweld. Tomorrow I'll sand down the gunwhales so the filled parts blend, sand the inside of hull (vertical sides only where it's exposed above the soon-to-be raised floors, where I'm applying the Skid No More), and will apply the Skid No More so it's on the vertical sides of the inside on the hull, up and over the gunwhale. 

I also picked up a sheet of 3/4" hardwood sanded ply as well and tonight I got the new transom cut, glued, and curing in the garage with 100lbs of weights stacked on top. I'll get 2x coats of Thompsons WS on the transom tomorrow. Once the Skid No More is dry, I'll install the new transom with the new stainless steel hardware I got today along with the transom brace. It will be a long day, but I'll get some pics up when I'm done.


----------



## skimsucka (Jun 5, 2010)

Nice work man looks like a solid setup !! looking forward for more pics and progress


----------



## Rick James (Jun 8, 2010)

Progress has been slow. Been working on the house a lot plus bad weather, and the one day we did get this weekend that was decent I went fishing.  

Anyhow, I finished up the new transom and got it installed tonight. When I pulled the old one out, I really got to see how bad it really was. It was completely rotted at the top, to the point I had to be careful pulling it out so I could use it as a template for the new one. The new transom is 2x layers of sanded 3/4" hardwood ply, glued together, with a liberal coating of Thompson's Advanced on both sides and all edges. I drilled out the factory holes to 1/4" and installed with all stainless hardware and filled the holes and covered the inside parts of the washers with 5200. I didn't like having to drill out the transom brace and where it sat on the bottom of the hull, but I absolutely covered the bottom of it in 5200 and it seeped out on all sides when drawn tight to the hull, so I think it's gonna be OK.

I also sanded the top half of the inside of the boat to prep it for a layer of Skid No More. I would have also gotten a couple of coats on by now, but I'm having a tough time finding something that will fill the dents in the gunwhales. I really want those filled in and sanded down so the Skid No More can be applied up and over the gunwhales to where they meet the outside of the hull. I tried JB Weld Waterweld, however since applying on Saturday, it's still not really hard. I'm guessing it's not made to be applied that thick. I'm going to have to wire wheel it off, and find something else. Any suggestions on what can be applied up to 1/2-3/4" thick, get hard as a rock, yet be able to be sanded down so I can apply the Skid No More over it? I really don't want to see those dents when the boat is done.

The old transom showing the rotten section:






The new transom installed:


----------



## ober51 (Jun 9, 2010)

I've seen this applied to dents on aluminum boats with amazing results. Just sand down to bare aluminum, follow the directions, prime and paint. 

https://www.handsontools.com/USC-14060-ALL-METAL-Premium-Aluminum-Filled-Filler-quart_p_10762.html


----------



## Rick James (Jul 28, 2010)

Progress has been slow guys, between a bathroom renovation project, and LOTS of work travel, I just haven't had the time.

I did manage to fill the dents in the gunwhale. They look pretty good now. I also started painting the hull as well. I wire wheeled the whole outside of the boat, then primed with Rust-Oleum Aluminum Primer. I'm going for a two tone paint job. The topside is Rust-Oleum Metalic Cobalt Blue. There is a LOT of metal fleck in this..........it's gonna be a "glitter rocket". :lol: 

Bottom half of the exterior is going to be the gray color of Steelflex. I ordered mine COD and the tracking number says it should be here Friday. I have a work day at deer camp on Saturday, but I might be able to tackle the Steel Flex on Sunday if the weather holds out.

For the top of the gunwhales and inside of the boat I'll be using Rust-Oleum Metalic Silver. The boat will have a plywood and carpet floor in it, so the paint only needs to be on the top 3/4 of the inside of the boat. I'm hoping this color of paint helps the surfaces that I may touch on hot days a bit cooler.

Also, a couple of weeks ago I tried to apply some Skid No More to the interior of the boat. This stuff is truly terrible, I couldn't get it to apply evenly and it's almost translucent. I was expecting it to come out like a truck bed liner type of coating, but it wasn't even close. I'll be wire wheeling it all off and cleaning the inside out before I paint with the Rust-Oleum.

I plan to finish the top side paint tonight, it still needs at least one more coat, maybe two more and lots more sanding with 600 grit. When it's done I'll take pics with a real camera to share. Here is a pic of the hull so far though from my phone.


----------



## Rick James (Jul 28, 2010)

Oh, and by the way...........I ordered custom decals for the sides of the boat today. But your gonna have to wait to see till my next update with pics after I finish painting and the Steelflex. :mrgreen:


----------



## Rick James (Jul 28, 2010)

Put another coat of paint on tonight and it's starting to really look good. I'm going to have to wet sand it this upcoming Sunda and then wash and let dry, then go back at it again with the Rust-Oleum. I'm hoping another 1-2 more coats with sanding after each and this should be ready to put decals on and start the Steelflex. Will post pics again after the next work session.


----------



## Rick James (Sep 18, 2010)

Sooooo........

Progress has been slow. I have had Steelflex sitting in the garage for nearly 2 months now, but finally today got it on the boat. I got the gray pigment so I'll have a two tone, dark blue mettalic fleck on top and gray on the bottom.

The Steelflex is MUCH easier to work with than I anticipated after reading everything I could find on here. I bought 3x mixing cups with oz marks on the side and screw on tops with a spout you can pop open. I also bought a small $5 paint mixer for the drill. This made measuring and mixing everything really easy. I mixed the pigment and the one part of steel flex in the one cup, and kept it in there using as needed. I then used one of the other cups for the first coat of Steelflex and threw it out when I was done with that coat. I used a fresh one for the second coat. I made batches of 6oz each part for each coat. There was plenty there for the bottom half of my 12' semi-v, I ordered 2 quarts. The first coat was REALLY easy to deal with, the second coat took a bit more work. Temps were about 72ish outside today and that seemed the perfect temp. I did get a bit of sagging, but after each coat I hung around outside for the first hour or so with the roller and would touch up the sagging until everything set, it worked like a charm and there is no sagging now. I went through exactly 10 of those mini foam rollers, the end would break off every once in a while and I'd toss it before it started getting pieces in the Steelflex.

A suggestion I'd make is to make sure you get a fresh roller on just at the end of each coat, and get the roller thoroughly coated in Steelflex before you finish the coat. If you use a roller that's already coated in Steelflex to touch up and fix the sagging, it won't come apart when it gets really tacky.

Also, I'd recommend pulling your tape about 2-3 hours after your final coat. I'm not sure if the tape will come off if you really let the stuff cure.......I had a little issue with tape that I had to fix with a razor blade when I was pulling it off. I fixed it, but I'd be afraid to let it sit much longer before pulling.

I finished the last coat about an hour before dark tonight, it's supposed to be in the mid 50's tonight........hopefully the stuff will cure well and have all day tomorrow as well before I pull it off the saw horses and put it back on the trailer.

Overall, I'm really impressed with this stuff, I hope it is durable and lasts forever.

I'm hoping over the winter to get the inside of the boat wire wheeled down, and to then spray paint the inside with a primer then a metallic fleck silver. Then I can put in the wiring, drop floors, carpet, and seats, and get my motors and batteries setup and installed. Plans now are to cut a hatch into the middle bench for my batteries, and a bit of storage too, hopefully this balances the boat out a bit so it will easily plane. I'll cover the hatch and the top of both benches with carpeted plywood as well.

I'll post pics tomorrow so you can see the final product along with the new decal kit. I think you guys are going to get a kick out of the decal kit......... :lol: . For now, here is a pics of the topcoat done and the bottom wire wheeled before I taped it off for Steelflex.


----------



## Rick James (Sep 19, 2010)

Some pics updates for those of you interested.
















And a closeup of the new decals on the back......... :lol:


----------



## Ranchero50 (Sep 19, 2010)

That turned out really nice, good work. I think it would look sbetter with some old '60's vintage sears craftsmans script logo's but that's just me.

I'm surprised to see a zero deadrise transom on a V hull.

Jamie


----------



## Rick James (Sep 29, 2010)

Thanks guys, I appreciate the comments. For the limited time I've had to work on it, I'm happy with it so far.

I finished priming/painting the inside of the boat. All surfaces that won't be covered by the raised floor is now painted. I covered it for now, and will get back into the project this winter after deer season is over. Plans are to cut the middle bench and get a battery tie down in there, then start running wire as my next steps. I'll update when I can make some more progress.


----------



## Bassman018 (Sep 30, 2010)

WOW, I just saw this one and all I can say is Dang!!!! The paint looks great and you had a nice boat to start out with, How stable is it if you stand up? What are you going to have powering it? and I dig that paint.


----------



## Rick James (Sep 30, 2010)

Thanks bassman.

I haven't actually dropped the boat in the water yet. Plans are to do that before I start the raised floors so I can get a sense of how high I can safely go. It's fairly deep (23" if I remember correctly at the deepest point), about 42" across the floor at the widest point, and it has a zero deadrise transom on it, so it should be very stable for a 12 semi V while actually fishing.

Plans are now to add a foot control electric to the bow, and then try and find one of the 70's or 80's model 15hp Johnson/Evinrude 2 strokes for the back. The boat is rated for up to 15hp, and I bet it's gonna fly with one on there.


----------



## Bassman018 (Sep 30, 2010)

yea, I thought you said you fished it when you started the project, but any who, yea that should be plenty for the 12er


----------



## Rick James (Oct 19, 2010)

Got the interior of the boat painted, all areas that will be exposed after the benches and floor are now painted a metallic silver. I'm hoping to get the electric and inside of the boat done this winter.

Also picked up a motor now too. I scored on a 1977 Johnson 15hp motor that is in fantastic shape, and was just tuned and went through by a mechanic...........only problem is the previous owner spray painted the entire thing for duck hunting. I will spend the winter sanding this down, priming, and then painting. I also scored the decal kit below as well. I'm hoping this looks good when done, I'm betting this boat is going to be a rocket ship too. It should do 25mph+ with one guy when it's done. I've still gotta make sure it's propped right.......I don't want this thing running too high in the RPM range.


----------



## DaveInGA (Oct 20, 2010)

You do your prep right and that motor is going to look sharp. Looks like your project is really coming along. Congrats on scoring a good motor.


----------



## Sgt. Stiglitz (Oct 20, 2010)

Hey, nice boat. How are you applying the paint to the hull? Brush, roller, spray? I like the color.........

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=15880


----------



## Rick James (Oct 20, 2010)

The top half was done with spray paint, the bottom half is actually Steelflex and was applied with a roller.

I'll likely spray paint the motor.


----------



## Rick James (Jan 27, 2011)

Just an update.........

I'm going to be starting up again on this in the next couple of weeks. My goal is to have this 99.99% done before the end of March. I have 3 fishing trips booked with the wife up in the Adirondacks through spring and summer, so I'd like to get this done within a week or two of ice out in March.

Below is my wiring diagram. I'll be throwing an extra 40amp fuse just in front of the battery that isn't included in this diagram, as well as a 2 bank onboard charger.







Also today I just had these seats delivered. I earned a bunch of points on my Bass Pro card over the fall with work travel I was able to expense......unfortunately I had over $100 points expire but still had enough to get these for free. They are the Bass Pro Tourney Special Low Back seats. Can't see the color real well here, but they are a nice bright blue and gray, and should match the boat perfectly.


----------



## Ictalurus (Jan 27, 2011)

Great looking decals you scored there. Did you pick them up off of ebay or order direct? I'm also looking to repaint a motor.


----------



## MDFisherman57 (Jan 27, 2011)

Hey i work at BPS and if some of your points expire, just go up to customer service and see if they can reactive them.


----------



## manley09 (Jan 27, 2011)

Wow great job with the paint! Looks sharp!


----------



## Rick James (Mar 15, 2011)

Boy I'm going to have a big update thread this weekend to post here. I pulled the cover off last weekend and really went to town on the boat. Last weekend, I managed to cut the top off the center bench and gut it, carpet and install tops for both benches including a hatch w/ stainless piano hinge for the middle bench, build a frame to hold both my batteries and my new 2 bank charger inside the middle bench, wire in the charger and install the power cord port on the side of the bench, carpet and install a very small front deck on the front for the new 45lb MK Edge foot control motor, I installed the motor, and I installed all seat pedestal bases. It was a long two days, but I'm really starting to make progress and it's starting to really look good.

Last night I also built and carpeted the box for my fuse panel and my switch panel. All the wiring showed up yesterday and I have a new pair of Humminbird 570 DI's that should be here by this weekend too. This upcoming weekend the plan is to wire the whole boat up and get all the electronics in working order. I also bought the aluminum angle and rivet tool today, so I'm hoping to get the front floor area framed and in place once the electric is done, and then get the front floor cut, carpeted, and installed. I'm hoping I'll have the boat 99% done after this weekend, just in time for the lakes to hopefully open up in my area. :mrgreen: 

I'm heading out of town tomorrow till Friday, so I'll have to wait till then to post pictures. I'll have a good picture update this weekend though.


----------



## Reelbig (Mar 15, 2011)

Nice engine decals where did you get them? I have a 1978 Evinrude 25hp and i have been look for a good site. [-o<


----------



## cactusjack (Mar 16, 2011)

jus wanted to say I thought your boat looked great, the color combo makes it really stand out


----------



## jware (Mar 16, 2011)

Can't wait to see the finished project. I have a 14 foot Memphis Belle V-hull with a 10hp Honda 4stroke that is my project for April. I will be posting my progress.


----------



## jware (Mar 16, 2011)

Can't wait to see the finished project. I have a 14 foot Memphis Belle V-hull with a 10hp Honda 4stroke that is my project for April. I will be posting my progress.


----------



## Rick James (Mar 16, 2011)

Thanks guys, I'm out of town right now for work, but can't wait to get home for the weekend and get back to work on it and to take some pics to share.


----------



## Merlin (Mar 21, 2011)

Rick James said:


> Just an update.........
> 
> I'm going to be starting up again on this in the next couple of weeks. My goal is to have this 99.99% done before the end of March. I have 3 fishing trips booked with the wife up in the Adirondacks through spring and summer, so I'd like to get this done within a week or two of ice out in March.
> 
> ...


----------



## Rick James (Mar 21, 2011)

Merlin said:


> Hi Rick!
> I'm new to the site and am working on a project similar to yours. I am rather impressed by the work so far and I'll probally capitalize on a few of your ideas.
> If I could ask question based soley on your wiring schematic. Where are you placing the fuses for the trolling motor and other accessories? Are they on the battery or a distance away from the battery?



I built a box and carpeted it, and inside I put my fuse panel, and cut a hole in the front for my switch panel. The box was mounted on the port side of the boat, on the back bench. I also mounted one of my new Humminbird 570 DI's on top. I'll post some pics of this specifically next weekend when I take it out to finish it.


----------



## Rick James (Mar 21, 2011)

So I got another massive chunk of work done this weekend. I'm literally almost done except for cutting out, carpeting, and mounting the floor area in the front, as well as bolting some small accessories on like cleats on all corners and the RAM mounts to secure my Rino 530hcx that I keep all my waypoints on. I should be done with all that this upcoming weekend. I still plan to degrease and paint the motor, just haven't had the warm weather we need for paint to dry well.

Anyhow, last weekend I cut the top off the middle bench, gutted it, then built a frame for my battery boxes and the two bank charger along with the plug port. This weekend I focused on wiring the whole boat. I installed both my anchor and bow light receptacles, a bilge pump in the back, and both of my new sonar units were installed/wired, and had the transducers mounted. I also fabricated the front floor support frame out of aluminum. I was amazed at how easy it was to work with the aluminum, I bought a $20 cut off wheel from Harbor freight and just fabricated each piece by measuring, cutting, and notching carefully.

I should finish the boat next weekend, but for now I've included a handful of pics from my cell phone.


----------



## vanbc (Mar 22, 2011)

lookin really good !!!!! My boat is almost like yours. How do you find the seat mounts ?
I like you 570DI Im waiting for mine to come in.


----------



## steelyhead17 (Mar 25, 2011)

Just a rookie questions but doesnt your trolling motor need to be level?


----------



## mattmean (Mar 25, 2011)

Same here, I have nearly an identical boat. I like your front casting deck made for the bow mount motor. how did u set that up?


----------



## Rick James (Mar 25, 2011)

steelyhead17 said:


> Just a rookie questions but doesnt your trolling motor need to be level?



To be honest, I'm not 100% sure yet. :lol: 

I'm going to hopefully take it out this weekend, if it poses a problem I'll make up a wedge shaped block tou mount it on that makes it more level, and then try it again.


----------



## Rick James (Mar 25, 2011)

mattmean said:


> Same here, I have nearly an identical boat. I like your front casting deck made for the bow mount motor. how did u set that up?



I cut it out of 3/4" hardwood ply, then sealed with Thompsons Water Seal. Then I carpeted it with rubber backed outdoor carpet. Then I mounted it to the gunwhale of the boat using stainless screw type anchors that are designed for anchoring drywall to aluminum studs. Seems pretty sturdy as of now, I'm happy with it.


----------



## Froggy (Apr 4, 2011)

Boat looks reall good Rick, hitting the Mohawk soon....still ice around... should be good real soon!!


----------



## Rick James (Apr 4, 2011)

Froggy said:


> Boat looks reall good Rick, hitting the Mohawk soon....still ice around... should be good real soon!!



I actually tried to launch yesterday at both the Kiwanis launch, and at Freemans Bridge, both places the water is too low still........ :x I hope they start to raise the water soon. I ended up dropping in at Collin's Lake and just cruising around with the trolling motor for a while. Can't wait to get out on some bigger water soon. With any luck I'll be on Round Lake next Sunday.


----------



## gdsteward (Apr 9, 2011)

Boat looks great. How stable is the boat? Does it rock alot when your setting on the seats?


----------



## Rick James (Apr 9, 2011)

gdsteward said:


> Boat looks great. How stable is the boat? Does it rock alot when your setting on the seats?



Thanks!

I've only fished it alone so far. It's plenty stable enough with one person, I was fishing in some pretty good chop last weekend and had no issues on the front pedestal, and was also standing quite a bit. I'm not sure if you would want two people standing at the same time, haven't tried it yet but I'll know more soon.

From what I've seen so far, I don't know if I'd change the way I did anything. I'm very happy with the boat so far. I'm hoping next weekend I can get it out on a body of water that will let me use the gas motor to see how it planes out and the weight distribution, etc.


----------



## Rick James (Jun 13, 2011)

Thought I would make a quick update to this thread for those of you following it.

I've fished the boat a LOT over the past 2 months. Overall I really like it, I don't think you could ask much more from a 12' boat.

A few things I'd do differently next time..........

The rear pedestal is pretty much useless. While one person on the pedestal in front is fine with one person sitting on the low seat in the back........two pedestals are too much. I stand up and fish all the time both alone and with a passenger.......but two people standing is a bit much. It's truly the perfect one person boat though.

I will likely need to redo the middle bench top and the piano hinge at some point. There is no lip to provide extra support on the hinge side of the hatch, and the hatch sags a bit there. The other option is to maybe have the seat hinged on the side. Word to the wise, if your seat is on a pedestal and the hinge is on the front of the door..........don't turn around 180 degrees quickly to see what the person behind you is reeling in, you may just go for a quick ride. :lol: 

While I'm glad I have the electronics and trolling motor in this setup, and while I love the onboard charger......if I were to do a mod like this again I'd want a 14' boat for this type of weight. When fishing with 2x 200lb guys, the boat is fine when underway but I wouldn't want to be out when the water gets bad. I got stuck on an island camping during pike season, and had to head 3 miles to the launch through 2' rollers. Luckily another person there was able to take my wife back in their boat because it was a bit scary.......I was OK on my own but 2 people would have been a disaster. With that said, the boat is super stable and is truly the ultimate 1 person boat. 

I'm getting 18.3-19mph on the GPS (with the old prop) when it's just me in the boat and it rides well with just me.....but when 2x 200lb guys are in the boat I'm only getting around 14.5mph and there is a LOT of boat in the water. If I trim the motor up past the second hole when there are two people in there, there is too much weight upfront with the passenger and batteries, and the motor will cavitate. If I wasn't worried about flotation, I'd cut the back bench open and move the small battery and charger back there, but I don't really feel like it's worth the hassle, and I want the flotation foam in there in case of a disaster..........I'll just keep it on small waters when I have two people.

While the Harbor Freight trailer is nice, I want to put full length bunks on it. I think there is too much weight on that middle roller. I'll likely modify this for next season.

Finally.......this past weekend I almost finished cleaning the motor up. I degreased the entire thing (what a chore!), sanded edges of any paint chips, washed, degreased again, and then painted with OMC brand paint for that specific year motor. It's now the exact color it was when it left the factory. I also ordered the decal kit today as well, I'm hoping it's here for this weekend so I can apply and then get the motor remounted on the boat. In addition to this, I purchased another brand new 9.5x10 Quicksilver prop, the original was in pretty rough shape and I figured it was time for a new one. I also had a local OMC mechanic go through it a couple of months ago, and he scoped it and did a compression test, and said it's in perfect shape inside. Now after the paint and decals, I'm hoping it lasts another 34 years, and it should look pretty good too once the decals get here. I'm curious if the new prop will pick up some speed for me, and will test it this weekend. If nothing else, I'm hoping the paint and decals will give me another 10mph... :mrgreen:. Regardless, it looks much better now than it did with the duck boat camo spray paint job on it.

The only pic I have of the motor after paint, I'll try to get some updated pics of the boat so you can see the floor, etc.....all in it's final stage.


----------



## Rick James (Jun 21, 2011)

One quick picture of the boat in it's final state. I was fishing on a local electric only lake and snapped this picture. I'll post more when the motor decals get here and finally get installed.


----------



## z0mbie f1sherman (Jun 21, 2011)

super sweet rig you got there!

really love the color combo

---==[ ZF ]==---


----------



## SmokerChris (Mar 19, 2012)

Wow, really nice! Ive been working on my conversion since last Summer. I got my decking done but ran into some things I wasnt sure of. I have the same troller and the same-type bow (it angles up). I wasnt sure how to mount it. My boat looks like yours so Im following your lead on mounting the troller. I'll also follow your wiring scheme as I have just about all the same gadgets as you do. I plan to post my build once I get it finished. Thanks for a great bunch of pictures!


----------



## DyerBassman (Mar 19, 2012)

Really looks good! Nice job! Good to hear that the trailer works out for you. I am planning to get one for my 12'.


----------



## KevinWI (Mar 19, 2012)

for a smaller boat you've done well to maximize space. Nice job


----------



## sgt tee (Mar 28, 2013)

Your boat project came out nice, reason I was checking it out I want to instill my bow deck like yours, How did you attach that piece of wood, I asked this question on another forum but no hits, I was hoping I can run deck screws or self tappers straight into the top curl of the boat. I am a electrician not a carpenter but this is going to be where I start, right on the bow of the boat. I am not a fan of how high you have your seat. I like to be a little more stable in the boat.My Motor Guide motor came today from UPS, when I was unpacking the motor and shaft I heard a piece rattling around in the motor head. I called and wrote the company and notified PayPal as I want to ship it back for a full refund, I cant be bothered bringing it to a repair shop. maybe its nothing but when I spoke to the dealer he assured me there is not suppose to be anything rattling around in the motor head, which is just common sense/. I ordered it through OsiasDigital. I told them I want a full refund and to send me a shipping label to send it back to them. Hopefully they are a good company. Its just upsetting when a plan does not come together. I am 100% disabled Vietnam vet and UPS delivered it and I told them to set it up by the garage, so I unpacked it up there and thats when I stopped right after I heard that rattle, I will give a report back once the company contacts me. If you can explain to me how you attached that wood on your bow I would appreciate it, Thnks for listening, Pete


----------



## sgt tee (Apr 21, 2013)

Looking at your boat again and how nice it came out, Having the seat so highid you find the boat to be Tipsy" How wide is the beam on your boat may I ask


----------



## thursdaymike (Apr 21, 2013)

Dang, those seats mstch almost perfect snd nothing beats free!


----------



## Gators5220 (Apr 13, 2015)

same boat I grew up on!


----------

