# 79 Bass Tracker Rebuild - Done!



## huntingbronco (Jan 16, 2011)

My project arrived today - unfortunately sub-zero temps are limiting my ability to dig into her. Would like to post some pictures to get your input. 

She is all original - including the 1979 Mercury 40hp. She is riding on a 1994 trailer. 

I need to post some pics of the gunnels near the transom to get some opions as to whether I have a structure problem. How do I do that? I have the pics, but don't know how to upload.

I am going to see if I can get the motor to fire today...otherwise - doing the best we can to dig 8" of snow and vegetation out of the boat for now.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 16, 2011)

So, how do I post pics? Sorry, I am a newbie.


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## Brine (Jan 16, 2011)

huntingbronco said:


> So, how do I post pics? Sorry, I am a newbie.



Here ya go hb

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=13431&hilit=upload+pics


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## natestep (Jan 17, 2011)

Been there done that, Brine will get ya fixed up.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 17, 2011)

Here goes - Here's a pic of the back end of the boat:






Here's one of the front - what do I do about this bow stop/winch - doesn't look right to me. 





Before you get too excited on my behalf, check out the inside!





So here are two serious questions. First, it has dents in the gunnels at both sides where this beam goes across the boat. A problem? I think the boat has always had the factory 40hp and the transom appears clean. 





How hard will it be to repair this dent?





Final question for this note - the wiring is a mess. Is there a place on the internet to get a wiring diagram for the 1979 40hp Mercury available online? Never mind - found it right here on Tinboats.net - https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=14047

Thanks guys - It's going to be above freezing one day this week!!! Yeah.


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## Brine (Jan 17, 2011)

Nice looking rig ya got. It even has it's own built in duck blind (vegetation). Makes me want to flip a jig in the middle of it. :LOL2: 

Mine came equipped with mice/rat nests #-o 

My personal take on most dents in an aluminum hull these days is to simply accept them and consider them to be character. Looks like if you touched up the camo paint on the side of the boat, it would probably disappear. The dent on the side could probably be pounded out, but I'm not sure how much success you'd have with the gunnels. I wonder if they weren't created from the previous owner strapping down the boat to the trailer? 

Looks like you need a bow eye put on. I made one and had it welded on. There is a side discussion that happens with the location of the eye in relation to the bow stop. It was suggested that the eye be put on below the stop so that in the event of a sudden stop/rear end, that the eye being placed below the bow stop would prevent the boat from being launched towards your tow vehicle. I have this process/discussion documented in my build. 

Not sure if you can access the inside of your bow in that location to be able to bolt something on or not, and I assume it's a mod-v which is why I went ahead and had one welded on. I didn't want to mess with bolting the eye on at the v (which I had done on a previous boat). It worked, but I felt like it wasn't the best solution. If I had a flat bow, I probably would have just bought and bolted one on with a backing plate.

From the pics, it looks as though you would simply reverse your bow stop and winch (put the stop above the winch) to accomplish this.


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## Brine (Jan 17, 2011)

I just noticed, but you may also want to move around the trailered position of the boat such that the transom is supported by your bunks. I can't tell if it is or not in the pic, but I don't see any bunks sticking out the back. This will prevent "hull hook" from happening/worsening from the weight of your outboard hanging off the back while in tow. Hard to say if the bunks need to be extended/moved back, or if the boat will have to move forward (with the bow stop) or a combination of both.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jan 17, 2011)

Angle the winch stand back more and put the winch lower on the stand.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 17, 2011)

Great comments guys. It almost seems like the trailer is wrong for the boat...what's new. I'll extend the bunks - the boat sits crooked now. I think the dents in the gunnels did come from the tie downs, as they are right below the dents! I'll double check, but I think it has a good bow eye for tying down, just don't think the trailer is working right with the boat. Hopefully I can rearrange the trailer and get the geometry right. I'll also add a chain. These are things I can do when its cold out - have to wait on the interior.

As for bumping out the dent - we'll see what path we follow on the interior - if I expose that side, I'll bump it out. The boat is otherwise pretty straight. 

Still don't know the condition of the transom - not sure I can tell when its frozen like a rock. The soil on the floor seems structural at these temps!

More to come. Big project for now is the wiring. It is essentially GONE.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 17, 2011)

My son and I pulled the bow mount off the trailer - recut and paint is drying. Should get it mounted back up in a couple days. 

Also tried to start motor. Connected battery direclty to starter with plugs out. Spun up nicely. Put spark plugs in and starter was barely turning over. I was using a fully charged battery just taken out of my F250 - V10. Should be able to turn a 2 cylinder, don't you think? Given I was wired directly to the starter - do you think the starter might be bad or do these old motors turn over this slowly? It is a 40hp Mercury - about 1979. Thanks for the input. 

Has anyone re-covered these seats? Is there a thread for tips and tricks on doing the seats? Another good project for indoors during this winter.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 19, 2011)

Okay - first thing I tried to straighten out was the trailer and how the bow of the boat mates to the trailer. Reading around here and using the parts I had, I went ahead and repositioned the tower, reconfigured the bow pad and installed a safety chain. I also installed a new tongue jack and put a new strap in the boat winch. The tailgate on the truck clears the tower, but I would not want to turn sharply with the tailgate down. All hardware was replaced with new grade 8. Did I get it close to right? 

Here's a photo of the finished product. 





Trailer wiring is next. You guys have any suggestions regarding submersible trailer lights? Good ones, bad ones?


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jan 19, 2011)

huntingbronco said:


> Okay - first thing I tried to straighten out was the trail and how the bow of the boat mates to the trailer. Reading around here and using the parts I had, I went ahead and repositioned the tower, reconfigured the bow pad and installed a safety chain. I also installed a new tongue jack and put a new strap in the boat winch. The tailgate on the truck clears the tower, but I would not want to turn sharply with the tailgate down. All hardware was replaced with new grade 8. Did I get it close to right?
> 
> Here's a photo of the finished product.
> 
> ...


That looks much better. 
For the lights LED's seem to be the way to go altho I have been having good luck with the old style. I did run the ground wire to every light.


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## Brine (Jan 20, 2011)

Yessur, that bow setup looks good. =D> 

I like LED's myself.


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## KRS62 (Jan 20, 2011)

Check out this forum. There are some postings (stickys) right there on the first page for a ton of manuals. I found mine there, maybe you will too.

Mercury motors:
https://forums.iboats.com/forumdisplay.php?f=25

KRS


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## huntingbronco (Jan 22, 2011)

Thanks Guys - did boring stuff today. Adjusted bunk height to be the same and got lights working. 11 degrees out - concrete was even colder!

Brine - here is what the bunks look like - you think they come back close enough to the transom? 





While I was at it, I realized the skeg was missing! (broken off, but ground off to a nice clean line.) I run shallow - probably should have some kind of skeg - can't imagine having the prop make contact first - what options should I consider here?


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## basstender10.6 (Jan 22, 2011)

I would buy a river runner and modify it with longer brackets and mount it on what is left of your skeg. Repair for a job like that is VERY expensive.


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## huntingbronco (Jan 23, 2011)

Thanks - Once I get her running, I'll fix the skeg. A little quick search showed lots of alternatives - I might like this one the most - anyone here tried Blackfin Skegs? 

https://www.blackfinskeg.com/


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## huntingbronco (Jan 30, 2011)

Okay guys - worked on the motor this weekend. I'm going to post my questions about the motor over in the Motors Section. Here's a question - my coastguard plate is worn out on this boat. I may have an opportunity to pick up a Mariner Force with Trim/Tilt and Controls for a good deal. Too much for this boat? What do you think?


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## TNtroller (Jan 31, 2011)

wally world has a complete trailer light kit for a few $$ if you want all new, wire and all, used them in the past for other utility trailers, etc., with no issues. Makes the job much easier than trying to identify which wire is bad, etc.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 27, 2011)

Alright - we have made some good progress since the last post. We got the bottom and sides torn out of the boat. We removed the motor and almost all of the wiring. Now, time for some expert advice from the members of this forum. 

Observations. The wood floor was shot - very wet and rotted. The foam beneath was completely saturated. We took a lot of weight out of the boat! The foam on the sides was the same as that in the floor - it was only wet up the sides about 2 inches. 

The foam in what I'll call the floatation pods on either side, just forward of the transom is the question. I can't tell if its good or bad and getting to it is going to require more tear that I don't want to do if not necessary. So look at the pics and let me know what you think. I was going to put foam board of some kind back in the floors and sides, but leave these pods and the transom as is unless the advice from this forum is to open her up and dig it out. Appreciate your thoughts...

Also, what are your thoughts about the live wells in these boats? The drivers seat and the box in front of the console are both designed to be wet. Both have drains right through the side of the boat. The console tank appears to have an aerator and the drivers seat tank just has a drain. Given these are riveted through the hull, I am reluctant to move or mess with them. Good choice? 

Here are the pics and thanks for looking.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 27, 2011)

Here is where I am headed with the Tracker - I was able to paint this Grumman with the tips I picked up on this forum. Rust Oleum Rattle Can Aluminum Primer and then some camo and stencil work.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 27, 2011)

Finished product, still in the paint booth.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 27, 2011)

Here is a pic of the flooring as it came out. Note the driver console with live well. This is the one that has an aerator installed - plumbled to a pump at the transom. The botttom of the live well sits below the flooring and is riveted through the hull and drains straight out the starboard side.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 27, 2011)

Here is a pic of the port side floatation pod - you can see into it through the hole. That is really the only view I have of the foam other than what you can see in the area by the transom.




If you think I should take this stuff out - should I just cut an access hole, dig it out and cap the panel and fill with two part expanding foam?


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## Ictalurus (Feb 28, 2011)

huntingbronco said:


> If you think I should take this stuff out - should I just cut an access hole, dig it out and cap the panel and fill with two part expanding foam?



I'd cut it out and place a hatch lid on there and have a nice storage area. Judging by the pics, I'm not able to tell the size of your inboard pods, but if there is any chance there's enough room in there, I'd lean toward storage, or even a battery location.


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## BloodStone (Feb 28, 2011)

*Nice find! =D> 
A few questions. What did you give for it? How did you find it? Does the motor run or turn over? And finally what kind of numbskull leaves a nice boat like that uncovered so that 2' tall seedling trees are growing up out of it? ](*,) Sorry but I'd love to have/find a boat like that & can't understand for the life of me why someone can't spend a measly 15 minutes & $20.00 at a Harbor Freight & buy a cheap tarp to cover their boat. :?: 
Neglect makes me  *


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## huntingbronco (Feb 28, 2011)

As to how I came into it, well, just fortunate, I guess. Right place, right time. Anyhow, the motor turns over, but when the plugs are in, even with a good battery, she rolls over pretty slowly. No plugs, she spins real nice. 

Wiring is a bit of a mess - even inside the engine. The front cover was off the motor for who knows how long - thus corrosion set in on the wiring. Still trying to decide whether to pour money into the motor or move on. Minimum needs for me - skeg, wiring harness of somekind, starter...and I would really like power tilt and trim. I've seen guys find much new motors than I'll spend on just those parts...and I would still have a very old motor.

As to cutting open those pods and using them for storage - I guess I did not think about that...don't know how much flotation one should have in a boat - but I would not want to have too little. I was going to put it back the way they had it. They had foam in the bow, under the floor and in these two side pods, plus some behind the transom. I assume all for float - not there for structural reasons. 

Thanks for the replys - appreciate your interest, ideas and help.


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## Ictalurus (Feb 28, 2011)

huntingbronco said:


> don't know how much flotation one should have in a boat - but I would not want to have too little.



I usually think along the lines of "no net loss". Most add foam under the floors, as I've done, which is usually more than what is taken out of the seats or other places.


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## huntingbronco (Feb 28, 2011)

No net loss sounds like a good rule of thumb. I was shocked by how much foam was in this boat. The floor, sides, plus these pods, transom and some doubled up under the bow deck. Really, foam just about everywhere. Almost seems like there was too much to me.


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## huntingbronco (Mar 11, 2011)

I just found a barely used Minn Kota I hope to pick up Sat morning. This will help me size the front deck. I'll spend the weekend putting foam and wiring in and hopefuly getting some plywood cut. Pictures on the progress next week.


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## huntingbronco (Mar 13, 2011)

Well, we turned the corner this weekend. End of deconstruction, beginning to reconstruct. The last thing I did was to fix what must have been a design flaw. They plugged the outboard ribs with foam - so they could never drain. I dug it out and opened up the ribs so that water can make it to the bilge now. 





Pulled wiring and got the foam in...





Got the side panels back in after foam, wire and plumbing. 





We got two pieces of wood cut. Front deck and battery gas compartment floor. Going to order vinyl now. 

Stay tuned. Work will slow for a bit now, as the ice is out and the perch are biting. Next weekend will be about fishing.


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## huntingbronco (Mar 14, 2011)

Question: The bilge hose exits through the side of the boat. The part sticking through the side of the boat was broken off. It used a nut that was tightened from the inside of the hull. It is very hard to get your hand all the way up to this now in order to tighten the nut on the new part. Do they make a bilge hose exit that can be secured from the outside, rather than the inside?


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## huntingbronco (Mar 27, 2011)

We were distracted last weekend - as we on the water for some 2011 perch. 





This weekend was a little too cold, so back to the boat project. I fabricated a solution for a blind bilge hose exit, problem solved. We also put some expanding foam in the side pods. Stuff is pretty cool. Got it from US Composites...appears to be the best deal I've seen. https://www.uscomposites.com/foam.html

Got our Nautolex Vinyl from Gary's Upholstery... https://www.garysupholstery.com/ntomarfloor.html 
Also picked up Nautolex 88 Adhesive. We glued up the side panels with the glue straight from the can and directly applied the vinyl. There must be a trick about waiting for it to tack up - as we let it set overnight and it still wasn't dry the next day. Fortunately, the vinyl is held down mechanically at the top and bottom. Hopefully the glue will eventually dry and get a bite. Are you supposed to thin this stuff before applying it? Maybe let it become nearly dry before applying the vinyl? Any advise would be appreciated...

Here are couple of shots showing our progress this weekend.


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## Derek (Mar 29, 2011)

looking good dude


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## huntingbronco (Apr 10, 2011)

Going in for paint...





Motor painted to match





Shot of interior after stenciling





Boat painted and on the road back to my house for the rest of the interior





We actually got some of the interior in - floor and one bulkhead...I'll get some photos of that up later this week. Now I can work on it at home in the evenings, so we should see some progress.


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## Derek (Apr 11, 2011)

paint looks great


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## huntingbronco (Apr 17, 2011)

Got a chance to work on the interior today. Here are some shots of how I am laying out the rear casting deck. At the end of the day, everything came back out and down to the basement for paint and vinyl. 

Here is the bulkhead just behind the seats, which forms the forward support wall for the casting deck. 





I plan to put foam in a section under the pedestal seat base and then separate storage on either side. You can see one of the dividers here. You can also see the angle aluminum I used to support the rear edge of the deck and the battery/gas hatch.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 17, 2011)

Front deck cut and fit, with reinforcement below the trolling motor mount location, with 1/4-20 Stainless T-nuts epoxied into the wood. This piece is ready for vinyl.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 17, 2011)

Rear deck with the hatch lids set in place. Its ready for paint and vinyl.






Shot from the front. You can see I managed to get all of the lids for my seat bases cut. The forward livewell is not getting an actual seat, just the board and a coat of paint. Thinking about vinyl. 





After the rear deck is done, I'll tackle the front deck and then the rod locker. 

Thanks for your comments.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 17, 2011)

Oh yeah, bummed to find out I'll need one more sheet of this marine grade (not treated) plywood for the forward deck. Ouch.


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## kkrueger (Apr 17, 2011)

Looks good. I like the vinyl. Might look in to that if I ever get a boat I plan on keeping for a while.

Show us the Hunting Bronco


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## huntingbronco (Apr 17, 2011)

Ask and ye shall receive - well, within limits! Had some this or one other Bronco for the better part of the past 25 years. 

Here you go - a few years ago on a coyote hunt with the boys. 






No, we did not have any luck on that particular outing. Here's another outing at the range. Enjoy!





A freshening of the ole bronco might well be my project for winter 2012.


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## kkrueger (Apr 18, 2011)

Cool, thanks. The bronco rocks. I've got a Bronco II for my hunting rig.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 19, 2011)

Do you guys do anything on hatch lids like this to seal them? I am worried that water will enter the storage area below and I did not want to spend the money on fancy hatch lids. I placed supports on the backside to give strength to the hatch lids when stepping on them, but I did not completely surround the opening - really can't where the hinge fits anyways. Do you just accept wet storage? Put drain holes in? 

Should I cut my vinyl so that it has 1/2 overlap on the outside and let it lay over the gaps? Doesn't seem like that will hold up well.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 30, 2011)

Here is a shot of the rear deck with vinyl down. Only thing left to do is make a couple more tabs for bolting the deck down onto the framing. Once that is done, she'll get fastened down. The LED's were hooked up and power applied - they look good, but we did not check in the dark, so don't know exactly how effective they'll be. I'll get photo's of the lights when complete. You can see the hinges I used. Worked really well with the 1/2" plywood with Vinyl.





The rear deck is amazingly stable, even the seat on the pedestal, even before it has been secured to the framing.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 30, 2011)

Well, we also got the wiring completely hooked up at the console. I went ahead and installed a bus bar for the grounds. Put lights in the aerator, livewell, rear deck, between the seats, more lights to be installed on the front casting deck and then in the rod locker, when we get that built. Two 12 volt accessory plugs, one at the console and one on the front deck. Nav and Anchor lights worked. Bilge and Aerator both ran. Yeah.


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## huntingbronco (Apr 30, 2011)

Got the front bow deck bolted in and close to all of the forward wiring done. Still have to splice in the LED's for the casting deck and wire in the TM. 





With the TM deployed, I have plenty of room to do the forward casting deck. My plan is to build a floor beneath the casting deck to set the TM batteries and some storage. (It would cover the drill in the next photo, but not extend fully forward.)





The casting deck will come in above that, high enough to clear the batteries, which turns out to be about 4 inches below the gunnels and extend back and tie into the side walls, which are about 4 inches below the gunnels. You can see this where the dark paint breaks on the boat before I painted it. Should be pretty roomy little casting deck. 





Rod locker will extend from the bulkhead towards the port passenger seat, allowing for 7 foot rod storage. Just a little carpentry left...almost done. Just wish I could get the latch for the front cover on the motor working. (I think a local marine repair shop might have a line on some old stock, in which case, I'll be set for just $7)


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## Derek (May 3, 2011)

looking good 
Instead of a plywood floor for the batteries you could do just a frame to set them on. It would keep them off the bottom of the boat but leave it open for water to drain down from the front deck. I was thinking more about your question on sealing hatches. With the new carpet in my boat the hatches fit so tightly (even hard to open currently) that I think a very minimal amount of water will be able to pass into the hatches. I would assume the vinyl doesn't fit nearly as tight together. What if you added a piece of weather stripping to the edges? Something like the seal for the bottom of a garage door, or even just the flat foam style.


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## huntingbronco (Jun 19, 2011)

Well, we've been thrashing hard for the past few weeks to get this ready for our trip up north. Got the boat on the water, but, alas, we have some engine problems to work out. Here are some pics just before heading out. 








I noticed the hatches were not closed down in the photo - they do close flush...





Hatches were closed flush in this photo.


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## huntingbronco (Jun 19, 2011)

Her she sits at the dock - trying to get her to start...





Here's a shot of her running on the water...





Now, if you want to help me with my engine problems - see my post for help in that section! Thanks for looking.


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## Derek (Jun 20, 2011)

looks good dude, i still haven't got my motor running yet.


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## huntinfool (Jun 20, 2011)

Looking good, keep the pics coming.


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## huntingbronco (Jun 20, 2011)

Well, looks like I might be shopping for a replacement for this engine. I promised myself I would not spend very much on this old girl. The problems I am having are serious enough for me to look for much newer power. Maybe 2002-2003 or there abouts. My kids will be using the boat, we love the way it turned out - I need something I can trust. 

So this one will go up on CL for cheap. Lots of good parts here, including fully functional controls.


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## huntinfool (Jun 20, 2011)

I would not give up on your old motor yet. I posted on you other thread.


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## fishingmich (Jun 22, 2011)

How did you do the stenciling on the boat? Thats pretty BA!


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## huntingbronco (Jun 22, 2011)

Thanks. The stenciling was pretty easy - just need extra hands to hold it against the contour of the boat. Those hands do get painted. Used a mylar stencil from cabelas. Pretty cheap and just kept it clean as we went. Used a rattle can for the light colored stencil work.


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## red95gtcoupe (Jul 17, 2011)

Looks great! I have an 88 bass tracker and planned on doing the same exact thing. I am hoping to get rid of all carpet and wood and use aluminum then cover it all with nautoflex. How easy was it to lay down? Does it fold over the corners easy? Do you know if this is the same stuff that war eagle uses? 

Brian


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## huntingbronco (Aug 1, 2011)

Brian - the vinyl goes down nicely, however, I was not impressed with their recommeded glue. I used it, but I used the 3M spray for corners and edges, as it tacks up really fast and seemed to hold well. Of course, working with wood, I was able to secure everything with Marine staples. 

I can't be sure, but I don't think this is the same as what War Eagle uses. Here is why I say this - I have a 1999 War Eagle with factory vinyl. There are a couple of tears in that - it has a more fibrous backing than this stuff. Newer War Eagles might in fact use this stuff...don't know. 

I would not hesitate to use this stuff - at least from a workability standpoint. It goes without saying, it shows your errors more clearly than carpet - so measure twice and cut once. (The aluminum and the vinyl.)


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## huntingbronco (Aug 6, 2011)

Well, the fishing wasn't so great for us on this maiden fishing trip, but the boat was great. The boys did some casting, etc. We also used the trolling motor to pull some planer boards - worked great for hours on end. Here's a couple of shots of her sitting in the water.





I sure love the stability of these jon boats - he's hanging over the edge and its barely tipping.





Thanks for all of your help!


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## Jay D (Aug 6, 2011)

NIce Boat. My dad had a 78 bass tracker with the 40 hp, We had a lot of good times AND we caught alot of fish off that boat, wish I had the space for the 16' hull, he sold it recently.  Enjoy yours with your boys =D> .


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