# Fixed up my fishing boat



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Last winter I decided to fix up my fishing boat. I figured it would be a good winter project, and even if it bled over into the Spring it wouldn't hurt too much, since my local lake (Buckeye Lake) was too low to fish because of dam repairs.
It took longer than I thought (from late November 2015 - early October 2016).
With winter here, thought I'd post some pics to show what it was like.

The Boat:
1984 18' StarCraft Mariner. I've owned it for about 8 years. Never did much to it except put on a new outboard. Ran great, but was getting awfully rattly and leaked a little water below deck every time I had it out. Figured it would probably need a new transom and might need to have some rivets tightened or replaced.

Pics in next post.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)




----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Transom was starting to pull away on one corner...

Ill add pics of the tear-down in the next couple of days.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

The tear-down and cleaning took about two months of weekends, with a couple of days thrown in around Christmas.

First of all, I had to build an engine rack. I used plans that I found on the internet, and built it with leftover treated lumber I had lying around. Then I had to figure how to remove the engine by myself. Rigged up a pully system with a come-along that worked pretty well. Kind of the same system that I use to lift and hang deer.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

I was then able to remove the rear well to access the transom. Flaky like Baklava. Its a wonder that the transom didn't pull away from the boat when I was out on the water!


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Transom wood removed. I was able to piece it back together and trace its outline on a piece of 'art paper' that I picked up at Walmart. I later used that outline to trace on new oak plywood to make a new transom.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Kind of interesting to find that the w alls of the boat were filled with blocks of Styrofoam for floatation. Probably helps with noise reduction too.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Here was a real nightmare that I discovered. Six broken ribs, broken on each side of the boat, for a total of 12 breaks. The breaks were right where the longitudinal stringers were attached. Stringers are pieces of aluminum that support the deck above and run the length of the boat. The breaks were located right under where the console, livewell, and seating were located in the middle of the boat. They were old breaks, evidenced by corrosion and discoloration.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Under the deck (not pictured), original expanding flotation foam had to be removed. I was able to get it out in large pieces and save it to reinstall later. Spent a good while using razor blades and simple green, cleaning the inside of the hull. Found a corrosion pinhole in the hull that had been letting in water. Also found a lot of pitting/corrosion on the transom metal where I had removed the wood.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Leak test. Filled the empty, clean hull with water and looked for additional leaks in the hull. Found that 25 rivets were loose and/or broken. They were mostly slow leaks, but you can see the water on the ground under the boat.

BTW, does anybody know how to rotate this image? It is saved on my computer upright, but downloads on its side here.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

every time I've ever started a small repair - remodel that involve hidden spaces there's always something you didn't know about ... I used an aluminum brazing rod on a bunch of holes and such on my boat, it worked really well ... had a few rivets that leaked, I ended up bucking every one of them below the waterline before I painted it


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

That's the truth Baitguy. Pulling off that deck was like opening Pandora's box. 
If I had let the problems go any longer, I don't think it would have been repairable!


----------



## Fishingisfun (Jul 19, 2012)

Good work on the boat, a massive DiY project to take on. Thanks for sharing the photos of the work. I'll have some carpet to replace in the near future. I'm hoping it is only carpet to get my boat back to A1 shape. Prepared for more and hoping for the best.
Fingers crossed


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Good Luck Finshingisfun! Always better to do it yourself if you are handy.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Another sideways picture, but you get the idea. Hull was all cleaned out by this point. Pitting in transom metal cleaned out.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

This pic shows the locations of the broken ribs.









Talked to some people online who had dealt with similar problems. Welding would help, but it tends to weaken the surrounding aluminum significantly. Couldn't really manufacture new ribs, and I couldn't find another boat to sacrifice and steal ribs from for replacement.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

I landed on constructing rib supports out of thicker aluminum angle. On each side of a broken rib, I drilled three holes through the broken rib and through the hull to the outside of the boat. I positioned the aluminum angle with three holes over each drilled area to span the break. In the picture you can see how I placed the angles. I bedded each angle in 3M 5200 marine sealant and attached through the hull with stainless bolts, washers, and nyloc nuts.

I was VERY hesitant to drill 72 new holes in the bottom of my boat, but didn't see any durable long-lasting fix to the problem.
By the way, 5200 is incredible stuff. It has found additional uses around my house. Liquid ducttape.


----------



## bigragu (Jan 7, 2010)

fishmeister said:


> Another sideways picture, but you get the idea. Hull was all cleaned out by this point. Pitting in transom metal cleaned out.
> View attachment 227918


Major job, Fishmeister, and it looks like you doing it RIGHT. I have done many to the three I've owned but don't think something this major would be tackled.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

I've used the 5200 several times, it is good stuff ... have a weak spot in the floor of the hull on my project that we didn't find when we were doing everything else, we fixed another hole with a small bolt and would have been best if we could do that but the hull is painted w/Wetlander and not easy to redo ... it's pitted and there are some thin spots, so going to fabricate a new piece of aluminum to fit the space and glue it down with that stuff, they say it becomes permanent so it should hold for as long as I'm going to have the boat ... it's probably to late but did you consider putting those angles sticking up horizontally next to it and bolting thru the rib?


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Baitguy, yep I've heard of people backbuttering aluminum sheet and applying to weak spots. The 5200 does become permanent, so that sounds like a good fix. Just make sure those pits are clean, to make sure that whatever caused the pitting is gone!

Yes, it's too late to change my work on the ribs, but not a bad idea. I did add some reinforcement to the rib repair by adding aluminum supports to tie together rib ends on opposite sides of the hull, which also added support to the deck. Hard to describe without a picture. I'll try to add those pics on Thursday.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

yeah, gonna clean those pits real good, Ospho and Acetone and scuff it up a bit ...


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

OK, heres a picture with seven crossmembers installed. I used 1/8" square tube aluminum stock, and cut the ends to fit the curves of the ribs. Riveted into the rib ends. This install should reduce the amount of flexing on the ribs- don't want them to flex too much with the damage that's been done to them. The crossmembers also provide additional support for the deck.

Note that the three stringers have been reinstalled (riveted in place). I moved the two outside stringers toward the center line (red arrows) to take pressure off of the previous rib break points that I fixed. The crossmembers ride on top of those two outside stringers and are riveted to them using some homemade aluminum brackets. I had to cut slots in the center stringer for the crossmembers to fit through. Also riveted the crossmembers to the center stringer using homemade brackets.

Filled some pitted corrosion spots in the hull using J-B Weld (circled in blue).
Filled in a bunch of pitting in the transom as well using j-b weld, great stuff!


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Decided that the two outside stringers did not have enough contact points with the deck I would install, so I made up some supports and installed them along the length of each stringer. You can see how, when installed, the top of the support is even with the top of the installed crossmember.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

After about five months of work, I finished repairing the hull.
In addition to installing crossmembers and repairing ribs, I did the following....
1. Replaced 27 leaking or loose rivets. I used closed end aluminum rivets with a rivet puller, and a dab of 3m5200 on each. Pretty easy work, and didn't need another person to help with bucking like traditional rivets.
2. Replaced the transom wood with two sheets of oak plywood. I glued them together with regular TitebondII glue. I then finished all sides with a good coat of penetrating epoxy.
3. Bathed all rivets and seams with gluvit epoxy to guard against future leaks.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

laugh those projects always seem to take on a life of their own, my quick leak repair in a weekend or 2 turned into completely stripping the bottom and painting it and the sides which took all summer because I could only work on it saturdays ... might as well do it right as long as it's stripped down ....


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Baitguy- yeah, I think that is what happened here too. Go into the garage, start looking critically at the boat, next thing you know I have something planned to make it even better! "While I'm at it.....".


----------



## capt j-rod (Feb 14, 2008)

This is how we end up with $3000 in a $1500 boat. I'm just as guilty, I bought an old Grumman sport boat... 1500 later, it is immaculate. Sprayed with commercial imron, fully refurbished trailer, new decals, mint! All this because a new one was $2500 and that was "crazy too much money". Would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY! At least you know exactly what you own.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

Capt., that's what I'm thinking, I'll fix it right and know what I have ... I bought the bargain boat for a grand, I figured I get going for 800-1000 more, It'll be well into more than double that for the project by the time I'm done, not to mention my time, but will turn a 30+ year old boat into a better, more modern version and I won't owe for the next 10 years... have you seen the price of a new boat now a days?


----------



## capt j-rod (Feb 14, 2008)

My Lund tyee is over $60k new. I almost threw up. A new pickup is $45k. You are wise to own it outright. Debt is voluntary slavery. You are promising to work harder for longer in exchange for an item. That item may be cheaply constructed junk today.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Reminds me of Steve Winwood lyrics;
"The percentage you're paying is too high priced,
While you're living beyond all your means.
And the man in a suit has just bought a new car
On the profit he's made on your dreams."

...no access to my computer until Monday. More pics then.

You guys have pics of the boats you've fixed up?


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

I was able to reinstall much of the original foam, although I had to cut some out to make room for rib repairs, etc. Filled in the extra space with pool noodles.









I kept the old deck pieces and used them for templates. Here are the new pieces dry-fitted. Before installation I predrilled rivet holes and coated all exposed surfaced with soaking epoxy. Then installed with wide-flange rivets.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

When I reinstalled the original front deck supports I decided to beef things up a bit. Not pictured is a solid wood cutout under the front deck so it could better support my trolling motor. Also installed crossmembers to support and stabilize the casting deck.









Decided to make a small rear casting deck, with battery and gas tank storage beneath. On the left you can see that I also built a storage box that the driver seat would attach to.


----------



## baitguy (Dec 17, 2013)

meister ... how long / wide is that boat


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

baitguy said:


> meister ... how long / wide is that boat


She is 18'3" long by 6'7" wide. Very stable deep V.


----------



## Popspastime (Apr 1, 2014)

Been watching your progress and things are looking good but I have a few questions. Did you pull a mass of wires to the front under the floor for things like lights, trolling motor, misc electronics.? What are you doing your floor coverings in, and why wouldn't you paint the inside and cover all the panels before you installed them? Just wondering.

Keep the progress pics coming..


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Popspastime said:


> Did you pull a mass of wires to the front under the floor for things like lights, trolling motor, misc electronics


Thanks for asking Pops! I didn't take any pictures of electronics install, but yes there are plenty of wires. I installed the first two front deck boards. Then on the 3rd one, on my workbench, I mounted the console and drilled a hole in the floor under it. Wired the console and then installed the 3rd board with console in the boat. In the pic below, the blue circle shows where the deck hole is positioned over a chase that runs back to the transom. The red lines show where I strung wires and ran some that went to the bow for lighting. The wires on both sides of the boat get covered with flotation Styrofoam and metal panels. After the wires were in, I was able to install the remaining deck boards.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Popspastime said:


> What are you doing your floor coverings in, and why wouldn't you paint the inside and cover all the panels before you installed them? Just wondering.


I installed the floor first just so I could have a place to stand and not have to balance all of the time! Plus, some of the side panels that I had to reinstall sit on top of, and attach to the deck. Installed the panels next and painted them, then covered the floor after that.
I painted the floor, skidproof and tough.
1. Oil-based primer (over the well-cured epoxy).
2. One coat of outdoor house paint.
3. Play sand from Lowes sprinkled on the wet house paint coat.
4. Five more layers of outdoor house paint.


----------



## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

Excellent job on both the repairs and documenting them as well. 

The cracked ribs makes me wonder what caused them in the 1st place. That's a lot of cracked ribs!
Is it possible the boat is not being supported correctly on the trailer?


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Thanks Fastwater.
You know, Ive thought that too about the trailer support. The trailer fits the length of boat. It has rollers on the back and two rollers down the middle. There are two bunks, and each sits below where the rib damage occurred.
I don't have a good pic of my trailer, but it is kind of like the one in this picture from the web. But mine has fewer rollers and bunks where Ive drawn the blue rectangles.








If anything, the bunks were loose and didn't provide enough support for the boat. (they sat about 1/2" below the hull). Ive since tightened them up so they are snug against the hull.
Maybe it was trailered/adjusted incorrectly before I owned it. It would be easier to explain the damage that way.


----------



## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

fishmeister said:


> Thanks Fastwater.
> You know, Ive thought that too about the trailer support. The trailer fits the length of boat. It has rollers on the back and two rollers down the middle. There are two bunks, and each sits below where the rib damage occurred.
> I don't have a good pic of my trailer, but it is kind of like the one in this picture from the web. But mine has fewer rollers and bunks where Ive drawn the blue rectangles.
> View attachment 228502
> ...


I'm thinking the weight of the boat should best resting mainly on the bunks and not the keel rollers in the front. With the bunks adjusted in or out so the bunks are under(or very close to) the lengthwise structure supports of the hull. When the bunks are properly adjusted height wise, though the boat can be touching the keel rollers, you should be able to reach up under the trailer and turn the rollers by hand.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

fastwater said:


> I'm thinking the weight of the boat should best resting mainly on the bunks and not the keel rollers in the front. With the bunks adjusted in or out so the bunks are under(or very close to) the lengthwise structure supports of the hull. When the bunks are properly adjusted height wise, though the boat can be touching the keel rollers, you should be able to reach up under the trailer and turn the rollers by hand.


Thanks, I didn't really know that. But it also worries me to have so much force from the bunks pushing against the spots where I have broken ribs. 
If the mass of the hull is resting mainly on the bunks, would trailering (esp over bumpy roads) stress out the repairs that I did? The bunks on my trailer are only about 4' long.


----------



## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

With the boat being an 18'er, combine that with the repairs done to the ribs, I believe I would redo my bunks and go to at least 8' bunks with the bunks mounts resting in front and in back of the fractured ribs if possible. If you have the main weight of the boat resting on the keel, every bump you go over shocks the rest of the boat structure. The keel being the strongest part of the boat, obviously it would be the last to fracture but stands to reason the ribs closest to the keel absorbing a lot of shock would fracture over time.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

I believe that you are right Fastwater. Thanks too for contacting me on PM about this and sharing your trailer guy with me. Gonna look into this before the season starts for sure!


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Here is the front casting deck finished. Two storage doors on each side of the deck, seat base, and storage under the front. The floor is also painted in this pic.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Here is the rear casting deck/ gas and battery storage. You can see a couple more seat bases in place, plus the storage base that I built to attach the drivers seat. This picture was taken a couple of weeks after the picture in the previous post. In this one I have reinstalled the Styrofoam blocks and the metal that holds them in, plus the steering cables and throttle control cables. I have also painted the inside walls of the boat white. 
Next steps were painting the outside of the hull and reinstalling the engine.


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

I was able to finish in time to get it out on the water twice. Didn't catch much, but I didn't really care! Alum Creek Reservoir in October.


----------



## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

fishmeister said:


> View attachment 228958
> 
> 
> Here is the rear casting deck/ gas and battery storage. You can see a couple more seat bases in place, plus the storage base that I built to attach the drivers seat. This picture was taken a couple of weeks after the picture in the previous post. In this one I have reinstalled the Styrofoam blocks and the metal that holds them in, plus the steering cables and throttle control cables. I have also painted the inside walls of the boat white.
> Next steps were painting the outside of the hull and reinstalling the engine.


Excellent work!
Looks great.


----------



## Jose' (Aug 31, 2013)

That looks awesome. Im about to start a project like this and you've given me some nice ideas..I can only hope it comes out as nice as your. Good job!


----------



## capt j-rod (Feb 14, 2008)

The confidence alone in knowing exactly what you have is worth all the work! Well done and thanks for sharing the project.


----------



## derekdiruz (May 27, 2015)

looks like something you'd see on Tinboats.net. Great work!


----------



## fishmeister (Jul 29, 2004)

Thanks everybody! I didn't know much about boats when I started this project, but there are some great resources and great people on line that made it possible. 

I forgot to ad to previous post- I used rustoleum marine paint for the outside and inside of the hull. Used three thin coats with a roller. It self levels so well that it looks like I used a sprayer. Very positive experience with that product.

...now I need to get to work on my list of home projects: It didn't get any shorter!


----------

