Thanks for the information. I’m calling Tom tomorrow at Bennett to find the shortest actuator. I spend a lot of time in the water with my kids and can’t wait to have a big bracket for diving and spear fishing. Depending on what I find, I may have to work with Armstrong and get the bracket noched for clearance. I don’t want to cut the bracket myself and compromise the powder coat. I’ll keep the long actuator running through the bracket as plan b.

The coosa bonded in great. There are no hollow sounding spots and had good squeeze out. Later I will have a lot of holes to fill. Next up is the under deck plumbing and wire installation.

Looks like the Bolt Edge Mounted tabs 1212ED will work. Only eats up 7”. I’m considering the auto tab controller. Is it worth it?

I'll try again, the Bennett 1212ED tabs will "eat up" 9.75" up your transom. Sorry about the sideways pictures, dang iPhone.

Thanks for the measurements. I would have been screwed.

On my 23WA, I had to cut holes for my Lenco rams thru my Armstrong bracket. Not a big deal, just eye balling the location was a bit tricky.

Armstrong would not cut the holes...can't blame them, but they sent touch up paint.

I'm home this week if you want to see how I dealt with mine.

Lloyd

I'm getting close to installing tanks and plumbing then dropping the deck in. Now I'm second guessing myself on the deck height. This will be my last chance to add height. Its being raised 1.5" already. Is that enough?

My plan is a 28" Armstrong bracket an a 300 Suzuki (600 lbs). Will I have wet feet?

Going with the 25" or 30" shaft on the Zuke? I'll let you know after we get back from the Keys how the 1" raise in my brother's floor worked out with his 25" shaft G2 on his 27" bracket. As of right now the drain holes are well above the water....with a light load. More to come..

Thanks Don. I’m looking at almost the same setup. Zuke with a 25” shaft. Also wonder if it porpoises. I’m moving as much weight forward as I can. Thought about putting a water tank under the casting deck.

Plastic tanks are a no-go for other reasons as well I've found out over the years. My 23 will have an aluminum tank meticulously installed and protected. Best of luck with your rebuild. May it be the second love of your life.

Plastic will (poly) absorb all kinds of moisture, alcohol, solvents etc. and will eventually structurally fail because of the force of 100 gallons of fuel crashing around the cell over the years. They will crack, and plastic opens up big-time without warning. They don't leak like aluminum or steel tanks - they bust open.

I’m back at it. The temperature has dropped and I have a goal to get to paint in January. I have the bilges gelcoated along with the insulated fish boxes. All the transom holes and voids have been filled. The vent holes in the gunnels have been filled. I’m starting to install the fuel tanks. I have the lines run. Was really tight running two sets of hoses but I managed. Just need to get the fuel restraint brackets bolted in. Next up will be to add lights to the fish boxes.

I messed the deck up a little by not using enough resin in the first layer . I left small air bubbles under the duratec. They are the size of a BB or smaller. Found them when pressure washing. I’m planning on pulling the deck out and hitting it good with the pressure washer to expose the voids then fill them with fairing compound and sanding. Hope it works. I don’t want any opening up after finish painting. I also need to find time to work on the deck hatches and receiver lips.

I cleaned up and pulled her out of her tent into the sun for the first time in a year. Took her to a local shop to talk about having some fairing and painting done. I put the front edge of the center console 10” in front of the fuel chases. The leaning post has a 16” gap. Should move the CG forward some and opens up the transom for fishing and diving fun. Looks good.

I’m looking for a bracket. Armstrong is pricey at $3700, A & J quoted $2900. Still looking. I’m most concerned about the finish or powder coating coming off. Does anyone have suggestions. Looking for a 30” setback 12 deg, 80” platform with a floatation chamber.

Stoner Boatworks is building glass ones.

A lot of work has been done. It’s hard to balance work family and boat. It will be better when I can combine family and boat for a few fun keys trips. Maybe swordfish?

I finished installing the tanks and fuel lines. The deck is bonded down! We used Arjay vinylester bonding compound. A good bead around the lip of the old deck and a 6” wide glob down the middle of each stringer. I had a friend help. He went down the port side, starting at the bow. I did the starboard side. The 5 gallons of Arjay bonding compound was split into two buckets and mixed with a drill. We only used 4 gallons. The rest was wasted. The deck is rock solid. Need to add tabbing but waiting to finish the transom and do it all at once.

Good move on the Arjay! Nothing to worry about as far as anything coming apart!! :)

Now starting on the transom cap. I want to have a 40 gallon live well in the middle and two hatches that hold 5 gallon buckets on the sides. There is a 2 1/2” curve to the top.

I started by making a template of the cap out of foam. I’m going to try to do this in one piece out of a mold. I used 2x8’s and melonine to create the curve. The scrap melonine was used to create the sides and slight curve in the rear wall. Modeling clay a made the radius in the corners. I ran a small socket across them to get them smooth. The live well and hatch forms are mdf that has been sprayed with duratec primer and sanded. Here is a pic of the partial assembly.

My plan is to paint in two layers of gelcoat and layin two layers of 1 1/2 oz mat then two layers of 1708. I’ll add scrap cossa as reinforcements then one more layer of 1708.

I’ll mold up the live well also the same way then glass it in. I hope everything fits. I measured three times.

the layup schedule for your stern cap will be rock solid. I did the same but with Divinycel H80 and it was plenty.

I laid up two hatches as a learning process before tackling the big job. The layup is rock solid and the hatches fit great.

Today my son helped with the transom cap layup. We started spraying partall mold release. Then painted two coats of gelcoat. With all the small cavities the layup was hard. Hope we got all the air out. Two layers of csm and two of 1708. Took all day. Glad I had help. Also took 3 gallons of vinylester resin.

Tomorrow we will add the final layer of 1708 over the cossa reinforced. Then we can pop it and see how we did.

I popped the transom cap. It released from most of the mold but got hung up on the bucket plugs. I had to destroy them. There are a few blemishes that will need fixing. I did the entire layup as a continuous wet layup. I think that adding the 1708 over the wet csm caused the issue. If I were to do it again, I’d let the csm kick before adding additional layers. Overall not a bad part and should save me time.

Just a heads up. Armstrong is very busy and about three month lead time for a new bracket. Ordered mine in December. Pricing went up as well. Cost now is $5k.

Stoner bracket is approx. 3500 with a 3 week build time. Talked with Josh about building one last month. Plus his platform is higher allowing for placement of tabs on outside chine.

Do those moeller tanks have baffles?

Glass bracket over aluminum any day.

The last few new Armstrongs ive seen werent very impressive. Mounting flanges out of whack (big gaps mating to the transom. Dead flat transom too trust me), welding slag painted over, lots of pinholes in the welds, nonskid lines wandering all over the place...

No corrosion with a glass bracket either!

When I called Armstrong they said that production work was their priority and it would be months before I got my bracket. Sounded like one off’s were an inconvenience. I’m still trying to decide. Armstrong is out. The glass bracket is $3500....ouch

Moller have 2 center “baffles”. You can see them in the drawing.

I test fit the transom cap today. The fit is spot on.

My bay boat took priority today. I hung a new Christmas gift trolling motor and gave her a much needed bath.

If anyone wants the transom mold it’s up for grabs. It has a 2.5” crown and livewell plug. The 5 gal bucket plugs were destroyed unfortunately. My wife wants it gone. It works great and fit the first time. Just PM me.

where you located?

Gone

Busy day. I made the livewell plug. I glued together the mdf box and rounded over the corners with a 2” router bit. Sprayed it with duratech sanding primer great stuff! Sanded with 320 grit, then steel wool, rubbing compound, lastly wax.

I pulled the cap and started glassing the transom cap to the original part. I also started patching all the holes in the cap. The anchor hatch Receiver was bonded in.

I have to pick up the pace. The Miami boat show is coming up and I want to buy the Suzuki. Hoping to get a deal there.

I am looking for a source for a new Suzuki DF300. I live in central Florida and I’m willing to drive within the state for a good installation and price. I know about Mike at International Marine in Orlando but need other suggestions.

Satellite Beach is not that far. Check with Suzuki dealer, Chapin, SC, slightly north of Columbia. Never heard of them being here on the coast. Last Tuesday my buddy had an experience that was perfect. Got a grand for his ‘06 150, pulled, replaced with a white 175, plug and play, same prop, threw in. New tach, a round stereo head to fill old tach hole in dash, 3+3 warranty, handled all DNR registration for him, I believe under $11,300? Worth a call. He was up there and home same day, and it was lake tested! Just over 2 hours from Sav/HHI. Worth a call.

Michael.

Thanks for the heads up Michael. Worth a call.

The livewell popped out with ease. It’s ready to be bonded to the transom cap. I decided to get rid of the Haas pipes and go with pop up cleats. I ground them flush and started filling all the holes in the cap.

Rainy day but made the best of it. Molded up three hatch covers. I took some pics showing the process. I’ll pop them tomorrow.

kraken,

what type modeling clay are you using - air dry or non drying? thanks for showing the process, hopefully i can recreate some of your great workmanship myself! project is looking good!

Found some non drying at a craft store. The stuff leaves a blue residue that is hard to wash off. The clay I got at fiberglass Florida worked the best.

I use the Super Sculpey original in beige. It's available at the craft store. It works really well.

I’ve been trying to decide on paint or gelcoat. Pros and cons for both. The primary use for this boat will be diving and spear fishing. It will be trailered. So it will need a real durable finish on the deck, cap, and bottom. The belly band can be paint. Are there better options?

The cap has all the holes filled and the bait well glassed on. Ready for fairing and maybe gelcoat. The outside of the hull is ready too. Just need to finish up the deck / transom wall with a radius and tabbing. Also need to mold up the front hatch cover. I’m getting close to sending it off for final finish.

Did some work on the console I bought at Marine Connection in Stuart. It was only 3/16” thick and had to be reinforced. I added 1/2” coreing and some 1708. I will also install a door and foot rest.

Can't wait to see her all shiny!

Looking god Scott. Let me know when you are done with your table. :)

Has anyone successfully used Plexus MA310? I’m considering using it to bond the liner to the hull. I may also use it to bond the cap to the hull. It requires little surface preparation, fills and spans large gaps, fails after FRP, it’s flexible, and only costs 25$ a cartridge. It’s commonly use in new boat construction. Is there any reason I would want to pull the cap at a later date? Would bonding it make it more solid and perform better. Will bonding the cap reduce the creeks and pops?

<https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/mobileportal/show_product.do?pid=4882&familyName=Plexus+MA+310+ High+Strength+Plastic+Adhesive>

Soon. Finishing up the last of the structural glass. I did get the hatches to work with the curved surface.

"I’ve been trying to decide on paint or gelcoat. Pros and cons for both. The primary use for this boat will be diving and spear fishing"

This is the same use as Moose's boat. Check out his bre-build, I think he went went an interior that could be easily repaired versus a real pretty and shiny one.