say what????? :)

Rod holders are only good for holding spears.

I think I need to get some professional therapy for rod holder addiction.
I'm up to 24 holders on my Tsunami..not counting the few others that we use for the two nets.
I've Pretty much maxed out the space on the arch, the gunnels, and the down riggers.

Hey Dogbomb the fishing is pretty good from what I hear on Powell.You could get a whole new addiction once you start fishing. Boat looks good by the way. Back east we're waiting for two feet of snow,( so much for hoping to get an early start to the season)

Thanks John! Who knows, the fishing gene may kick in once I get her in the
water. I'm hoping to get her wet on April 10, just for a test run to be sure
she floats. Wish me luck...
I hope that snow scrams ASAP!

Time to break out the champagne...almost.

Dragged the old girl over to my favorite gas station and filled up
that nice, clean tank. This station is usually empty, but not yesterday;
it was crawling with cars and I did an excellent job of clogging up the
traffic flow. Still, 3 separate people complimented on the boat and wanted
to know more about her. That was cool!

I had never tested the trailer since replacing the bearings, seals, springs and
u-bolts, so I took a freeway cruise up and down the 405. She towed true
and nothing exploded. Hooray.

Now she runs off her own tank, and that Suzuki just purrs.
Adjusted the throttle and shift cables, bled the steering for the second time,
and suddenly realized that she could, in theory, be ready for her water test
on schedule. Never thought I'd get here!

Still have a million details to address before I splash her, but I'm
optimistic. Thanks to y'all for getting me to this point!

She's lookin' good, congrats!
Rod

I cant believe this is the same boat that was sitting in my backyard.You have done an outstanding job in bringing her back to life in such a short time frame.
It must be that nice California weather that allows lots of work time, either that or I only work at a snails pace.
Congrats on bringing the old girl back to life.

Man did you do a great job, boat and trailer. I love the clean deck and coaming. Congrat's on a job well done.

You've done a fine job! She looks sweet!

You da bomb!!!!!

Very nice job, nothing like having people comment on your boat which makes all that hard work worth it!! :)

Now you need to hook up with 77SeptreOB and git you some of those fancy louvered doors for the cabin!

Wow - looking fantastic. I have not even begun my hull and deck cleanup yet. Yours just shines!

Thanks, John!
Can't believe 8 months has flown by already. I appreciate all your help
in getting her to me, and I think of you every time I step aboard.
Cheers!

Thank you everyone for the kind words, advice and encouragement.
It's much appreciated!

Uncle Boo, I have a bi-fold louvered door that I'm varnishing now.
Not sure what it's from but it fits pretty good!

Still get a kick out of the "moonie" hub caps, you need them for the Ranger to match! :)

ventilation?
 

In looking over your photos, I was wondering if you have any ventilation hoses for below deck? I don't see the scoops on your gunnels....

Nice work Dogbomb. Looks great! Good luck with the splash.

The vents were a crusty mess, so I trashed them and put stainless
cup holders in their place. I cut out the bottom of the port holder,
installed a bilge blower, and a ran a hose between the blower and the
cup holder. I put a loop in the hose with a flapper drain in case water
gets in. A lot of work for two beer holders!

Don't know about your boat, but the vent scoops on mine are Marinium, which means that they can be easily polished on a buffing wheel and then clear coated. What you've installed will probably work out west because you get so little rain, but if your original vent scoops were Marinium they're worth keeping as they can be easily cleaned up.

Yes, I'm sad to report they were severely dented and mistreated.
I saved them just in case but I think they're beyond help. :-(

Finally got around to replacing the scupper inserts, and boy I'm glad
I did! They looked OK but both were severely corroded towards the center.
This is the port side; the starboard side was worse.
Amazingly, the wood blocks are intact, with no soft spots that I
can detect. The new inserts were a press fit, and I'm happy with
the result. I guess I'll know if I was successful when I get her in the water...

Good move replacing those. I am hoping to get to them on my boat...about August!

Splash!
 

I couldn't have asked for a nicer to day to get the Seafari wet.
Decided to make the drive out to Lake Elsinore instead of the big Pacific,
because I figured the tow fees when I broke down would be cheaper...

I'm happy to report that no salvage operation was necessary, and we
enjoyed a perfect day on the glass smooth water.

A fuel injected 4 stroke is magic; touch the key and it starts.
Every time! Whisper quiet idle, no smoke, no shakes.
I'm so used to big carbed two strokes it felt like cheating.

We did 31 miles total and 4 1/2 hours on the water.
The fuel gauge hardly moved, and I'm guessing only a few liquid dinosaurs
gave their lives for my day of fun. I'll report on mileage next time I fill up.
The bilge stayed bone dry, and the scuppers didn't weep one drop.

I suspect she's under-propped. The hole shot is really strong, but
WOT only saw 5,200 RPMs at 41 mph on GPS.
The sweet spot for cruising seemed to be 4,100 RPMs, which yielded
29.5 mph. This was with me, two mutts, 1/2 a tank and minimal gear.
I don't know where the AV plate sat in the wake because I didn't trust
the dog to drive while I took a peek.

The hydraulic steering worked perfectly, my wiring didn't catch on fire
and the stereo sounded great. I really like the layout of this boat,
and I think she's a keeper. I couldn't get a feel for how she'll handle
rough water because all I could find in the way of bumps was my own wake.

I still have a ton of work to do. The cabin is bare fiberglass. She needs
a Bimini top, trim tabs, a depth sounder, the cabin door installed, etc etc.
Is any boat ever actually finished?

I'm happy to be a classic SeaCraft owner, and I can't wait for our
next adventure!

Before you spend too much time chasing props make sure your AV (cav) plate is high enough up - in your pics it looked to me like it was about even with the keel and I suspect it should be up about an inch or 1-1/2. If you checked it and it runs just barely above the water then ignore this post...

I don't know for sure, however the white dog looked up to the part of driver!! :) Ditto on above post!

Looks great! If you like it in smooth water you'll like it in chop too.

I like that prop on the hatch. Need to get me one of those.

Love the nose shot. She shows here lines well

I'm super jealous! Congratulations!

He had one too many beers to safely operate a motor vessel.
Plus, no thumbs...

Dogbomb,
She looks great. Glad the scuppers are sound. Your brass tube photo looked scary.

At 5200 rpm WOT, I'd suggest you are over-propped. Likely too much pitch and perhaps too much cup. Also as FLexpat noted motor may be mounted too low also affecting rpm. Definitely want that plate at least 1.5" above keel. May need more elevation with that prop. Suzuki wants 5600-6200 rpm WOT with your river camping load, leaning toward the high end of the range. Don't recall what prop you have, but at a glance I sense you ride a little high on the bow.

Congrats on the first splash! :cool:

I replaced the original (Perko?) hatch supports with these SS supports which eliminate the knob that sticks out . . . the hatch is relatively narrow anyway, so eliminating the knob is a big deal!

Tony, congrats on the successful shakedown run! Boat looks great! You need to teach those dogs to drive so you can check AV plate height! I think it should be at least 3/4 to 1.5" above keel. Those Zukes may need to run a bit lower than most due to their large diameter props. It does sound like you're running too much pitch, but need to get height correct first, as raising motor may increase rpm. When you do start prop testing, it's important to test with bimini top up and max load you expect to run, so consider using some water ballast if necessary.