79 MA restoration... here we go

[CaptCurt]

So the floor and tank came out today, along with the rest of the wiring. Here is my patented tank removal system:







It consists of some 3/8" cable rope run through the brackets at the four corners of the tank, attached to a hydraulic motor lift. Once I used the sawzall to cut through the foam (had to do this about three times, making a wide channel through the foam), I jacked up the tank. Problem was.... the whole dang floor lifted up too! It took me (270 lbs) and my worker (120 lbs) bouncing on the floor with another guy working the lift to get it to break free. Once we broke the "seal", it came right out.





Next step was to sawzall around the "coffin", which I want to save and reuse.



The floor came out easily.







There were several inches of standing water under the floor. It is hard to see in this photo... but it is where you see little foam bits and trash.





After having seen photos of everyone else's stringers on this site, I was surprised to find that mine are wide and wedge-shaped.... not the four straight lines.





Tomorrow's job: remove the transom!

Here's what we'll be catching after the boat is done: