Another 25 Seafari goes under the knife

[Blue_Heron]

Thanks for the kind words, guys.

Dan and Connor, thanks for the heads up on the potential clearance issue. The old motor was a vortec 350 like the new one, but the Mag MPI may have a deeper oil pan. Fortunately, I'm a pack rat, so I still have the old oil pan and I can compare it against the new one. It would have been cause for some creative profanity if I'd discovered the motor didn't fit after I already had it hanging from the gantry crane.

Will,
I've already passed two dates that I'd set for myself as goals. I've decided it makes more sense to work on the boat than to work on a schedule. I've told my fishing buddies I'm pretty sure I can have it ready for our trip to the Keys next June, but I ain't making any guesses beyond that. But I have started categorizing the things I have left to do into "what I gotta do to splash the boat" and "what I can do after". It probably won't have a windshield for the maiden voyage. Wind in my hair (what's left of it) and bugs in my teeth (still got all of those), that's what I'm talkin bout.

[Islandtrader]

Originally Posted by Blue_Heron

It probably won't have a windshield for the maiden voyage. Wind in my hair (what's left of it) and bugs in my teeth (still got all of those), that's what I'm talkin bout.

Hey according to Strick I have shown no restraint in dropping the 21 in the water without paint and other stuff ...so why should you be any different

[Blue_Heron]

Originally Posted by Islandtrader

Hey according to Strick I have shown no restraint in dropping the 21 in the water without paint and other stuff ...so why should you be any different

You got that right! I guess restraint is a lot easier to come by if you can zip through your restoration project in only 9 1/2 months.

[SBD]

I am so with you on the schedule concept. I am enjoying the process and have plenty of other ways/opportunities to go fishing. It'll be done when its done.

Looking terrific BTW!

[Blue_Heron]

Originally Posted by SBD

I am so with you on the schedule concept. I am enjoying the process and have plenty of other ways/opportunities to go fishing. It'll be done when its done.

Sean,
I've let the Seafari project take precedence over fishing, but I'm not going to let a push to the finish drive what I do or how I do it. Like you said, the process and the problem solving are half the fun. And I hope to be using this boat, and taking pride in my workmanship, a lot longer than it takes to do the work.

One good thing, though, it seems like once you’ve got the big stuff out of the way, a little effort seems to go a lot farther. I was able to do a bunch of small stuff over the holiday week that really seems to make a difference.

The easiest and least expensive accomplishment was an insert for the rub rail. I used non-photoreactive PVC tubing because I wanted to add a little color:



I also got caught up on all the detail parts that needed to be patched, primed, and painted.

Patched:



Primed:



Painted:



The parts are:

The cabin hatch:



The “flip up thingy”:



The helm extension:



And a cover for a chase where my wiring and steering cable will go. It still needs some trimming to fit properly:



I also finished up the deck. I wanted to get it out of the way because it was the last painting to be done on the hull itself. I wanted to avoid having to paint the deck after the seat boxes were installed. The fuel tanks and tank hatch have to be in place before the seat boxes can be bolted down. Painting the deck first allowed me to paint the deck with the tank hatch out of the boat. This allowed much easier access to paint the cockpit deck and the helm deck. I could stand in the engine compartment or fuel tank compartment and reach everything with a roller for the first coat, a salt shaker for the non-skid, and a spray gun for the final coats.

The next step was to prime where the paint will go (Awlgrip is way too expensive to be painting under those seat boxes):





After a final sanding and tacking of the primer, I did the layout and masking for the Classic Seacraft non-skid pattern. I’m thinking I should go ahead and buy some 3M stock before they announce earnings for this quarter:







Next step was to roll on a coat of Awlgrip, sprinkle on some 80 grit non-skid, and peel off the masking tape before spraying on the final coats over both the non-skid strips and the smooth strips in between. It’s kind of difficult to capture the non-skid pattern in pictures when your photography skills are as rudimentary as mine are, but if you look closely you can see it. I’m pleased with the finished product:






Still lots to do, but it seems like things are moving faster as I reach for the home stretch.


Dave

[SBD]

Faster AND more pleasant. Grinding has been replaced by 220...thank you lord!

[seafari25]

Looking good, Dave

That non skid turned out great, and looks sharp!

It looks like your anchor locker is bigger than original. If so, good idea. It's hard to get 200' of 1/2" in mine and I would like to have another 100' in there...

It won't be long and you will be cruising that baby. Can't wait for you to get her in so you can start enjoying the ride, and all the hard work you have done, and are doing.

Looking forward to your trim tab reinvention. I know Gramp would be proud that his ideas were considered valuable, and useful, to the Blue Heron Boat Works design staff.

Keep up the awesome work!
Brandon

[Blue_Heron]

Sean, I definitely share that sentiment.

Brandon, thanks for the kind words. I'm not ready to post on the tabs yet. Still have other things to do before I'm ready to bolt them on.

I pulled my transom assembly down from the shelf and really evaluated it for the first time since I completed the demo of the boat. To make a long story short, it's a complete rebuild except for the trim cylinders. The inner transom plate, gimbal housing, gimbal ring and bell housing were in pretty good shape except for a little corrosion, but I'll be replacing most of the seals, bushings, bearings, etc. Just as an example, here's what the upper swivel pin looks like. It took me about an hour with a punch, a two pound hammer and a propane torch to get it out.




The inner transom plate was in good shape, so I didn't have to do anything with it. I spent most of Saturday cleaning up the other aluminum parts and prepping them for paint. I ordered the smallest amount of Signature Finish I could get in Mercury Black. Here's my Mercruiser wind chime after shooting the paint.



I'm going to clean up the outdrive this weekend and see if I can get it painted too. I drained the gear lube from it today and it looks good. I think I'll be able to run it as is after I get some paint on it. I ordered all the parts I'll need for the transom assembly and they should be here by the end of the week.

Once I get the transom assembly installed, I'll be able to install the y-pipe and the steering cable. That will give me a better idea of where i can locate the other stuff that has to share space in the engine compartment. If anyone wants to share their experience with do's and don'ts on where to place stuff, I'm open to suggestions.

Dave

[floorboy]

Looks great.

[Blue_Heron]

Thanks, Rod.

A few more shiny black parts this weekend:



Dave