Update

[Entourage]

Boat looks great very nice work. But from the photos in the beginning of this thread just out of curiosity the original gelcoat on this boat looked fantastic, why paint the boat?

[Rufneck]

You are right. The gel coat was in decent shape but there were some deep gouges where the boat had been scared by a boat lift. I just wanted to go ahead and have everything done that I couldn't do myself while the boat is at the boatyard. I certainly can't paint the boat so I went ahead and had it painted.

I am sure my money could have been better spent somewhere else but I admit emotion and the excitement of having a unique colored boat got to me.

[abl1111]

Id love some specs on those box seats. Dimensions and lay-up. They look great and have always been something I think that my Tsunami needed.

Great job all around !

[Entourage]

Originally Posted by Rufneck

You are right. The gel coat was in decent shape but there were some deep gouges where the boat had been scared by a boat lift. I just wanted to go ahead and have everything done that I couldn't do myself while the boat is at the boatyard. I certainly can't paint the boat so I went ahead and had it painted.

I am sure my money could have been better spent somewhere else but I admit emotion and the excitement of having a unique colored boat got to me.

I have been looking for a Sceptre/Tsunami with original gelcoat and no bottom paint especially my whole life. This was one i seen before you bought it but was just too far for me to travel. Then i seen you painted and started crying, but the boat looks very nice and looks like it is in good hands.

[Rufneck]

The refurbishment has finally made some progress. We have installed the seat boxes, the helm chairs and combing pads. I am really happy about how the seat boxes turned out. Thanks Jim! Here are a few pictures.
Next step is to try and improve the looks of the windshield and frame. It has about 40 years of salt build-up. I am armed with brass wool, CRL and muriatic acid. If none of this works, I will take it to a glass shop and see if I can get the glass replaced.
After that, I am going to load the boat up with 55 gallon drums and simulate the weight of an engine plus fuel and other stuff and see how she sits in the water. This will give me an indication of whether I can go with a slightly larger fuel tank or if I need to just have another 100 gallon tank fabricated.
Here are a few pics.

[jgutzke]

Awesome rebuild rufneck! I enjoyed speaking with you a few weeks a go about stainless steel hardware. Lets us know how it works out for you. This is a beautiful boat, can't wait to see the final product.

[Rufneck]

Given that we enclosed the transom, added a live well in the transom and the bracket, I was curious about how the boat would sit in the water. I put the fuel tank back in the boat and added 100 gallons of water. I put another 40 gallons in the live well and used a drum to simulate the weight of an engine. Once I did all of this, the boat was a bit heavy in the back but not so much that it concerned me. I felt I needed to do this before continuing with the restoration so that I could determine if I could increase the size of the fuel tank and/or relocate the batteries to the front of the boat. The back corner of the boat was about 2" beneath the water but the scuppers were out of the water so I am happy with the results. I have considered a slightly larger fuel tank and based on these results, I think it is possible.

Here are some pics....





I also got a bit deeper into the restoration than I originally planned. Pretty much everything on this boat is being renewed but I could not get the 40 years of salt build-up off of the windshield glass or frame. I have new glass being made and I will have the frame soda blasted and possibly powder coated. This wasn't in the original plan, but now that I've done the work to get it done, I am really excited about having this look better.

[jongolds]

Did you price out a new windshield from American Marine? You may want to consider it if you're not already committed to the powder coat option. My old windshield had been painted and it failed pretty quickly around the opening center section. I was worried I would have the same problem with powder coat.

The boat looks great.

[Tompee14]

Those seat boxes look great! Would love the process you used and the specs.

[Rufneck]

Tompee,
I've sent you a PM. The seat boxes were designed by Jim (77SceptreOB) but I don't think he minds if I share with you the design.

I got the windshield frame back and installed. I had it soda blasted and then powder coated to match the gelcoat. I like how it turned out and removing it and then reinstalling it wasn't too bad of a job. I will most likely wait until it is time to splash the boat before putting the new glass in it. I could do it now, but that is just more to clean and work around as the rebuild progresses. The only thing I've struggled with is putting the venting window frame (the one in front of the helm) back in place. It was a tight fit taking it out and now the powder coating is preventing it from going back in. Next chance I get I am going to buff some of it off and see if I can get it back in place without getting too rough on it.



Next project is to have a radar arch fabricated and installed. Once this is done, I can start doing some wiring.