My Retirement Project Begins Chapter Two

[jpmurphy]

Finished pulling the floor this afternoon and got everything cleaned up. Everything looks go to go at this point. All of the floatatioin sheets were in really good shape which was a pleasant surprise considering the age of the boat and the condition of the floor. But then again, I like pleasant surprises.

Here are a few progress pics (I hope).......

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

You're cooking with gas Murph. If you want more storage up front, you can use the front seat...cut a hatch in the top and remove as much foam in there as needed. Or not.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

I think the "seat", or at least most of it should remain as is as that is the support for the front swivel seat. I need to use the factory location so as to not change the center of gravity for balance. Yes ??

 

[sschefer]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

jp - Your Klamath is a hybrid, it is a cross between a planning and a displacement hull. Not all boats perform well with this type of design but your Klamath and the Westerns are two that do. .

You boat will easily come up on plane and at the same time it will glide through some pretty rough water.

Keep it as close to original design as possible because it is the best design for your boat.
You still have a boat load, (sorry, couldn't resist that), of options but just keep in mind that any weight you add needs to be subtracted from max capacity and it needs to be followed with something(s) of equal weight at some other point in the boat.

Here's a trick, go down to the pawn shop and buy some old used weight lifting plates. Then, take the boat out and put it in the water. Mark a line at the water line fore and aft. Add some weights to the front of the boat and then start adding to the rear. When the distance from the surface at the forward mark is the same as it is from the rear stop adding weight. Now all you need to do is calculate the ratio and you'll know precisely how to balance your boat.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

you definitely need to leave the front seat, it is structural, make a deck over it.

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Agreed...the seat is structural. Have seen some with a cut-out for storage...didn't seem to affect structural strength. Nice tip on balancing using weights, I'll have to try that this spring after it thaws out.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

you definitely need to leave the front seat, it is structural, make a deck over it.

Yupe, thats how the mfg built it. I do want maximum storage and I think that with a little inventiveness and forethought I can achieve most of what I want. I especially wanted to be able to put in a rod locker but there isn't a 7 foot stretch available without creating an obstacle. And I don't think that raising the floor level (for an infloor locker like a bass boast) is a wise choice.

Any thoughts on your end ?

The attached is a near exact model of the same year Gregor which is my initial goal.

 

[sschefer]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

"The attached is a near exact model of the same year Gregor which is my initial goal. "

Ahh yes, you have a Gregor not a Klamath, my mistake. Gregor makes a fine boat also. It's not as much of a hybrid and getting up on plane and running fast is not it's specialty but they do well in rough water because of their displacement qualities.

Heres a link to what I did with a Western. The front seat is where the bow piece starts. I did remove it completely but I added back in aluminum angle to re-create the bulk head that the seat was forming.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?p=1948660#post1948660

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Outstanding Job !

Know how to get to Great Bend, KS. ?????

 

[sschefer]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Outstanding Job !

Know how to get to Great Bend, KS. ?????

Yes I do as a matter of fact..

Much like you, my first attempt was one where I tried to keep everthing like the manufacturer intended it to be. I ended up with a similar looking boat but the weight gain was tremendous. I used it last season and then bought another boat. With two, I got brave and went for what might be referred to as a complete re-engineering.

I have a pretty good size swimmng pool so a lake was never more than a stones throw away and testing was nothing more than slinging it up to the engine hoist, wheeling it over to the pool and dropping it in. I probably would have been a lot less agressive if I didn't have that convienence.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Yup. Just got back from the local boat repair shop. Had them verify the rigging for me so I don't buy the wrong motor and have to re-rig. My suspisions were correct. It dloes have OMC rigging so a Johnson or Evinrude it will be.

Did a leak test when I returned home and everything is dry as a bone !
Next I'll do an electrical test to make sure all of the racing is intact with no breaks. Considering how well things are going so far, I suspect the elect is good to go. If not, no big deal...

Pulling the rig back into the shop shortly as soon as it dries out. Do the testing and take er off the trailer. I did notice today that the bunks are all rotten so I'll have to replace them and will probably change the rollers as well.
Need everything done properly while I have easy access. Hate having to backstep 2 or three weeks down the road.

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Good idea. Give your trailer a good once or second-over while the boat is off.

 

[sschefer]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

jp, just something to keep in mind. Those rollers are used for centering guides only. They should never be used to support weight on a bunk style trailer. Lots of people do it but it is not correct.

Set them up so that they just touch the keel when the boat is sinched down. This will keep you from cracking your keel like happens to a lot of folks with these smaller aluminum hulled boats that are built with hardened aluminum.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

Re: My Retirement Project Begins

jp, just something to keep in mind. Those rollers are used for centering guides only. They should never be used to support weight on a bunk style trailer. Lots of people do it but it is not correct.

Set them up so that they just touch the keel when the boat is sinched down. This will keep you from cracking your keel like happens to a lot of folks with these smaller aluminum hulled boats that are built with hardened aluminum.

Thank you for that tip. With all the guidance I'm getting from folks like you on this great site, I should have my AA degree in small boat rebuilding in less than 90 days !