After trying my luck and upgrading from my 10' Zodiac with her whopping 5HP electric motor, I took a gamble and purchased an Egg Harbor Yacht. Being this vessel was all wood and older, I quickly learned the downfalls to owning a wood hulled vessel. Got the twin antique engines running smooth as a babies bottom and that was as far as I got. With the amount of work she needed to get her back to a glorified vessel, I decided it would be best to pass her on to someone who has the knowledge and know-how of how to work on a wood vessel (not that I couldn't, but it was more than I could handle alone). So, the Egg was passed on, and I have taken on a new project....
1974 Winner Convertible. She was a steal in my opinion for a whopping 800.00 with the trailer. After getting her home and parked nicely beside the house, the look over of the interior of the boat was better than I thought it would be....it is in good shape, however, the interior is wood, and well, after the Egg experience, I came to the conclusion that wood is just not for me. So, the wood has been removed, completely, floors, walls, tables, seats, etc. It's gutted right to the hull.
Next came the engine problem....it was seized according to the previous owner for letting it sit behind his house for 10 years. Oh joy, but no worries, I have the motivation to see what the problem is. After a couple days of soaking in PBlaster into the cylinders and not getting it to come loose, I removed the outdrive, and pulled the engine. Once in the workshop, I started dismantling the engine to get a better look at what was going on. As soon as the heads came off, the problem showed itself. A slight bit of rust buildup on two of the cylinder walls was the culprit. A bit more PBlaster in the cylinders and a good wrench on the wheel and pop, she busted loose. Not that she is turning kindof ok, I decided to go ahead and do the works and have a look at the internals. Flipped the motor over, removed the oil pan and SURPRISE the internals are like NEW. Totally clean with zero rust inside. After looking over my trusty manual and realizing that the internals of the motor didn't match what I was looking at, I had to step back and scratch my head for a minute. Moving to the cast numbers on the block and doing some research, I determined that the engine has been replaced once, so my supposed 188HP Mercruiser was actually a Ford 351W block (not a chrysler), I got excited. Not only was the motor in good shape internally, but it is one of the better blocks that Ford produced.
Moving forward now that I have the specs right for what I am working with, I busted the motor all the way down to go ahead and replace all of the main and rod bearings and do a close inspection of the cam and timing. Everything is peachy.
So, at this point, I have the motor completely torn down, and awaiting delivery of my replacement parts...seals, bearings, oil pump, gaskets, etc etc. The Hull is gutted and while waiting for my parts delivery, I am laying out some interior designs of how I want the inside of the boat to look.
I am NOT putting one ounce of wood back into the boat. Going all fiberglass with core and honeycomb internals to keep the weight down to a minimum. I removed about 700 pounds of wood from the boat and another 150 or so pounds of useless things such as the stove, sink, old navigation equipment, etc. So dumping almost 1000 pounds has been nice, and I am excited to see what the total weight drop is in the end upon completion.
I've lost some of my motivation to keep busting my butt working on the boat due to other things going on, but I want to dive back in, so I figured I would share my progress and hope that some of you great folks can offer some motivating words.
Also, free rides on the water to those whom may want to help out on the project. I'm always looking to meet and hang out with hands on boaters and share ideas. Never know, good knowledge goes a long way and I am always willing to share information and how-to's.
Thanks for reading!!!!
Link to my Album of pics: 1974 Winner Slideshow
1974 Winner Convertible. She was a steal in my opinion for a whopping 800.00 with the trailer. After getting her home and parked nicely beside the house, the look over of the interior of the boat was better than I thought it would be....it is in good shape, however, the interior is wood, and well, after the Egg experience, I came to the conclusion that wood is just not for me. So, the wood has been removed, completely, floors, walls, tables, seats, etc. It's gutted right to the hull.
Next came the engine problem....it was seized according to the previous owner for letting it sit behind his house for 10 years. Oh joy, but no worries, I have the motivation to see what the problem is. After a couple days of soaking in PBlaster into the cylinders and not getting it to come loose, I removed the outdrive, and pulled the engine. Once in the workshop, I started dismantling the engine to get a better look at what was going on. As soon as the heads came off, the problem showed itself. A slight bit of rust buildup on two of the cylinder walls was the culprit. A bit more PBlaster in the cylinders and a good wrench on the wheel and pop, she busted loose. Not that she is turning kindof ok, I decided to go ahead and do the works and have a look at the internals. Flipped the motor over, removed the oil pan and SURPRISE the internals are like NEW. Totally clean with zero rust inside. After looking over my trusty manual and realizing that the internals of the motor didn't match what I was looking at, I had to step back and scratch my head for a minute. Moving to the cast numbers on the block and doing some research, I determined that the engine has been replaced once, so my supposed 188HP Mercruiser was actually a Ford 351W block (not a chrysler), I got excited. Not only was the motor in good shape internally, but it is one of the better blocks that Ford produced.
Moving forward now that I have the specs right for what I am working with, I busted the motor all the way down to go ahead and replace all of the main and rod bearings and do a close inspection of the cam and timing. Everything is peachy.
So, at this point, I have the motor completely torn down, and awaiting delivery of my replacement parts...seals, bearings, oil pump, gaskets, etc etc. The Hull is gutted and while waiting for my parts delivery, I am laying out some interior designs of how I want the inside of the boat to look.
I am NOT putting one ounce of wood back into the boat. Going all fiberglass with core and honeycomb internals to keep the weight down to a minimum. I removed about 700 pounds of wood from the boat and another 150 or so pounds of useless things such as the stove, sink, old navigation equipment, etc. So dumping almost 1000 pounds has been nice, and I am excited to see what the total weight drop is in the end upon completion.
I've lost some of my motivation to keep busting my butt working on the boat due to other things going on, but I want to dive back in, so I figured I would share my progress and hope that some of you great folks can offer some motivating words.
Also, free rides on the water to those whom may want to help out on the project. I'm always looking to meet and hang out with hands on boaters and share ideas. Never know, good knowledge goes a long way and I am always willing to share information and how-to's.
Thanks for reading!!!!
Link to my Album of pics: 1974 Winner Slideshow
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