1973 Formula Thunderbird - Cathedral Hull

[Allen2018]

Hi Everyone,
First off I would like to introduce myself. My name is Allen - Bought this boat about a year ago, got a great deal on it and pulled the trigger. Love the boat, perfect size for me and very stable for where I fish. Not the greatest boat when cutting through waves but I don't mind it! I got it as my first boat in order to learn and experience being a boat owner. I want to convert this thing into a small center console. It would be more spacious for fishing, too much going on in it now. The seat boxes take up so much usable space.

The pics included in my post are what my main question was. When I cut the Side consoles off, there will be a nice sized gap there. I saw somewhere online where a guy patched it up, but don't know what to fill it with before glassing over it. Foam? Plywood? Wanted to get some tips from anyone who has ever done this type of thing.

I am pulling the floor as well. Its not rotting, but the owner before me only put a sheet of plywood down with the resin over it and no mat or anything for support. I want it done correctly I will need to cut it out to pull my cables/wires through the middle anyway..

Sorry for the long post! Look forward to meeting some of yall

 

[Scott Danforth]

The prior owner did a deck over. Most likely if you pull the deck, you will find rotten stringers and transom along with water logged foam

 

[Allen2018]

I know transom is good, I drilled a few holes and the wood inside didn’t look dark or wet. Should I look for something else? Still haven’t seen stringers. That comes this weekend. Thank you!

 

[Woodonglass]

Where did you drill the transom? Down low around the drain tube? Do you know how the boat was previously maintained and stored? With a fiberglass boat you can cut and fabricate just about anything to make it look the way you wish. I'd make some rough drawings of what you want her to look like and then post them. Lot's of help here so give us more details on the exact final product.

 

[Allen2018]

Where did you drill the transom? Down low around the drain tube? Do you know how the boat was previously maintained and stored? With a fiberglass boat you can cut and fabricate just about anything to make it look the way you wish. I'd make some rough drawings of what you want her to look like and then post them. Lot's of help here so give us more details on the exact final product.

I drilled right above the drain hole. I also trimmed the motor up and did the press test. I was moving the whole boat it was completely solid. Transom didn't move at all. It was kept outside. The previous owner had it for about 10 years. It was outside but always covered. I saw a post where a guy did the same thing I want to do right now. This was a long time ago on one of the forums. I attached the pic of his boat, he did it to a similar boat as the one I have.

 

[Lightwin 3]

I agree that you can do ust about anything with fiberglass and a little imagination.

That will be a very nice, stable, inshore center console.

As stated above, when you get the floor up hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Realize that it will be for you. Probably not a whole lot of potential for resale. But-nice!

 

[Allen2018]

I agree that you can do ust about anything with fiberglass and a little imagination.

That will be a very nice, stable, inshore center console.

As stated above, when you get the floor up hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Realize that it will be for you. Probably not a whole lot of potential for resale. But-nice!

That is mainly what I want to use it for. Fishing the creeks here and chasing reds & trout. Not worried about resale, as it is more of a learning platform for me. I got this as my first boat because I want to learn as much as I possibly can before getting into a nice CC later on maybe in 2-3 years. The main thing that worries me are the stringers. I haven't seen them yet. Cutting stuff out this weekend to get a good view of whats in store for me. I have watched probably a thousand videos of redoing floors & stringers. Seems like it is challenging but can be done.

 

[Lightwin 3]

Sounds like a plan, Good luck.

People repair/replace stringers all the time. And, who knows, you might luck out. It's labor intensive but not all that expensive.

It sounds like you are in a coastal area. As far as the actual console goes, I would shop around for a used one. . You can always refill holes, etc.

Keep us posted.

 

[Allen2018]

Sounds like a plan, Good luck.

People repair/replace stringers all the time. And, who knows, you might luck out. It's labor intensive but not all that expensive.

It sounds like you are in a coastal area. As far as the actual console goes, I would shop around for a used one. . You can always refill holes, etc.

Keep us posted.

Thank you!
Yes, I'm hoping for the best. I am in a coastal area, I have looked for a decent looking console. The cheapest I found was one that had like 20 holes drilled through it and the guy wanted 250 for it. Isn't it much cheaper to make it out of ply then glass over that?

 

[Allen2018]

Built the console out of ply to experiment a little. It is not as heavy as I thought it would be. I think I will stick with it for now unless I come across an amazing deal on a used console. Glassed it as well. Will probably start painting it this weekend once I start ripping out the stuff from the boat.

 

[Lightwin 3]

That looks Great!

 

[oldrem]

With a nice grain like that I'd be tempted to do a marine varnish and clear coat, but then I love the look of wood.

 

[Allen2018]

With a nice grain like that I'd be tempted to do a marine varnish and clear coat, but then I love the look of wood.

Wood is nice, don’t think my boat can pull it off though!

 

[Allen2018]

Cut off the side consoles today. It was so hot I could barely get anything done. The consoles are out and I test fitted my homemade center console. I think it came out okay. Maybe a little high? But it was easy to do and looks good to me for now. I may change my mind before bolting everything down lol.

 

[garbageguy]

... It was so hot I could barely get anything done....

Not here, it was so cold, had to do inside work - much rather be outside.

Sounds like you're progressing, looking forward to pics of your work.

 

[Allen2018]

Not here, it was so cold, had to do inside work - much rather be outside.

Sounds like you're progressing, looking forward to pics of your work.

Yeah, I like Florida but it just gets crazy warm at times. Always gotta complain about something, right? Lol. I was afraid to cut at first but once I started cutting in I said there’s no turning back now. Slowly but surely getting there. What do you think about the console? Is it high for this boat?

 

[Bayou Dave]

Cut off the side consoles today. It was so hot I could barely get anything done. The consoles are out and I test fitted my homemade center console. I think it came out okay. Maybe a little high? But it was easy to do and looks good to me for now. I may change my mind before bolting everything down lol.

It does look pretty high. If you never intend to sit down it may be ok.

 

[Woodonglass]

Make sure to plan how you want to route the steering and electrical under the deck!!

 

[Allen2018]

I think its just the way its shaped is what's throwing it off a bit. I intend to build another one but don't know what height is good for the perfect balance such as being able to stand and steer & sit as well. I found a pic of a console and I will most likely go with that look as a final product.

I've had a lot of time to think over what to do with the steering cables, & electrical. Already pretty much have it all mapped out. I had time over the past week to create templates out of cardboard to fill the gaps where the old consoles used to sit. Should start on that next week and the floor as well which will probably be the biggest project of all. On vacation at the moment, don't get back till Sunday night!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

[Allen2018]

Something like this is what I was wanting the next console to be.