catmansteve
Well-known member
I had another thread discussing whether my boat would be suitable for a jet, finally ran across a good deal on one and thought I'd give it a try. First off, the boat is a 1980 Fisher Marine 1438 mod-V, beam is about 60", rated for 20hp
The motor is an 87 Johnson 40/28 remote steer/electric start
I needed to build the transom up to 27", and since I'm not sure how well the boat and motor will do together, I decided to build a temporary riser/bracing rather than weld a new transom up. If it feels like a winning combo, I want to build a tall transom like you see on Blazers, Legends, etc., but we shall see... Anyway, I would rather go the brick outhouse route than have something fail, so I found a piece of 5/16"x5"x2" aluminum channel and split it down the middle so I had two pieces of 2 1/2" x 2" angle for my risers. I attached two pieces of 3/4" Advantech subfloor plywood for a motor mount, then used 1/2" EMT conduit for diagonal bracing. The pics were taken before I was finished, I added two more braces going from the riser to the top corners of the transom. I used $50 worth of 5/16" SS bolts to put it all together, plus 1/2" SS bolts to hang the motor
I have alot of work ahead of me building a console and setting up the controls and such, and I'm sure I'll have lots of questions, as I've never owned a boat with either a jet or remote steering...
The guy I bought it from, a Tinboats member, said the motor hasn't been run for a couple months, but everything was in good running order. What all steps should I take before running it the first time? I know the pump needs greased every use, would it be a good idea to pull the pump off and check the water pump, check clearance on impeller/liner, check torque on pump mounting bolts, etc.? Or do you think I would basically be spending alot of time and effort for nothing?
Also, the guy gave me an extra intake foot with the motor, but it's pretty beat up. I thought about running it with the old foot for awhile until I get used to it, just incase a rock jumps out when I'm still learning to run it 8) Thoughts?
Also, how sharp does my impeller need to be? It's in good shape as far as not having gouges or chunks out, but not exactly sharp...
I'm planning on gutting the whole boat and redoing all the decks and carpet with non skid painted aluminum vs. the plywood and carpet, and extending the front deck all the way back to the console, sort of a miniature side by side bass boat style to maximize storage space. I'll post my design idea when I get a chance to draw it up...
Well, thanks for reading and stay tuned, more to come. I'm open to all comments, suggestions, looks of disgust, etc. :mrgreen:
The motor is an 87 Johnson 40/28 remote steer/electric start
I needed to build the transom up to 27", and since I'm not sure how well the boat and motor will do together, I decided to build a temporary riser/bracing rather than weld a new transom up. If it feels like a winning combo, I want to build a tall transom like you see on Blazers, Legends, etc., but we shall see... Anyway, I would rather go the brick outhouse route than have something fail, so I found a piece of 5/16"x5"x2" aluminum channel and split it down the middle so I had two pieces of 2 1/2" x 2" angle for my risers. I attached two pieces of 3/4" Advantech subfloor plywood for a motor mount, then used 1/2" EMT conduit for diagonal bracing. The pics were taken before I was finished, I added two more braces going from the riser to the top corners of the transom. I used $50 worth of 5/16" SS bolts to put it all together, plus 1/2" SS bolts to hang the motor
I have alot of work ahead of me building a console and setting up the controls and such, and I'm sure I'll have lots of questions, as I've never owned a boat with either a jet or remote steering...
The guy I bought it from, a Tinboats member, said the motor hasn't been run for a couple months, but everything was in good running order. What all steps should I take before running it the first time? I know the pump needs greased every use, would it be a good idea to pull the pump off and check the water pump, check clearance on impeller/liner, check torque on pump mounting bolts, etc.? Or do you think I would basically be spending alot of time and effort for nothing?
Also, the guy gave me an extra intake foot with the motor, but it's pretty beat up. I thought about running it with the old foot for awhile until I get used to it, just incase a rock jumps out when I'm still learning to run it 8) Thoughts?
Also, how sharp does my impeller need to be? It's in good shape as far as not having gouges or chunks out, but not exactly sharp...
I'm planning on gutting the whole boat and redoing all the decks and carpet with non skid painted aluminum vs. the plywood and carpet, and extending the front deck all the way back to the console, sort of a miniature side by side bass boat style to maximize storage space. I'll post my design idea when I get a chance to draw it up...
Well, thanks for reading and stay tuned, more to come. I'm open to all comments, suggestions, looks of disgust, etc. :mrgreen: