1994 Spectrum 16 Sport Rebuild? - Bouncing ideas around

[thill]

Nice and simple. I like it. Fishing 101

I agree. I almost kept that one for that reason. The Spectrum is not nearly as simple, but it's very comfortable and loaded with nice features for fishing the lake and over on the Eastern Shore. A more comfortable boat to spend a week fishing out of.

 

[Skunked again]

For the most comfortable seat, millennium marine seats.
They don’t hold water, breath (so you don’t sweat so bad in the summer), support you better than foam seats (imho), lighter than foam seats.

https://millennium-outdoors.com/millennium-marine/boat-seats/

 

[thill]

For the most comfortable seat, millennium marine seats.
They don’t hold water, breath (so you don’t sweat so bad in the summer), support you better than foam seats (imho), lighter than foam seats.

https://millennium-outdoors.com/millennium-marine/boat-seats/

I've seen tournament guys using those on YouTube and TV. If those guys use them, they must be good.

 

[Skunked again]

I have the B100 (traditional style seat) and B300 (Palma style seat), love them.
On my last boat, I put the B100’s for the driver and passenger seats, very comfortable in rough water.

 

[thill]

Those look comfortable. I need to sit in one to see if I feel a difference.

How do they hold up in the sun?

 

[LDUBS]

Unless you were in California yesterday, I saw a Spectrum just like yours at the lake yesterday. We were trolling along the same area. Guy caught a king salmon. I lost mine about 10' from the boat, but won't talk any more about the one that got away! haha

 

[thill]

Better to have fought and lost than to have never hooked at all. If you got to see it, it counts!

I saw this boat just today:


This is the 18' version of my boat. The problem is that it's totally gutted, with nothing inside and no titles. It's only $800, but there is a lot more work to do than my 16 footer. I don't know....

I'd really like an 18' version of my boat, but YIKES!

 

[LDUBS]

Better to have fought and lost than to have never hooked at all. If you got to see it, it counts!

I saw this boat just today:
View attachment 118578

This is the 18' version of my boat. The problem is that it's totally gutted, with nothing inside and no titles. It's only $800, but there is a lot more work to do than my 16 footer. I don't know....

I'd really like an 18' version of my boat, but YIKES!

Gosh, I hope they have all the parts somewhere -- consoles, windshields, etc.

 

[thill]

I asked, and he said no. It was abandoned on his property, and he just wants it gone.

I can probably get it for $500, and since I just did one, I know exactly how to do it. But do I want to spend the time/money to rebuild it? Probably not. If it had most of the pieces OR a title, I would probably bite.

It's a shame, because it's a great hull. The engine is worth the price, if it's in decent shape.

A few more pics:

 

[Skunked again]

Is it tough to title in your state? With no existing title?
Look at it as a blank canvas -boat, engine and trailer. The trailer alone is $500. Pics and in person two different things, you said the hull looks good? Remember, just cause a different one has the pieces, or partially done, doesn’t mean it’s the better deal.
I say negotiate, if he doesn’t budge, get it anyway. Make it a center console. It appears the room is there.
How much time and money will be spent driving and looking at others?
Run the force engine (assuming it’s one of the few forces that works) until it locks up. Then, put a maxed out 1990’s two stroke on it! As long as it’s not another force!

 

[thill]

Believe it or not, that vintage of Force engines are pretty durable if you do the basics:

1. Keep fresh 50:1 fuel in them, preferably with a little Seafoam mixed in
2. Clean the carbs if you ever notice idling issues
3. Keep a good impeller in them, so you don't overheat them.

What mostly happened with the earlier ones is that they sold a million of them at Costcos and Sams and in malls to people who had NO idea of how to run or even gas/oil a boat with a 2-stroke engine. Many of them detonated because people put 10W30 or NO oil in them. So they got a bad reputation.

The 70 HP were bombs. Every one of them blows the center cylinder. But the 85, 90, 120 and 150 HP engines were actually solid engines. Many of them are still in service and many others are still serviceable, but the boat has rotted from around them like the Spectrum above.

I've run a couple of them for years with excellent service. I've never blown one up. Here is a story about one I ran the longest on my Chesapeake Bay center console

Back around 2009 I sold my Aquasport 170 center console with a 90 Force to a friend who was moving to the coast, but he HATED Force engines and he complained loudly about it.

I told him it was a great motor and that he should run the boat as-is for a little while before swapping it out. He scoffed, but he ran it after they moved. Later, he called me and said he was shocked at how smooth and powerful it was. But he was going to change it out, "for safety reasons."

A year later, we spoke again, and he hadn't gotten around to it because it ran so well, "But that Force was GONE" when he got time...

Fast forward to @2019, a good decade later. We saw each other online and chatted for a bit. Of course, I asked about the boat. He said it was still great, and NO... he never swapped engines. He gave the boat to his two sons, and they run it almost every day. He then laughed and said he can't believe that JUNK Force has outlasted several other engines he's had since then, and is still going strong! I smiled, but resisted the urge to tell him I told him so.

True story!

 

[thill]

Is it tough to title in your state? With no existing title?
Look at it as a blank canvas -boat, engine and trailer. The trailer alone is $500. Pics and in person two different things, you said the hull looks good? Remember, just cause a different one has the pieces, or partially done, doesn’t mean it’s the better deal.
I say negotiate, if he doesn’t budge, get it anyway. Make it a center console. It appears the room is there.
How much time and money will be spent driving and looking at others?

TITLES
It's a pain to get a boat title in most any state. It can take a year in VA. That boat was last registered in PA. No idea what their process is. Trailer titles are easier to get, but still a pain.

TRAILER
That trailer looks like it might break on the way home. That is my biggest short-term concerns, since the boat is over 3 hours away from me.

BOAT
Making it a CC is an idea, but I don't think that boat is much wider than my 16. The front platform structure being gone is a big issue to me. My platform structure wasn't simple. Nothing attached to the hull, as it was all cantilevered from the floor and dual consoles. I'd have to re-engineer it.

MOTOR
The motor is worth the asking price, IF compression is good and the tilt-trim is working.

The seller doesn't know much about boats, so no good answers. Is it worth a 7 hour road trip to find out? I'm uncertain. If I get there and the engine looks good, and the trailer rust is just surface rust, and the tires are good, and the hubs aren't going to burn up, and he finds some parts in the back yard, then it would be a good score.

But if I go and the floor is full of wet, rotted foam, there are no parts, the trailer looks bad in person and the motor is junk, then I wasted a whole day for nothing.

There are so many negatives, but I still like the hull. Maybe if it's still around when I have more time, I'll make the trip.

 

[LDUBS]

I wonder what they were thinking removing the consoles and windows. Seems those are things that would be extremely difficult to source if you wanted to return to a walk-thru design. It is a great hull and I like the wide gunnels. Looks like a lot of fabrication, which could be fun or a PITA, depending on how you look at it.

Out of 100% pure curiosity, what are those boxed in pieces along the inside of the hull just above the deck?

 

[thill]

Out of 100% pure curiosity, what are those boxed in pieces along the inside of the hull just above the deck?

Those stiffen the hull and hold foam floatation. They also give a base for the platforms to mount to/sit on. They really work, as this is the most solid "light" aluminum hull I've ever been in.

My boat has them too. There is/was a raised lip on the inside top edge, so you can lay rods, light pole, wallet, keys, etc. It collects junk but it's nice to have a safe place to throw stuff.

You can see it in my pic here, holding a broom and some misc. tools off the floor while I laid carpet:

 

[thill]

I wonder what they were thinking removing the consoles and windows. Seems those are things that would be extremely difficult to source if you wanted to return to a walk-thru design. It is a great hull and I like the wide gunnels. Looks like a lot of fabrication, which could be fun or a PITA, depending on how you look at it.

Who knows what they were thinking? Some guys are in love with center consoles, so maybe that was the plan. Yes, that stuff would be very difficult to replace. I'd probably just turn it into a side console. I have a couple of those laying around. And THAT is my problem...

I like the hull, and would love to restore that boat, but I did THREE boats last year, and I need to make my next project sorting stuff and getting rid of the piles of junk in my yard. Excess construction materials, trailers and trailer parts, boat parts, about 30 outboards, and more. It looks like a boat junk yard, and all this stuff has to GO. The problem is that it's not junk, so I need to post lots of ads and what doesn't sell needs to go to the scrap yard. THAT will be my project this year.

Still, I'd love to grab that boat and cover it up in the back yard for a rainy day, ha-ha. Too bad I already have (2) project boats waiting. Deep sigh...

 

[thill]

Well, get this... I just spoke to the owner of the Spectrum 18 Sport, and it turns out that he DOES have the front platform framing and a lot of the other framing, but he only has the right side console.

The trailer looks a bit rusty in the pics, but he assures me that it's only surface rust, and that the trailer is in good shape in person.

He says the engine ran for them when they put gas to it.

Thinking it over, I think that I'm in to buy this one!

 

[thill]

About to start a new thread... See you over there

 

[thill]

Took the Spectrum out for the first time this year. Beautiful day:



The boat started up and ran well. I discovered that I need a steeper prop for when it's not totally loaded with people and pulling a tube or wakeboarder.

We found some fish, and had a great time. Here is my nephew with a couple of crappie:


Hopefully, we can do it again soon.

One issue I'm still not used to is how much the boat rocks when you walk around on it. I know it's a product of having a deeper-V, and the ride is excellent through chop, but it's a bit annoying.

Every boat is a compromise...

 

[Keith Kirchoff01]

Was showing someone the Spectrum and I showed them the corner cap, and they looked and said, "No... You didn't make this. It's cast aluminum." So I turned it over, and he was shocked when he saw that it was made from some old angle and a piece of road sign.

After that, I figured I'd show you guys what the bottom looks like:
View attachment 115321

Not so pretty, eh? I could really clean it up, top and bottom, but why? This is how it looks on the boat. You don't even notice it, which is exactly what I wanted.

That is cool.an good

 

[Keith Kirchoff01]

If you use marine varnish or urathine cut 50% will seal better than thompson water seal.mt 2 cents.great job.

Seats with storage under. My two cents.

Boat is looking great.

What length did you cut them past the inside of the wood?? I will be putting in my motor well drains this weekend.
Moeller's instructions say to leave 1/4" beyond the transom. But it looks like that is with the extra spacer(for an aluminum skin only) correct??