kfa4303 said:Hi J. Cool new toy you got there. Welcome to the club. Well, the PVC pipes are most likely rod holders. You lay the rods flat and run the tips into the PVC and support the butt of the rod at the other end. You probably shouldn't remove the box you're talking about. It's most likely filled with emergency flotation foam, which will not only help to keep your boat afloat should you get swamped, but it often performs a structural role in reenforcing the strenght of the hull. If you do remove it, make sure you add flotation elsewhere to compensate. Sinking is bad. The bink/blue/green closed cell foam home insulation board available at lowes/hd works well and is easy to find. Not sure about the live well. You see all kinds of configurations, but there may actually be a plug in the bottom that you pull to allow lake/sea water into the well, then replug once full. The bilge pump is then used to recircualte the water within the tank, rather than drawing fresh water from outside the boat. It looks like he (tried) to seal it with silicone (aka "silly cone") which is a no-no on a tin boat. I would get all the old silicone out and replace it with a bead of 3M 5200 marine caulk/adhesive, also availabe at lowes/hd. Of course you could always just use a 5 gallon bucket with a little submersible pump too. As for the decks, rip them out and replace them with NON-PRESSURE TREATED EXTERIOR GRADE PLYWOOD. NEVER, EVER, EVER use PT wood on an aluminum boat. It will eat right through the hull. Instead use quality non-PT, exterior grade plywood and seal it with either 2-part epoxy (nice, but pricey), fiberglass mat & wax-free polyester resin (nice, but messy), or Spar Urethane (not quite as durable perhaps, but awesome, cheap, readily available at Lowes/HD and easy to use). After all wooden components are sealed, you can either paint, or carpet them as you like and mount them to the hull using STAINLESS STEEL hardware dipped in 3M 5200 throughout. You can also use aluminum rivets and or SS sheet metal screws to attach the decking. The motor is almost identical to my own '66 20 hp, but yours has the tell-tale dark green paint job of a '68, I believe. It appears to have a brand new starter installed too. Great all around motor, with lots of cheap parts still available, but the '67 and later models are sometimes prone to dropping the top cylinder, if it does, let me know and I'll tell you how to fix it. Otherwise, should be a great little 2-stroke. My 20 hp pushes me along at about +/- 20 mph with 2 people in an old 14' semi-v runabout. Very lightweight and reliable too. Plus, the old timers get a kick out of it at the dock. All and all you have a great little rig. Just take your time and ask lots of questions.
https://www.marineengine.com/parts/johnson-evinrude-parts.php?year=1968&hp=20&model=FD-22M
https://www.duckworksmagazine.com/06/columns/max/index6.htm
May I ask what is the issue with "silly cone" & aluminum boats?
