Rebuilding 1973 14ft Sears Semi-V

[ober51]

Got delayed a little bit on progress. My funding for the paint and wood got diverted when a friend called up and offered me a 4 wheeler and 8ft trailer for $500! Could not pass up that chance. Now I am saving for my paint again lol.

If nothing else, I have my first 4 wheeler and I can dolly the boat around with it. Should have the paint and wood in a couple weeks.

Some diversions are good, some are bad. This was a good one.

 

[Stryker777]

Thanks. It was fun to play with today! Looking forward to when the rain stops so I can do some framing. Good luck on the flat bottom!

 

[RStewart]

this is going to be a cool build. i wish i would have thought about going to scrap yard to get aluminum. o well, the wood will work for now and i may redo it later with aluminum.

 

[ober51]

Thanks. It was fun to play with today! Looking forward to when the rain stops so I can do some framing. Good luck on the flat bottom!

Thanks, it's hard to start the second build so quickly - my hands still hurt from the first, though this one has FAR LESS work to do prep wise.

I am on the look out for aluminum, whether it's Craigslist, my town dump, or a local scrap yard. I think it will just last much longer and be that much more sturdy when I take one of the benches out. We'll see. Keep up the good work, you're going to be rewarded!

 

[Stryker777]

Almost have time to start framing. Have a funeral tomorrow... I mean a wedding. Hopefully I can start framing Wednesday. I have been messing around with layouts. This is what I am thinking of for now. I am only removing the second from the back seat. The rest I am leaving for flotation and adding flotation to the front and rear (next to the pumps). My goal is to keep the boat weighted to where it will be useful with or without passengers. The center green seat area is actually going to be a fold out panel that will have two swivel seats mounted on it for my kids. Their feet will be at floor level when it is folded up. Then the livewell and cooler can double as a picnic table. The rear seat location may be moved, depending on the motor I end up with. I have not found one yet. I will probably put 2 mounts in the rear (one on the side, one in the center) so the position is interchangeable. Most of the time it will just be me and one other person on the boat. This is my first draft.

 

[Caesar]

Stryker, you weren't kidding about when you said your plans were similar to mine... Great minds eh? Looks good I'm looking forward to watching this thing come together since I'm about a week and half behind you when it comes to rounding up materials. Good luck and keep the updates coming.

 

[Stryker777]

I guess delays happen. This one was almost a year because I had no time to work on it. Today I am taking in the boat to get the keel guard welded. I may have him weld a couple other places too, just for good measure. He is good and it will be cheap this time. Can't wait to get that done. Then I can get this thing in the water for the first time. I'll be using it between projects on it. Painting will be the next project, then the framing.

 

[ober51]

I guess delays happen. This one was almost a year because I had no time to work on it. Today I am taking in the boat to get the keel guard welded. I may have him weld a couple other places too, just for good measure. He is good and it will be cheap this time. Can't wait to get that done. Then I can get this thing in the water for the first time. I'll be using it between projects on it. Painting will be the next project, then the framing.

Glad to see you're back on track, looking forward to the reports.

 

[Stryker777]

Finally got it back from the guy that did the welding. Spring turkey season started so he got delayed lol. Now I have to decide what to do about paint. I really wanted to do steel flex originally but now I am unsure of what to do. Anyone have any advice? I'm going to be doing some reinforcing and then start on framing after the bottom paint is done.

 

[ober51]

Finally got it back from the guy that did the welding. Spring turkey season started so he got delayed lol. Now I have to decide what to do about paint. I really wanted to do steel flex originally but now I am unsure of what to do. Anyone have any advice? I'm going to be doing some reinforcing and then start on framing after the bottom paint is done.

Any leaking issues? I like SF even simply to protect.

 

[perchin]

I would just steelflex the very bottom of the boat, and paint the rest.

 

[Stryker777]

There are a couple of pin hole leaks I found. They had put liquid nail on em and I sanded it all off so they leak again I figured Steel Flex can seal them up fine. I guess I will go with it. Then I can use some implement paint on the top half.
Thanks for the input!

 

[perchin]

There are a couple of pin hole leaks I found. They had put liquid nail on em and I sanded it all off so they leak again I figured Steel Flex can seal them up fine. I guess I will go with it. Then I can use some implement paint on the top half.
Thanks for the input!

Yeah..... you might want to do the painting first so you get full coverage at the seams. Take a peek at what steps and order I did mine, you'll see what I'm talking about. You can also order the pigment dyes for the steelflex to closely match your color scheme. From a distance you can't even tell the difference in main color of boat to the color of the steelflex. Hope this helps. 8)

 

[Stryker777]

Thanks Perchin. Your thread will be helpful. I am going to use an old coal bin as a painting booth. We have about 6 of em out here that were abandoned many years ago. Wont have power, but they are made of concrete and have big doors. What kind of paint did you use for your upper parts?

 

[perchin]

Rust-oleum exteior flat in spray cans. I wet sanded in between coats with 600 grit, just enough to smooth it out, then blow it off with air, clean off remainning dust with lightly soaked rag w/acetone. 8)

 

[Stryker777]

Hopefully doing the top painting this weekend after mudding with the kids. That is if the weather holds out. Thanks for the info about the paint and method you used Perchin. I am going to do the back first (since I am mounting my new boards) and then I'll do the rest of the top half.

 

[Stryker777]

Painted the back and front sides. Then re-numbered it and put on the transom boards. Turned out pretty good. Then, thankfully, we put it in the water for 4 hours without a drop coming it. Looks pretty good. The wife and I had a great time fishing. Tonight I put on the transducer for my fish finder. I drilled and put in SS bolts. Did not really want to drill but I figured I can use it for many years and if I ever have no more need for the holes, I can cut there for a live well fill tube (with cut-off valve). Rubber o-rings worked good on all of my bolts. I am thinking of using marine sealant at the transducer also, but the o-rings keep the water out pretty well for such a simple thing. I am using EV-3 fuel injector o-rings.

 

[Stryker777]

Last week I ordered in some led stop/turn lights to replace my trailer lights. These are flush mounted to the uprights. I drilled the uprights and ran the wires through. Put on two sets to make sure they were bright enough. Cost $24.
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Got an old 18 horse Johnson today. Compression was 98 on one side and 100 on the other. Had a clear title, gas tank, new gas line, electric start with harness, and a couple mud dauber nests. It does not look real pretty but runs pretty well. I don't know anything about the things but I can learn. Paid $225 so I think I did ok. Have been out without it a couple times this year already. It will be nice having it to scoot across the lakes a little faster. I think I need to clean, oil, and grease stuff right away. I will probably repaint it soon too. Any input or info about it would be great. I have no information about this engine at the time.
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I have not done any decking yet. Maybe this summer. At least I have the materials. Now I just need time.