just add water

Sometimes I wonder,

will there ever be a hobby that doesn't start out as a project?

Then I realize that is what makes it fun.

Of course it doesn't seem like it while sweating away,

the reward at the end is far greater.

The last boat entry described the pieces to the puzzle.

Basically a long shaft outboard,

with the pre-72 whaler curved short shaft transom.

I spent gobs of time researching online.

There were many overpriced brackets I could copy,

but that isn't the style of boating I was raised on.

One of my earlier memories was my Dad building a wood and fiberglass skiff in the garage.

About the time when I got the itch...

That boat - Thumper - is still around,

owned by a family friend Bud with a similar project addiction.

Back in the kid sailing days,

we got a stripped sabot hull,

and with the help of Earl Elms,

rigged it up just like a bigger boat.

Can ya see I'm trying to place blame here?

That's how hot rodding is.

The cool thing about boats,

is you realize there is no perfect design.

Just like cars,

bolt-on stuff rarely works out of the box.

The fun is making an idea real,

and testing it's performance.

Ok excuse the ramble...

Where are we now.

This was the test mock-up of the mount.

Basically it's a rigid jack-plate.

Surprising how strong a couple little tacks are.

One thing I've learned to enjoy is stick welding,

especially stainless steel.

Glad I know how to do this,

cause buying this woulda been a bit pricey.

I missed taking pics of the install.

Jakob helped out,

and we had 5200 glue on our hands.

As you can see,

this is not only a riser but an extension,

which is popular on trailer boats.

The internet rule is an inch for every hull foot,

which probably just sounds good.

The idea is to give the propellor clean water,

away from the turbulence of the hull.

another rule is the farther away from the transom,

the higher the engine can be mounted,

allowing less drag and more speed.

Typically the cavitation plate is inline with the hull bottom.

All theory really,

it was time to test it out.

The next day the kids and I got a late start.

The engine bumped over,

and I was reminded this was a craigslist special.

We were dripping in the hot sun,

stuck on the trailer.

No pics of the kids,

we were all too salty.

Pull-start not fun at the moment.

Back home I tore into the carburetor.

Yeah this is a simple one carburetor model.

A little dirt in the bowl,

however the main thing I found was the tuning was way off.

Hard to see the pilot screw on top of the intake.

It was screwed all the way in,

basically suffocating the system at idle.

This is one of the side benefits,

as there really is no better way of learning.

Not to say I didn't think of ditching that boat at the launch ramp for a split second!

The next day I was antsy to test out the boat.

After a couple hard starts and idle adjustments,

the old gas burnt away,

and the engine seemed to want to run.

Fast!

I can't imagine this with the 50 hp merc,

the 30 hp suzuki scoots right along.

I went solo,

cause it was a crapshoot.

A bummer to not share the view.

On one side was an awesome sunset,

on the other a mysterious lightning cloud,

next to the last super moon.

There's definitely room for improvement.

A tiller extension and trim adjustment would help,

as it's a wheelie machine.

That could change with riders though.

Now I wish the bricks went all the way back!

No good working in the mud...

TP

motorboating the hard way

All happenings at the Perich pad aren't as smooth as I let on.

Here's a craigslist hunt that went awry.

I thought this would be a good idea.

Get this super cheap outboard,

and part it out.

Yeah salty outboards don't like to come apart.

Fortunately the kids are like ants.

Point them in the direction and they have at it.

The stand was crazy.

I bet he had an engineering degree too,

just very little hands on experience.

Little by little we chiseled away at the motor.

Seriously,

we had to chisel and hammer this thing apart,

so many bolts were corroded and broken.

We were lucky this engine died of an electrical problem,

so internally the mechanicals were in good shape.

Enough boaters throw rods or run into rocks,

making parts worth more than the complete engine.

The hardest decision was letting go of our little outboards.

In the past 2 years,

we only used one of them twice.

Yeah...pathetic...

It isn't easy knowing that a minty 80's outboard,

preserved all these years,

is going to go die on some guys salty tender.

After a deep breath,

I had to fight that hoarder trait.

Must let some things live out their own lives...

Of course with each action,

there's an equal and opposite reaction.

My hooks were set on this mid 80's suzuki 30 hp tiller steer.

A dead old mans freshwater baby.

Eye on the prize...

That rattle-canned silver hiding a super clean low hour engine.

So much space compared to the 9.9 & 15.

The master plan is to ditch the big mercury 500 50 hp,

with all the steering and controls,

and go pull start - tiller steer with extension,

like an American panga.

I found the merc repair manuals,

and have a shred of hope to get it running,

or it'll get parted out too.

The rock in the gear is the old whaler hull.

Before 1972,

the transoms were low-cut 15" high,

and you may have noticed the suzuki is the more popular long shaft,

made for a 20" transom.

Now the choice is a metal bracket or fiberglass work.

Yeah always something.

TP

Ghost Ships

You know when you wake up early on the sunday you can sleep in?

Laying there tossing and turning.

The wife's grumbling cause the beds squeaking.

Then you get up.

Try to be helpful and clean a little.

The creaky floor and the clanking dishes

don't help the situation.

The kids are all zonked out too.

No partners to do a morning swap meet scrounge.

Time for a bike ride.

The couple mile ride to the point can be quick,

with enough hills to make it a good workout.

It had been a while,

a long while since the last ride.

That means slow and steady. 

Sure I passed a guy on a mountain bike.

Going fast more focus is spent on the street.

Little potholes and cracks eat up skinny tires.

The slower pace is different.

It's not important to keep up with the 5 older women with the bright pink outfits

and carbon fiber frames.

It's also not about keeping track of time.

A 45 minute ride can be done in an hour.

After stints in World War II and the Korean War...

stints meaning fixing crashed fighter planes,

rescuing shot pilots,

being hunted by enemy submarines, planes and destroyers...

my grandfather finished his time in this shop.

Here they built these model ships,

for use in perfecting the radar or sonar capabilities.

Under that framework is a large water test tank.

These models were scaled down versions of real ships,

and before computers they practiced real simulations.

One of my earlier memories was visiting this spot.

Papa was retired,

but he'd still go shoot the shit with his old buddies.

I can remember sitting at that table eating lunch.

Back then I didn't appreciate the level of detail.

Now as a metalworker these amaze me.

There are a few models all polished up,

under glass cases in various offices.

Fortunately these are still on outside display for now.

I can feel the same connection coming here then to his gravesite!

TP