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The hull is painted. I had originally planned to make minimal repairs, touch up the existing paint, and rebuild the 1980 Mercury 80hp that came with the boat. I have since decided to repower with a Yamaha F70 (the Merc wiring was badly rotted). Once you decide to spend $10k for a motor, touching up a crappy paint job is no longer good enough! I'm going to sand and repaint everything.
Like the rest of the boat the console has a litany of problems.
1. The 1/2" plywood floor has a funny green color, and has cracks and splinters.
2. There is a thin sheet of plastic that separates the side door compartment from the main console compartment:
There was nothing in the hole when I got the boat; however, there were two rivets on the hole sides that obviously had held something in place.
4. The Teleflex Big-T helm has a shaft play due to wear at the top bushing, and the pot metal chromed bezel is badly pitted. I can probably fix the play with a new bushing, but I would like to replace the helm with a Teleflex no-feedback system. Unfortunately, the steering wheel rim extends beyond the port “wing.” The length of the Big-T shaft prevents interference. My search for helm information indicates that the other Teleflex mechanical systems (Safe-T II, for example) have shafts that are too short to prevent interference.
5. The original instrument panels are gone, replaced by plastic panels from a Maiko! I like the on/off switches; however; those plastic panels have to go.
7. The side and rear hatch openings do not have plywood backing.
Here are my first three console questions:
1. Should I epoxy-seal the replacement floor? Does anybody have a suggestion for something to replace the plastic/vinyl mat that was glued to the original floor?
2. Is the internal partition sheet original? It does not extend to the top of the console.
3. Does aybody know what the purpose of 3” starboard side hole might have been? There is no hole on the port side, and it is clearly too small for a speaker.
In order to avoid over-cluttering this thread, I will ask the other questions in a new thread.
Thanks for the responses, Phil, and for the compliment. It feels to be down to a naked hull. In addition to the repower cost, another factor in the decision to go whole-hog on the restoration was how well our personally-made cushions and refinished teak came out. They are just to o nice to put on a boat with a touched-up crappy paint job.
Good to hear about the partition sheet. I am putting two batteries in the console, so I may go ahead and make a partition for a side hatch-dedicated compartment to keep wet PFDs out of the way. I will use two walls instead of three to avoid wasting so much space. If anybody has any clever ideas for organizing console space, I'd like to hear them.
I guess the mystery of the 3" hole will go unsolved! At least I know it isn't some sort of rare, horribly expensive standard fitting I'm missing. I'll just glass it in. Too bad the hole isn't located where the cutout for the fire extinguisher box will go.
Finnegan's craftsmanship and attention to detail are astounding, and almost depressing! His console photos will help me get the FE box properly positioned, and I am considering the possibility co-opting his idea of using wood to replace the plastic instrument panels. I like those courtesy lights, too.
Great idea for using the hole saw to get the radii, Joe, consider it stolen! Wonderful workmanship, as well. May I ask where you got the neck support and strap for the fire extinguisher.
Re. the console style, there are two things I do not like about my winged console: the wings themselves (port wing in particular) and that boss on the top for (I assume) a compass mount.
It sounds like the port wing will prevent me from using one of the cost effective (re. cheap) Teleflex mechanical NFB steering systems due to interference with the wheel. I may have to stick with the Big T.
I think the boss is just ugly. It probably stiffens the top and helps prevent water from pooling, but it doesn't seem very useful otherwise. I rebuild (new seals, fluid) a Ritchie Helmsman HD-75 compass for the boat. It's mounting base is not circular. I may just cut out the boss and glass in the hole.
I recommend you glass the existing steering hole and redrill at dead center of console.
To further improve console ergonomics, you could install a "rybovich" style wedge under the binnacle to level it off.
Looking at your photographs, do not neglect to seal the howse fitting area below the non-skid where you have apparent plywood rot.
Finally, if you do not want to spend $10K on a new motor, price the Etec 60 or 75 HP. I just installed an E-Tec on my custom 17 and my out the door cost was $7209.
Thank you for your excellent input. I have been considering the possibility glassing and moving the steering hole, but only by about two inches, not to the center of the console. That should give me enough wing clearance. When running the boat I expect the RPS to be frequently occupied by two adults. The offset wheel should be easier to use under those circumstances.
I am relatively new to boating and not familiar with a rybovitch style wedge. Can you give me a description or send me a link to a photo.
You have great eyes, and those high resolution photographs do not lie! There is indeed some wood rot at the edge of the middle opening to the rigging tunnel. If this hole and the accompanying plastic sleeve are original, it is a poor design on the part of BW. No effort has been made to seal the edge of the plywood and foam. The rot goes back about 1/2" and then the wood becomes solid (impossible to scrape out with a screw driver. I am working on drying the wood completely. I will then scrape a little more out with a thin wood chisel, fill the void with glass-filled epoxy, and glass the edges. Interestingly enough, the foam beneath the plywood is in perfect shape: no dampness or disintegration at all.
I have thought long and hard about the 2-stroke vs. 4-stroke decision, and given my needs and priorities, I decided to go with a 4s. I know repowering choices can be a point of contention among the whaler community, but I like the idea of having the small but significant reduction in fuel burn that comes with a 4s. 70 hp seems to be the sweet spot for my needs, and everything I have read or been told indicates the F70 is a special motor in terms of low weight, reliability, and efficiency. Is it worth an extra $3500? That's a tough, tough call. $3500 buys a lot of gas! Right now I have a winter's worth of work in front of me. While I am now planning to repower with the F70, a special deal or technology advance may come along and change my mind. If Evinrude were to come our with an Etec G2 in this power range (and if the styling were not so radical as the 200-300hp version), I would happily pay a premium for it.
The plywood rot below the non-skid usually happens when residual water is left in the rig tunnel, of sufficient height to saturate the plywood. Boston Whaler did not seal the plywood after cutting the hawse fitting for the fuel hose installation to the area below the RPS. You can seal the area with polysulfied caulk; the long term solution is to keep the interior of the boat dry so water does not penetrate the floor.
To level off the binnacle on your console, I suggest the fabrication of a triangular wedge of wood installed between the console and the binnacle so that the angle of the binnacle is more level to the deck. I saw a photograph of such a modification on this site, but could not find it again.
I repowered with Evinrude E-Tec specifically because of economy. The first time out, with four passengers, my E-Tec 60 hp consumed 4.5 gallons of fuel during a 35 miles cruise from East Falmouth to Martha's Vineyard. The Etec is comparable in fuel economy to a four stroke. I love the torque of the E-Tec. And less maintenance. Plus I have a 6 year warranty.
Weatherly - I start the interior hole repair process later this week! There is not a WC consensus on the best way to fill these holes, so I will probably go with hickey puck at locations without wood, and a combination of Marine Tex and board-cut hardwood plugs for holes with wood over the foam. I understand your point: seal, seal, seal, and then seal a little more.
I also understand your suggestion re. the console top. I had forgotten that these boats sit at an angle. I'll give the wedge idea some consideration.
45 miles on 3.5 gallons: that's awesome! How did you get in so low? Did you do some of the rigging yourself? How old is the motor now? I'm not terribly concerned about top speed, but just out of curiosity, what will your boat do with the E-Tec?
Thanks for the post, Phil. I had see that thread. That's when I realized I had a problem with my helm. I had not noticed the small finger clearance when the helm was still mounted. At first I thought I would reuse the Big-T. The cable looks almost new (there is an adapter to the old helm). The Helm itself seems original based upon the amount of shaft wear at the top bushing). I opened the gearbox for inspection. The gears are in great condition with no discernible backlash. I believe I could replace the top bushing in the shaft collar and have a Big-T helm that functionally is almost perfect. Unfortunately, there is the problem of my pitted bezel. Rechroming is prohibitively expensive, and even with careful repair, the pits would probably soon come back. Replacements are expensive: half the cost of a new mechanical helm kit with a cable!
All things being equal, the Teleflex Safety-T II system would be my replacement helm of choice. I prefer mechanical and no-feedback. If necessary, I can repair the Big-T holes in the console and move shaft axis to the right by 2-3 inches. In the meantime, I will keep my eyes open for a nice looking Big-T chrome bezel. A good price on a used bezel might tip the balance back to the Big-T.
I am beginning to realizing that unexpected problems crop up at every stage of this project, that these problems rarely have simple solutions, and that the solutions inevitably involve uncertainty and extra time, money, and effort. I can't quite decide if the process is sublimely enjoyable, or a series or stress-inducing headaches that will shorten my lifespan!
Maybe I can add something here since I have the same "winged" center console, all original, on my 1975 Outrage 19. See this photo, and many others in the same Album:
Besides the fact that I have raised this console 6", the only thing not original are the replacement 3/8" solid teak instrument panels, and the engine control base (Boat originally had a Morse twin engine control). The round gauge between the instrument panels, with on-off switch underneath, was only furnished on Outrage models, for the built-in fuel tank gauge.
You can see that the raised pad on the console top is for the optional Ritchie Navigator compass, recessed version. Mine is still original, and I would recommend you buy this same compass. They are about $225 and well worth it. They also make a blue card "Super Sport" version for more card stability and dampening.
I would not change out the Big T steering. It is a really heavy duty helm, and you can buy a brand new cable for it, with a QC connector adaptor. That is what I did, and mine steers a 150 Merc with no problem at all. My chrome bezel did not need replacing, but they are readily available from Teleflex
new. Per Mercury, to elminate prop feedback at the wheel, simply trim the engine to the neutral steering position, which is also the most efficient running angle anyway. As with any cable steering system, be sure to use a Steersman grease zerk nut on the port side of the tilt tube.
If you do want to change out the Big T, go with BayStar hydraulic. This has a very tall helm which will give you the steering wheel clarance needed. In either case, I would never change the centerline location of the wheel. Leave it where Whaler placed it.
My console also came with the interior partitioning, one of the dumber things I have ever seen Whaler do. I have no idea what they were thinking! I removed it, and with no batteries or oil tanks in it, it gives me huge storage space.
I raised this console, and also the 1977-1982 non-winged version in my 1979 Montauk 6", because on both of these consoles, the wheel and engine control are ridiculously low, especially for a tall person like me. It sounds extreme, but it is not, and it increases the control and operating comfort of the boats 10 fold. I HIGHLY recommend doing it. But it does require raising the RPS the same distance or you'll feel like you are sitting on the floor!
