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ritzyrags wrote:
Got to be careful when re fitting your Whaler..
You could like I have, try to recapture the original "brand new" shape and in this quest spend way too much time and money doing it.
The refit will never be quite and totally done.There always will be some obscure details to be addressed.The payback will dwell in the fact that the more you will look at the boat ,the better the boat will look.
And in the end will be a monument to your good taste and of your artistic expressions.
In my case, I bought a nice 1986 Outrage 18 like I always wanted...used it, then made the mistake of putting it on a new custom built trailer that actually fit the boat. Next thing I knew I started noticing all the flaws in the gelcoat, flaws in the wood finish, etc., etc. - next thing I know I really NEED 10000 in electronics...now I have the boat under COMPLETE refit to my custom specs !!! I never knew I was going to go this far when I first purchased this boat...I don't really know why I am doing it now, I really want the rest of the boat I always wanted...I think it just happens. You keep using the Whaler and you see that it sure would be nice to have this or that, the next thing you know your just doing stuff to adapt the boat to exactly what you want to do with it. I don't expect this round of restoration and refit to be completed until April at this point due to wet weather conditions on the TX coast during the 1st part of this year - can't do the glass work in damp cold conditions - I bet I think of more stuff I wanna do within 3 months of putting it all to use after I finally fet it back!
And in the Spirit 's moment..
What would we do without our special Whaler feel good moments?
Probably something else but never quite the same as having fun doing and chatting about it!
I agree, to briefly explain my Whaler illness...when I was young my friend had a 13 SS with a 40. I had a 12' sears Jon boat with a 5 hp tiller that sunk to the bottom every time I left it in the water overnight. Since then I purchased a new 1995 Wahoo! 1750 CC, that was restored, customized and re-powered last year (where I got the 90 for the 15). Fast forward to 2009, the last new boat I owned, was a Fountain 34 CC, named Black Magic, got about ten hours on it and it was stolen from my dock the day after my 33rd birthday. It was never recovered. Since then I've been easing back into boating. The 9' tender and the 15' Sport I'm doing are for my younger boys. They are learning on the 9' now. My projects are above average, simply because I am in love with the 80's small Whalers, and when I was able to finally buy one, I was determined to make the boats better than the day they were built, essentially creating unsellable heirlooms, that I hope will last longer than I. Eric, the gentleman that builds these boats, shares the feeling, and he too enjoys the fact that I have never been one to settle for "stock". The boats are used constantly, detailed always, and stored indoors in a warehouse so they won't get stolen. If the boats get damaged, they get fixed!
