1957 LoneStar King Commander

[LDUBS]

Too bad about the trailer, though I think it was undersized for your boat (no transom support).

 

[Acme54]

Making progress...I'm about 2/3rds of the way done stripping and sanding. After finishing with that, will be washing clean with degreaser soap, and sealing rivets and seams with gluvit and 5200. We'll be getting a freeze in a couple days but weather should be good again by the following weekend. Should still stay on track to get everything sealed and ready for paint by the end of the month.

Brought the 50 year old trailer to a local repair shop in town for some wisdom. Turns out it needs a bit more work than l originally anticipated. It was given the diagnosis of "Just use it til it breaks or take it out back and shoot it". So with that, I'll be looking for a replacement.

Thank god you live in Texas. It’s -10 in Chicago today so no outside work till spring.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Too bad about the trailer, though I think it was undersized for your boat (no transom support).

Agreed, and once my hard work is done I'll feel better about having a new one under the boat anyway. I'm looking at a Road King for up to 16' (RKG-16). I know for salt aluminum is the way to go but I figure I can get some good years out of the galvanized one and save a bit of $$ up front.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Thank god you live in Texas. It’s -10 in Chicago today so no outside work till spring.

I've got family from Chicago and that is exactly why I love living on the gulf coast . I'm sure you'll find it funny that we were at 30 degrees yesterday and 32 today, and pretty much the whole city shuts down just in case a single flurry were to fall. It's rare we get below 50 here.

 

[Acme54]

I've got family from Chicago and that is exactly why I love living on the gulf coast . I'm sure you'll find it funny that we were at 30 degrees yesterday and 32 today, and pretty much the whole city shuts down just in case a single flurry were to fall. It's rare we get below 50 here.

we wish for 30s at the moment. This cold snap Won’t last thankfully.

95 lbs is much lighter than mine. Sounds good. I have a piece of Coosa left over from my Admiral. I could send to you for shipping cost only. It’s great to work with. It is 21” x 48” x 1”thick.

not sure how you can get me your address so I can send the Coosa board or at least let you know what shipping cost will be.

 

[thill]

Agreed, and once my hard work is done I'll feel better about having a new one under the boat anyway. I'm looking at a Road King for up to 16' (RKG-16). I know for salt aluminum is the way to go but I figure I can get some good years out of the galvanized one and save a bit of $$ up front.

You might want to check Craigslist or FB Marketplace for a trailer before you go new. There are often nice ones around for a good price.

There is nothing wrong with galvanized. But it helps if you have a freshwater lake nearby. After running in the salt, stop by the ramp and dunk it in the lake for a few minutes. Works great!

It was 5 degrees here this morning. BRRRR!!!

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Update: Nearly complete with stripping and sanding the outside, just have the flat bottom portion to go. It makes me a little nervous because of this weird cover or something. Anybody have any idea what the purpose of this could have been? Looks like 2 drain plugs? Sorry for upside down pictures lol

 

[LDUBS]

I dont know enough about LoneStar to comment. Looking at that rectangular riveted in area (see pic below), I wonder why the rivet heads in that area are on the inside of the boat with the pins sticking outside. Seems the opposite of what should be.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

I dont know enough about LoneStar to comment. Looking at that rectangular riveted in area (see pic below), I wonder why the rivet heads in that area are on the inside of the boat with the pins sticking outside. Seems the opposite of what should be.


View attachment 118853

Exactly. And I struggle to see the purpose of that entire rectangular riveted area. It looks like scrap metal was used or maybe there was something else to it originally and somebody removed it? The two drain plugs seem completely out of place as well.

 

[LDUBS]

Exactly. And I struggle to see the purpose of that entire rectangular riveted area. It looks like scrap metal was used or maybe there was something else to it originally and somebody removed it? The two drain plugs seem completely out of place as well.

Maybe a patch?

 

[LaqueRatt]

Won't that affect the performance? Create a lot of drag? Some boats are just too far gone to mess with. This may be one of them. Good luck to you, you definitely have your work cut out for you.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Won't that affect the performance? Create a lot of drag? Some boats are just too far gone to mess with. This may be one of them. Good luck to you, you definitely have your work cut out for you.

Although I'm new to boats, I don't see how this would affect performance, at least any noticeable amount, could you elaborate? There are no leaks from this area and I'll be applying a sealant over all rivets inside and out as well.

I will respectfully disagree that this boat is too far gone based on this one area, although it is in a pretty crucial spot so hopefully I don't eat my words!

 

[LDUBS]

Although I'm new to boats, I don't see how this would affect performance, at least any noticeable amount, could you elaborate? There are no leaks from this area and I'll be applying a sealant over all rivets inside and out as well.

I will respectfully disagree that this boat is too far gone based on this one area, although it is in a pretty crucial spot so hopefully I don't eat my words!

I also think it will create drag. If you are happy with how it runs up on plane then don't worry about it. If not, I suppose you could reinstall those rivet the way they should have been from outside in.

Those drains look like plumbing flanges from the inside. But honestly, I don't know what they are.

 

[LaqueRatt]

Although I'm new to boats, I don't see how this would affect performance, at least any noticeable amount, could you elaborate? There are no leaks from this area and I'll be applying a sealant over all rivets inside and out as well.

I will respectfully disagree that this boat is too far gone based on this one area, although it is in a pretty crucial spot so hopefully I don't eat my words!

Well I'm pretty new to boats too, but following this forum it seems that small differences can make quite a bit of difference in how a boat performs. I'd not want something with a huge patch on the bottom.

As for too far gone, I can only speak for myself. I value my time. Yes I know it's a hobby, but I figure my time is worth at least 20/hr.

What I see is a pretty much a generic alum boat that I could pick up for $500 or less. I can see easily sinking a thousand bucks or more into it, you need a motor right? Maybe 100 hours of my time? Then I'd have a boat that I might be able to get $1500-2000 grand for. Or I could just buy one some other guy fixed up for a thousand or so. ;-)

Seems the majority of projects like this are not really great ideas. The only way I can see something like this being worthwhile is if it's a family boat and you're doing it to preserve and pass on memories. If it's just something you picked up off of Craigslist or MP if you were patient you could have done better. Like the old saying goes live and learn. If you come out of this wiser, than it has added value.

 

[LDUBS]

Hopefully someone with a similar LoneStar will pipe in. @kdeitrick46 in an earlier post says he has a King Commander. Maybe you can ask him some questions. At this point, from what I'm seeing I don't think I would be thinking of scrapping the boat.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Well I'm pretty new to boats too, but following this forum it seems that small differences can make quite a bit of difference in how a boat performs. I'd not want something with a huge patch on the bottom.

As for too far gone, I can only speak for myself. I value my time. Yes I know it's a hobby, but I figure my time is worth at least 20/hr.

What I see is a pretty much a generic alum boat that I could pick up for $500 or less. I can see easily sinking a thousand bucks or more into it, you need a motor right? Maybe 100 hours of my time? Then I'd have a boat that I might be able to get $1500-2000 grand for. Or I could just buy one some other guy fixed up for a thousand or so. ;-)

Seems the majority of projects like this are not really great ideas. The only way I can see something like this being worthwhile is if it's a family boat and you're doing it to preserve and pass on memories. If it's just something you picked up off of Craigslist or MP if you were patient you could have done better. Like the old saying goes live and learn. If you come out of this wiser, than it has added value.

I appreciate the input! I'm going to keep working at it and hopefully it's not a huge issue.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

Hopefully someone with a similar LoneStar will pipe in. @kdeitrick46 in an earlier post says he has a King Commander. Maybe you can ask him some questions. At this point, from what I'm seeing I don't think I would be thinking of scrapping the boat.

Appreciate all the advice, LDUBS. I should have the paint stripped in this area in a few days and we will be able to get a closer look at what's going on.

 

[LoneStarBoatMan]

It's been a little bit so time for an update. I skipped a few weeks but I'm back on the grind! Finished stripping, sanding, and washing the entire outside of the hull. A few pinholes to fix up, none bigger than about a millimeter or 2. Flipped the boat to start on the inside. Luckily there is only what seems to be primer coating the inside and no stripper is needed. Just lots of sanding with the wheel.

Once I get the inside cleaned up, will be fixing pinholes with JB weld, sealing seams with 5200, and coating rivets with Gluvit. Any input on this step would be appreciated!

Once I get everything sealed up, I'd like to put it in the water and row it around a bit for a leak test, then again give it a good wash before priming and painting.