1987 smokercraft magnum 161mg rebuild/total nautolex

[wiredneck1]

I bought a 1987 smokercraft magnum 161 in October for $2000 the boat was in need of updating and the previous owner had removed some of the storage and some of the casting platform in the bow. The boat is gonna be used as a duck boat and gonna be used for trolling for walleye on lake Winnebago and also for pleasure with the wife and kids.

 

[wiredneck1]

I started tearing in to the boat and started with the modification that the previous owner did in the bow area.
the guy used plain 2x4s and spray foam to support the deck and it wasn't level at all. there also was a few spongy spots in the main floor so I decided to redo it all. the rear floor piece was a real pain because I had to remove the inner side panels in order to remove the floor.

 

[wiredneck1]

i checked the foam and it was all dry so i decided to leave well enough alone. i also checked the transom where i could without pulling the motor and that was also in very good shape. the liquid you see in the previouse pictures sitting in the bilge is actually gas because the fuel line cracked and i never notices it until 3 days later.

i used the old floor as a template and im using abx exterior plywood 5/8 inch with 3 coats of spar urethane on each face and 6 coats on the edges.

 

[wiredneck1]

while waiting for the floor boards to get urethaned i started stripping the old carpet off the gunwales and wire wheeling the adhesive and oxidation off. i also went ahead and removed the carpeting in the bow area. i also removed the decals on the outside and so far that was by far the worst part. i tried a rubber 3m decal eraser wheel and anything else you could imagine and i wound up just using a heat gun and razor blade scrapper to remove them. i took me roughly 6 hours on each side.

 

[wiredneck1]

i got all the decals removed and wipped the boat down with acetone and sanded lightly with 150 grit. I prayed all bare aluminum spots with rustoleum self etching primer and once that was dry i brushed/rolled parkers aluminum primer over the self etching primer. I top coated with 3 coats of parkers marsh brown duck boat paint.

 

[wiredneck1]

more paint pictures

 

[wiredneck1]

im gonna cover everything in nautolex marine flooring. i lined the ski locker and some of the side storage.

 

[wiredneck1]

i reinstalled the rubrails and the inner gunwale trim with about 100 rivets. One thing i highly recommend is a pneumatic riveter if/when doing a job where so many rivets are required.

this project is taking longer than i had hoped. i started the tear down the first week of January, the main reason that it is taking me longer than expected is because its winter and my garage isn't insulated so even when i run the blaster heater i don't hold the heat real well. I did take the boat over to my parents garage when i painted it since theirs is heated.

 

[wiredneck1]

i covered the floor that i have done spar urethaning with nautolex marine vinyl using rochford supply water based glue that they recommend for the vinyl. i did all the gluing and urethaning in my basement which the wife wasn't to happy about but there wasn't much other choice. I ordered my rivets thru therivetgallery.com and their 1" grip black rivets

 

[wiredneck1]

i had to drill 3 rivets out on each side in order to remove some trim on the inside to remove the original floor. i decide to use 1/4inch closed end rivets along with some 5200 to replace the ones i drilled out

 

[wiredneck1]

i reinstalled the inside trim and replaced the fuel tank lines.

 

[wiredneck1]

im using 1 1/2x1/8in aluminum angle to support the bow area floor. i also used pink insulation foam for the flotation under the floor area which i forgot to take a picture of.

 

[wiredneck1]

i decided to start running some of the wiring since that was all a cobbled up mess. im using the original switch panel to run the bilge pump, 3 interior light, and the bow/stern light. i also am rewiring the fuel gauge and adding in a 12v outlet along with adding a depthfinder.

 

[wiredneck1]

spar urethaning, covering in nautolex and installing a hatch in the bow area flooring. i am using black nylon hinges and attwood hatch latfhes that i ordered from wolfsmarine.com.

 

[wiredneck1]

i installed the splashwell and framed in the gas tank and battery area, the spaces you see in the aluminum angle on the floor is where im gonna be installing a drain area for water to get to the bilge.

 

[wiredneck1]

what you have seen so far is where i am at currently. i have to cut the wood and hatches for the area around the gas tank, and on the sides of the boat. when im done with that i have to rebuild the console and finish wiring the interior lights and depthfinder. Im not in much of a hurry to get it all done because its been -12 degrees lately and its not fun to work in that kind of cold. i will try to keep this all updated as i go from here on out since up until now i was stockpilling the images

 

[Frey0357]

Very nice boat project! I have enjoyed your detailed progress, its gonna be nice when you are finished! Keep up the good work! 8)

Frey

 

[Decatur]

Very nice!

 

[rscottp]

Great job, you are gonna have a sweet rig when you are finished! Keep the pictures coming.

 

[wiredneck1]

its been a slow couple weeks for progress but its slowly coming along. I can actually see the end in sight. heres some pictures of my progress.