Another Tracker rebuild! ‘88 Bass Tracker

[Turd Ferguson]

On a side note, doesn’t anyone know why my pictures are posting sideways? This is really bothering me!!

 

[schukster]

Picture orientation can be caused by the resolution or size of the picture being posted being too large. Try to reduce the resolution or size. There are aps that will do this or most cameras have settings you can change.

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[LDUBS]

Picture orientation can be caused by the resolution or size of the picture being posted being too large. Try to reduce the resolution or size. There are aps that will do this or most cameras have settings you can change.

Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk

Reducing the size (in pixels) sure worked to solve the sideways pic's for me. I was getting really tired of holding my screen sideways. :LOL2:

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Thanks for the replies fellas. I downloaded an app and tried reducing the size of this batch of pictures. Let’s see if it helped!

So it’s been a little while since I’ve gotten a chance to do some work on the boat. In the meantime I’ve been stocking up my materials. I ordered a new bilge pump, which is a Rule 1,000 GPH model, a new aerator pump, which is a Rule 800 GPH model, multiple different types of epoxies, including some penetrating epoxies for the plywood decks and Gluvit which I will use to seal a bunch of seams and rivets before foaming. Also bought some new pneumatic tools, a die grinder and an air hammer for setting solid rivets. There’s a ton of more stuff, can’t remember exactly off hand, but you’ll see it all come together as it goes into the boat.

This weekend I got a little work done. I hated the original transom-to-hull brackets, they were wimpy little 1/16” aluminum angle brackets and had oxidation and pitting holes all over them. I decided they needed to be replaced.

Here’s a shot of the old brackets in place. You can see I added an aluminum strip to the hull side to hopefully reinforce it a bit. Totally scratched that whole plan.



My father works with a few local machine and sheet metal shops and he was able to have these brackets made up for me - for free. I was very grateful for that. They are 5053 aluminum, 1/8” but they are 100 degree angle brackets, not 90 degree. I used an angle finder to check the angle that the hull met the transom, and to my surprise it wasn’t 90 degrees. I expected regular aluminum angle to fit nicely in there, but it was more of an obtuse angle than I expected. They were originally 12” long but I cut them both down to 10” to fit. Had to do a little notching of the corners as well. Here’s a shot of them.




I drilled the holes for the solid rivets through the hull using the correct size bit, I forget the exact size, but I ordered it through McMaster when I ordered the 1/4” solid rivets. The rivets are 1/2” long. After opening up those holes the layout went smooth, as did drilling all the appropriate holes.

Here’s a picture of the new bracket installed with the un-set solid rivets in place:



Using the air hammer with a 1/4” solid rivet set and a 4 pound sledge as a bucking bar I set the solid rivets. This was my first time ever doing this, and I thought they came out pretty good! I watched a ton of YouTube videos first, and tuned the air hammer a little bit so it wasn’t hitting as hard or fast as normal.

Here’s the finish product after the locknuts and washers were torqued down on the transom bolts:


And a shot of the rivet heads from the outside of the boat. Looks good! Before I set the rivets I used a die grinder with a Roloc wheel to remove the paint and clean up the aluminum where the rivet would sit. Not a big deal, I plan on painting the boat down the line.



And lastly, here’s a broader spectrum shot of where that angle bracket is located. I replaced the bracket on the other side as well, but didn’t take pictures of that.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I also noticed a small pinhole on the starboard side, looks like it was due to some kind of galvanic corrosion. It pitted all the way through the hull resulting in a nice little hole. Surprised I never noticed it prior. Not sure what the best way to seal this is, thought about JB Weld, some kind of epoxy, possibly brazing it, but in the end I’m probably just going to drill it out and put a solid rivet there. I believe that’s the best option, although it will leave a rivet in a noticeably random spot. But that doesn’t bother me too much.

Here’s a shot from the outside of the hull:


You may not be able to see it too well from the outside. But, you can see the quarter sized area where the paint lifted and most of the corrosion took place. You’ll get a better look at the actual hole from the inside in this picture:



See that little blue spot towards the middle? That’s it! You can probably also see some of the other pitting going on.

I combed through most of the boat looking for more spots like this and haven’t found any more - yet. My assumption is the waterlogged foam that was against the hull caused the problem. There’s more pitting along the hull on the inside in this area, but that’s the only pinhole I found. I plan to clean up this area with a sander and seal everything I find with the Gluvit. I’ll do the same for the Port side and then I’ll be close to ready for foam.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Been a while since I updated this thread. Haven’t gotten to do too much work but I’ve made progress.

Here’s a few pictures of a rear deck support that I rebuilt on account of the old one rotting away. Two pieces of 1/2” Marine Plywood sandwiched together. Predrilled all the holes and then sealed using Totalboat Penetrating Epoxy. The main hole through the center for the seat post bracket the filled with a thickened epoxy mixture, using the Milled Glass Fibers and the Silica Dust. Let that dry, and then drilled out a new hole for the post base. The idea behind this was that if any water makes its way down the seat post bracket and through that hole, it won’t contact any of the end grain of the plywood. I then did one more epoxy coat and installed the stainless tee nuts for mounting the seat bracket.

This panel is now installed back in the boat along with the livewell. I don’t have any pictures of how it looks, but will be sure to take some next time.

In no particular order:

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I also started the vinyl process. My plan is to vinyl the console, the main floor, and all vertical surfaces inside the console area. The front and rear decks will get carpet. The only thing left to do is the floor, and then I can begin assembling these pieces.

The vinyl and glue is a real pain to work with. This was my first time doing something like this, and it really tested my patience. I used Marideck Vinyl in Stone Grey. 34 Mil for all the vertical panels as well as the console, and 80 Mil for the floor. I used Marideck’s MD-102 glue, which is pretty much contact cement. Has a bit of a learning curve, tacks quick, and is very unforgiving. Especially in the cold, we did this in 50 degree temps. Not ideal, but can’t halt progress because of the seasons.

If anybody has any questions regarding this process, please ask. I am by no means an expert but I will do what I can to help. I’ll also take some closeups of how it looks. Overall I’m extremely pleased with how it looks so far. The color is great and it came out looking very clean for a first timer!

Here’s a shot encompassing the 4 panels we did. I’ll get some closeups once they floor is done and everything is installed!

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I’ve really been pushing to get some work done in the last week and it will continue like that for the next few weeks. Got laid off of the job I was on, which is what happens in my business when we finish a building. I’ve been looking forward to this much needed time to hunt and work on the boat.

I’ve made a decent amount of progress. Besides ordering and replacing many new things, I also got one of the rear decks ready for flotation foam. Hopefully I can finish the other before Friday and pour the foam over the weekend.

I’m pushing hard to have the rear decks done and all the vinyl completed by Thanksgiving. I’d also like to have the fuse block wired, the bilge and aerator wired, motor on and the console all setup. Oh, and of course the throttle control. Which I just replaced with a brand new one.

I also purchased a Cisco electronics mount for the console fishfinder, which is a Lowrance HDS Carbon 12. This thing is badass and bulletproof, machined out of aluminum. Here’s some pics of that.




Haven’t mounted it yet because I need to get the console bolted it and the pedestals seats in place in order to get a good fit for where I want it.

More to come....

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Here’s a few shots of the rear deck that is ready for foam. I’ll try to keep this shorthand. I laid that black drainage mat along all of the vertical surfaces. Along the transom I cut a foam block to fit in there from hull to underside of deck and covered it with a waterproof foundation lining. Then I slapped the drainage mat up against that.





After all the mat was in place, I started cutting foam blocks for all vertical areas in this bay and also as a bottom. The idea is to form a box out of rigid foam to pour the pour foam in. I used Loctite adhesive designed for foamboard to bond these pieces as well as caulk the gaps.

The blue pipe is 1-1/4” ENT. It’s a flexible PVC conduit often used in concrete slab work. I picked up a ton of this stuff from the job I was on. The grey is 3/4”. The blue will be carrying 2 #4 gauge wires from the starting battery at the stern to the fuse block mounted under the console. It will also carry 2 duplex 14 gauge wires, one for the bilge and one for aerator pump. The 3/4” will carry a duplex 14 gauge wire through that green cone you see in the pictures which will terminate at the stern light post bracket.



For the stern light post bracket I used a bulkhead fitting for the ENT and screwed it into the green plastic cone. The cone will allow the light bracket to drop right into it from the deck.




All of these pipes, as well as the black pipe, which is 1-1/8” bilge hose, will be poured into the foam.

You can also see the 3” Vinyl duct hose. That’s running from a vent in the bilge compartment and will come out to a scoop on the deck.

Riveted to the old framing and on top of the foam “lid” are pieces of 1/8” T stock 6061 aluminum. I cut the vertical pieces of foam to the exact height so that the T stock will sit on top, and I can fill in a block of foam between each T bar. This will give additional support to the decking between the T bars. The decking will be .090” 6061 aluminum. I used 3/16” aluminum countersunk rivets, 2 on each end of each T bar to attach them to the old framing. That way I can lay my decking right on top and everything will be nice and flush.



There’s 3 additional 3” holes in the foam “lid” of the box. These are for pouring the foam into. Once the foam is poured, I will add blocks of rigid foam in between the T bars to cover these pour holes.



I test fitted a block between the T bars to see what it would look like.



I don’t feel like typing out much more so please ask any questions if you’d like!

 

[thedude]

I bet you itching to get that fish finder out in the water!

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[LDUBS]

I don’t feel like typing out much more so please ask any questions if you’d like!

Maybe not a question but had a thought while reading your progress. If you have extra PVC conduit maybe put it in just in case you need to make any pulls in the future. Might make life a little easier down the road.

Your work is impressive. That mount for your Lowrance FF is very cool. Just sayin.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I bet you itching to get that fish finder out in the water!

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Oh man, talk about putting lipstick on a pig. That thing cost half of what I bought the boat for :mrgreen: I did have it up and running on my buddies boat and what a game changer compared to the 7 that I have for the bow. It’s like looking at a flatscreen!

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I don’t feel like typing out much more so please ask any questions if you’d like!

Maybe not a question but had a thought while reading your progress. If you have extra PVC conduit maybe put it in just in case you need to make any pulls in the future. Might make life a little easier down the road.

Your work is impressive. That mount for your Lowrance FF is very cool. Just sayin.

Thanks! I’m very good at overcomplicating things, driving myself crazy... :shock:

I’m very impressed with how this mount is built. But I wouldn’t want to consider anything else to hold up a unit that costs as much as that one...

I may add another conduit just in case. It’s definitely a good idea, seeing as I won’t have much room in the 1-1/4 to add anything else. Very helpful suggestion :beer:

When I bought the boat there were a few wires that ran from the console to the outboard, including the steering cable, throttle and shift cables, and the main power cable from the remote control. Those cables will be ran in the same place, under the gunnel along the back deck. So if I need to, and don’t have room in the conduit, I can bundle some wires along with those.

 

[jerseycat9]

I'm in the process of rebuilding a Tracker very close to yours so I'm definitely keeping an eye on your thread brother

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I realize it’s been forever since I’ve updated this thread. I’ve continually been working, and have gotten a lot of progress done in the last 6 months. There is so much to cover, so I’m just going to post a ton of pictures for you guys to enjoy and add small captions along the way.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Some vinyl work finished up in the console area.



Another shot. Console and seats mounted.



Front deck extension. I added about 16” of deck room and three hatches. The aft panel I had formed from 5052 sheet by a local sheet metal guy, then covered it in vinyl and installed it. One opening for electronics, which includes the battery charger and Structurescan 3D module for my fishfinders. The middle opening is for tackle and the last is where the cooler will be installed.



A better shot of the hatch openings.



Those brown plates you see are pieces of 1/4” thick Garolite XX. Also known as Bakelite. It has phenomenal electrical insulation capabilities. I mounted them to the bulkhead with Garolite spacers, those green cylinders you see there. The idea is to keep these components away from any and all aluminum, as well as act as heat syncs.



3D module mounted and a better view of the plates.



Another view.



Prepping for foam work under the bow deck. The grey conduit you see there will cover the positive and negative wires for the trolling motor, underneath the deck, from bulkhead to bulkhead where they’ll exit just underneath that bow cap. I sanded and wire brushed down to bare metal, and then applied Gluvit. I wanted this area as clean as I could possibly get it. There was minimal pitting, but I decided to add Gluvit because it seemed like the right thing to do.



That white mat is a 40 Mil thick foundation waterproofing liner. It has a pressure sensitive adhesive that bonds very well to pour foam. It will keep the foam off the hull, allowing space between the hull and foam for water to run through.



A shot of the trolling motor breaker, also mounted on a piece of Garolite with Garolite spacers.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Another shot of that breaker.



Closeup of the conduit for the trolling motor cables.



Bow subfloor mounted. It’s a plate of 3/16” 6061. I used solid rivets to attach two 24” pieces of 1/8” Tbar to the bottom side of the plate to prevent it from bowing under the weight of the two trolling motor batteries. Don’t have a good pic of those pieces. I then covered that subfloor with a piece of EVA foam, similar to Seadek, just to keep it quiet under there for whatever I may have stowed. I used a piece of 1/8” x 1” x 2” angle and 1/8” flat bar to create a hanger for the bow are of the plate. It’s rock solid and should hold up very well.



Another view of that area.



A view from the bow.



Mocking up the trolling motor battery positions.



And another view....



Lining the bow section with waterproofing liner in preparation for the pour foam. The idea was to encapsulate all of the pour foam with the sheeting so no water could access it.



Pictures are kind of out of order. You can see I placed some more of the black drainage mat along the gunwales to keep the liner off the hull, and also to help and water that drains off the deck to be directed to the bottom of the hull. I also wedged a block of 4” thick foam underneath that bow tie. Added flotation never hurts, right?



Pour #1 down!

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Added a pack out of 4” foam for the trolling motor pedal tray.



All the foam poured, stripped, and ready to go! There’s A LOT of foam in there. According to my calculations, something like 350 pounds worth of flotation...



Starting the deck templates. MDF makes great template material for this. Due to the deck extension, I had to make the deck out of 2 sheets of plywood. Couldn’t find a 3/4” x 5’ x 8’ sheet of marine ply nearby, but that would’ve been great.



Getting my hatches laid out where I want them.



Getting the bow hatches and everything laid out.



Pics are in the wrong order but you get the idea...



A view of the batteries underneath the main bow hatch.



Final versions of the decks cut and drilled. That’s 3/4” Marine Ply. All holes are drilled oversized, and were filled with thickened epoxy. Then I’ll drill through the thickened epoxy for the correct fastener size.



A shot of the templates from the bow.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Used Totalboat Penetrating Epoxy to seal the decks. Two coats on top and bottom. This stuff works great, highly recommend it to anybody that needs to seal some wood for their build.



Holes filled, and the third and last layer of epoxy. For the last layer, I used Totalboat High Performance Epoxy Resin. Thicker than the penetrating resin, but it hardens into a flexible and super strong topcoat. You can see the glassy look in them!



Trolling motor and decks mounted! I also installed the seat base, trolling motor pedal tray, and the front hatch so I could do some fishing. The seat base will be removed before carpet, but the rest will be carpeted over.



Another view of the decks.



The vinyl on the console floor was starting to lift a little bit along the edges, so I trimmed out each edge with 1/16” x 1” x 1” aluminum angle.



Another trim shot.



And another....



Console area all trimmed out with the seats in place.



I decided to fill around the cooler with pour foam. I didn’t take any pictures of the process unfortunately, but it was pretty simple. I added a connector on the floor below the cooler, so the drain hose from the cooler could slip right in and feed to the bottom of the hull. I lined the outside of the cooler with polyethylene sheet, and make a key way for the drain hose to be routed in. Dumped in a bunch of pour foam, then dropped in the cooler, and sat on it for 10 minutes while the foam set up. It isn’t perfect even coverage along the port and starboard sides, but that foam is gonna insulate the cooler very well. Shouldn’t have a problem keeping ice for a long fishing trip on a hot summer day!



Stripped and ready for the cooler to drop right in!

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Dang, that was a lot. Enjoy everybody! That’s all I’ve got for now. Next step is to cut and drill some hinges for all my deck lids, and then the carpeting progress will begin!

I’ll post a picture of the carpet and glue I’m using. The carpet I bought from BassCat, it’s Syntec Platinum II. 24 ounce in Ash. The glue is Weldwood All Weather Putdoor Carpet Adhesive. Supposed to be good stuff, so we’ll see.

The next coming pictures should have the carpet all finished! I’ve got some fishing pictures I’ll probably share too, so maybe I’ll post them tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by!