New Tin Boat Owner from Florida

[7.3powerstroke]

Newbie from Florida here, a little background here, im a high schooler, have my own landscaping business, im a powerstroke diesel fanatic, bought my first truck back in november, its a 97 f250 with a 7.3 power stroke, have "built it" still doing stuff to it all the time, but i guess i got tired of always riding with someone else to go out fishing or out on the water, i live 1 mile from the intercostal, and about 2 from the ocean. so about the boat, i want to warn you i know nothing about boats, this is a huge learning experience, so here is the deal, picked this 12ft v hull aluminum jon boat up, with the trailer and a minn kota 50 trolling motor for $250 which i thought was a good deal, ytrailer is in good shape, has buddy bearings, boat is in pretty good shape, going to replace the transom, still trying to figure out how to get the special bolts out, then im going to put on a 7.5 hp johnson that i picked up for $100!!!! Its in the shop now getting it tuned up and running. The boat has a pin hole leak near the drain plug but i got some special marine bondo for aluminum which im going to try. So here are a list of mods i have planned and pictures, please recommend me any products or suggestions. Thanks

1. put a front deck on
2. bed line with roll on bedliner the whole interior
3. Steel flex on the underside???
4. want to kaki tan the whiole outside then camo
5. on board sound system
6. on board storage
7. camo bucket seats
8. other odds and ends you all recommend

 

[bobberboy]

From the photos it looks like one of the first things you might want to do is get a drop hitch for the truck. I can see that the driveway is angled but it still looks like the rear of the boat rides pretty low. I'd be concerned that with the motor on you'll be running the risk of bottoming out over humps in the road or the ramps that you'll be using.

Also, check the bunks on the trailer to see that they are supporting the boat properly. From the photos it looks like they're bolted directly to the trailer frame and may not be completely supporting the boat. It looks like the keel might be resting on the frame and it shouldn't be. Adjustable brackets for the bunks are easy to come by as is a center roller for the keel.

Don't know if it's legal in FL but fenders on the trailer would be necessary where I live. Might be good to check into that.

Looks like you've got a good start but given you live so near the water how could you find time to write this post! Good luck and good fishing.

 

[typed by ben]

first mod: drop hitch

 

[7.3powerstroke]

Yeah haha, I have a class 5 receiver, but it's off because I just put on that custom bumper that me and a few buddy's welded up. And I was planning on fenders to, and I will look into the brackets for the bars supporting the boat. Could you guys recommend maybe a good sealer or putty to use when bolting the new transom back up, or is that not needed? Also anyone used marine tex, someone have it to me to fix up some of the dings and the leak near the drain plug.

 

[ccm]

If your going to replace the transom either use a solid piece of hard wood if possible, if not use two pieces of BC exterior grade plywood glued together. Do not use PT plywood as it will cause corrosion & eventually holes because of the chemicals used to treat it. Seal the transom with either spar urethane or a good two part epoxy. When reattaching use SS hardware and where the bolts go through the transom Use a dab of 3M5200 to seal the hole. A transom properly installed & taken care of will last decades. My 1961 V hull still has its original transom in great condition. The Marine Tex will work just fine to seal up the leak near your drain plug. Clean the area & rough it up for proper adhesion.

Ok this is off topic but still
Now on to that sweet Ford Diesel. The Ford 7.3 power stroke is an awesome motor that with proper care will outlive everything else on the truck. Change the oil at regular intervals & the injector oil if you don't already know how to do this look it up on YouTube. When the water in fuel light comes on drain it out of the fuel bowl on top of the motor. If the bowl is particularly dirty ( as the previous owner never did & left the water in it as the previous owner of my dad's F350 did ) on a day when you have nothing better to do remove it & clean it this is at least a 5 hour job. If this is not done fuel bowl failure is in your future which is not fun & expensive to fix the part alone can cost $450+. What happens is the fuel bowl actually rots to a point where a large hole develops & diesel fuel spills everywhere.

 

[7.3powerstroke]

ccm » 13 Jun 2014, 12:11[/url]"]If your going to replace the transom either use a solid piece of hard wood if possible, if not use two pieces of BC exterior grade plywood glued together. Do not use PT plywood as it will cause corrosion & eventually holes because of the chemicals used to treat it. Seal the transom with either spar urethane or a good two part epoxy. When reattaching use SS hardware and where the bolts go through the transom Use a dab of 3M5200 to seal the hole. A transom properly installed & taken care of will last decades. My 1961 V hull still has its original transom in great condition. The Marine Tex will work just fine to seal up the leak near your drain plug. Clean the area & rough it up for proper adhesion.

Ok this is off topic but still
Now on to that sweet Ford Diesel. The Ford 7.3 power stroke is an awesome motor that with proper care will outlive everything else on the truck. Change the oil at regular intervals & the injector oil if you don't already know how to do this look it up on YouTube. When the water in fuel light comes on drain it out of the fuel bowl on top of the motor. If the bowl is particularly dirty ( as the previous owner never did & left the water in it as the previous owner of my dad's F350 did ) on a day when you have nothing better to do remove it & clean it this is at least a 5 hour job. If this is not done fuel bowl failure is in your future which is not fun & expensive to fix the part alone can cost $450+. What happens is the fuel bowl actually rots to a point where a large hole develops & diesel fuel spills everywhere.

thanks man, now for the transom, since I'm doing a gas motor should I do 2 Peices of wood, 1 on each side of the aluminum, with bolts going through? Also I am planning on spar urethane, then bed line it.

 

[ccm]

I do 2 Peices of wood, 1 on each side of the aluminum, with bolts going through? Also I am planning on spar urethane, then bed line it.

Yep or you can use a piece of cutting board on the out side of the boat for improved durability. I've seen this done on here & elsewhere before with pretty good results. Spar urethane & bed liner will seal it just fine & it will last for decades to come.

 

[7.3powerstroke]

Ok I will look into the cutting board, unfortunately I found out some bad news, the marine shop I took my motor to, my buddy works there and only charges me parts, anyways he went to replace the water pump and said something about the spindle is corroded up into something, meaning the only way to get at the pump is getting this spindle out. Looks like it's time to search for another motor, at least this one I can take right back to the guy I bought it from, he's a client of mine and will take it right back. At the shop they have a evinrude 9.9 that runs good but they want 650? Is that a good or bad price?

 

[ccm]

If it runs good & has a warranty I would consider it a fair price. Price depends on condition, availability of such motors in a given area, and demand.

 

[7.3powerstroke]

LAst night i got the old transom and rivets out, which i am replacing with 2 sided one, coated with spar urethane and bed lined, then the rivets are getting replaced with stainless bolts and some of that 3m stuff, should be strong for the motor. I also started wire wheeling the outside and inside, ruffing up the paint and clear coat, to make a good bond for the new primer and paint, now for the underside, i dont like to half do stuff, i like to use quality stuff, i have heard of steal flex, do you guys think i should use it? Also is it cost effective for a budget build.

 

[satx78247]

7.3powerstroke,

FIRST, you have one of the toughest & (with proper care) LONGEST-LIVED engines ever built. = When my 7.3-engined truck was totaled (by a moron, who ran a red light & hit it broadside), it had 250,000 + miles on it, 2 years after the odometer "went TU".
When we parted-out the truck, another guy bought it to go into another Ford F-250 PU and ran it for 4+ years, until the truck body "rusted-out".
Then yet another man bought the engine, installed it as power on a portable saw-mill & he was still using it each day to cut lumber on his farm, the last time that I heard from him.
(I firmly believe that that old 7.3 is likely to outlive me.)

Incidentally, that particular engine (and the older NAVISTAR 7.3 IDI) will run FINE on a mixture of 85% used/de-watered vegetable oil, 10% kerosene and 5% pump gas, with the addition of a fuel stabilizer.
It will also run on:
1. filtered, used, automatic transmission fluid,
2. a half & half mixture of filtered used motor oil & "pump diesel"
and
3. any number of other "peculiar mixtures".
(I'm somewhat ashamed and will NOT tell you about some of the "strange things" that I have run old Ford diesels on, when I was years ago, what should KINDLY called, "UN-financial", as in "unemployed & flat broke".)

Having said all that, let me make a few comments about your "new to you" boat and a suitable OB to power it:
1. Sounds like you are making good progress on re-modeling your tin boat. = My most sincere CONGRADS on your work up to now & look forward to your future progress on your project.
2. ImVho, based on over 40 years of "messing about with" OMC outboards that:
A. The 1955-70 OMC outboards by Evinrude, Gale, Johnson & SeaKing are SUPERIOR in every way to later model OB. for everyone except "real mechanics", who get very well-paid for their labor.
B. The "low-line"/"streamlined" OMC outboards, like that 9.9 are:
(1) HARD to work on as the power-head is "buried down in the leg casting",
(2) the parts are relatively expensive (when compared to the '55-'70 versions)
and
(3) not nearly as "tough" & "long-lived", as the earlier OMCs.

For those reasons, I would look for another 7.5 or 10HP OMC, like the one that you currently have. = MOST of the parts on your "damaged" 7.5 will be usable on ANY "vintage" OMC 7.5 or 10HP that you find.

Best wishes, tex

 

[7.3powerstroke]

satx78247 » 14 Jun 2014, 16:16[/url]"]7.3powerstroke,

FIRST, you have one of the toughest & (with proper care) LONGEST-LIVED engines ever built. = When my 7.3-engined truck was totaled (by a moron, who ran a red light & hit it broadside), it had 250,000 + miles on it, 2 years after the odometer "went TU".
When we parted-out the truck, another guy bought it to go into another Ford F-250 PU and ran it for 4+ years, until the truck body "rusted-out".
Then yet another man bought the engine, installed it as power on a portable saw-mill & he was still using it each day to cut lumber on his farm, the last time that I heard from him.
(I firmly believe that that old 7.3 is likely to outlive me.)

Incidentally, that particular engine (and the older NAVISTAR 7.3 IDI) will run FINE on a mixture of 85% used/de-watered vegetable oil, 10% kerosene and 5% pump gas, with the addition of a fuel stabilizer.
It will also run on:
1. filtered, used, automatic transmission fluid,
2. a half & half mixture of filtered used motor oil & "pump diesel"
and
3. any number of other "peculiar mixtures".
(I'm somewhat ashamed and will NOT tell you about some of the "strange things" that I have run old Ford diesels on, when I was years ago, what should KINDLY called, "UN-financial", as in "unemployed & flat broke".)

Having said all that, let me make a few comments about your "new to you" boat and a suitable OB to power it:
1. Sounds like you are making good progress on re-modeling your tin boat. = My most sincere CONGRADS on your work up to now & look forward to your future progress on your project.
2. ImVho, based on over 40 years of "messing about with" OMC outboards that:
A. The 1955-70 OMC outboards by Evinrude, Gale, Johnson & SeaKing are SUPERIOR in every way to later model OB. for everyone except "real mechanics", who get very well-paid for their labor.
B. The "low-line"/"streamlined" OMC outboards, like that 9.9 are:
(1) HARD to work on as the power-head is "buried down in the leg casting",
(2) the parts are relatively expensive (when compared to the '55-'70 versions)
and
(3) not nearly as "tough" & "long-lived", as the earlier OMCs.

For those reasons, I would look for another 7.5 or 10HP OMC, like the one that you currently have. = MOST of the parts on your "damaged" 7.5 will be usable on ANY "vintage" OMC 7.5 or 10HP that you find.

Best wishes, tex

Thank you, she has 218,000 on her, she just went through the typical 200k stuff, water pump, radiator, rear brakes, some sensors..Running great, i have heard that as long as my ratio of fuel is a bit higher than the ratio of oil i can run oil, i need to do that as diesel is expensive, but i will never own a gas truck, and never own anything but a ford old body style truck, they literally are tanks. I have done a lot of work getting her to where she is, and im almost half way done wire wheeling the outside, and thanks for the info on the outboards.

 

[7.3powerstroke]

 

[ccm]

Sweet looking truck there. My dad has a 94 F350 converted an F450. It is a crew cab long wheel base dully. Its not his everyday vehicle so it has extremely low miles less than 85k on the odometer. He only uses it for pulling. It only needs cosmetic work due to it being so large, I only remember him washing & waxing it 3 times, so the truck looks it age but drives like new.

Now onto the boat, for a budget build I wouldn't use steel flex unless the boat leaks everywhere or your going to be doing some serious log jumping. It will make future repairs harder because it has to be removed in an area for the boat to get welded.

 

[7.3powerstroke]

ccm » 15 Jun 2014, 12:20[/url]"]Sweet looking truck there. My dad has a 94 F350 converted an F450. It is a crew cab long wheel base dully. Its not his everyday vehicle so it has extremely low miles less than 85k on the odometer. He only uses it for pulling. It only needs cosmetic work due to it being so large, I only remember him washing & waxing it 3 times, so the truck looks it age but drives like new.

Now onto the boat, for a budget build I wouldn't use steel flex unless the boat leaks everywhere or your going to be doing some serious log jumping. It will make future repairs harder because it has to be removed in an area for the boat to get welded.

Thanks! And the chance of log jumping is not very likely, after i fix some of the dinks and leak with marine tex, and a fresh coat of etching primer and paint, do you think i will be ok?

 

[7.3powerstroke]

Also guys, i just saw a 15hp mariner for sale for 300$ runs and spits, what do you all think about that?

 

[satx78247]

7.3powerstroke,

I think LITTLE good of it because I'm NOT an "OB mechanic". - Mariner & Mercury OB need numerous "special" (read: EXPENSIVE) tools & they are MORE COMPLICATED mechanically than the pre-1970 OMC outboards, up to/including the 40HP models.
(I'm just a "tinkerer" & you do NOT have to be a "mechanic" to repair/maintain older OMC OB motors.)

just my opinion, satx

 

[ccm]

7.3powerstroke » 15 Jun 2014, 18:25[/url]"]Also guys, i just saw a 15hp mariner for sale for 300$ runs and spits, what do you all think about that?

It depends on the year of the motor. The ones 1980's & newer are good motors ( Made in Japan by Yamaha ) & do not require the special tools & expensive parts that the older more complicated Mercury's require. Important things you must look at on a motor. 1st remove the spark plugs & look at the pistons & cylinders. You do not want to see any pitting on the cylinders or scarring/scoring on the cylinder walls. Look at the plugs if you see little pieces of metal it's no good. Look at the cylinder head too, if it has a large amount of discoloration it's been overheated & will not likely last very long. Next do a compression check no more than 10% difference on each cylinder. Next pull the oil drain plug on the lower unit & get a dab on your finger. If Its dark that's ok you will just want to change it soon what you don't want to see is any shiny pieces of metal indicating a large amount of wear & the possibility of the bearings having to be replaced or a complete rebuild necessary. If its clear the oil has been changed at least this year But still look for metal shavings. Next hear it run. It should idle nice & smooth, shift the motor it should also be nice & smooth with no clanking or popping in & out of gear ( this indicates a bad clutch dog that will have to be replaced ). If the motor runs a little rough you will have to put some time & maybe a little $$ into it with a good carb cleaning/Kit, Point, condensers, coils if the carb cleaning/ kit doesn't solve the issue. These are the things that you want to do/look at when considering any used outboard. Also spin the prop it should spin straight, wobble indicates that the prop shaft has been bent & if it runs/ran for a long period it will kill a lower unit.