Remodeling my 1976 Lund 14' "Big Fisherman"

[mtntop]

You did an amazing job! I am very jealous of your hull paint job! My 1990 Lund hull looks almost exactly the same before the improvements you made, thanks for sharing.

 

[TDobb]

Mtntop, I can tell you this much, it was a lot of work, but very gratifying for sure. The boat is still tippy, cause it is short and narrow, but the deck being that much bigger helps out a lot. I have the two batteries in the back corners of the boat to kinda have some ballast on to help keep it more stable. There are a few minor things I am gonna work to improve, some of my hinges didn't work out as well as I would have liked. The rod box currently has 9 rods stuffed in it and it is tight, the reels just take up so much space. When I get to the lake I usually take them all out of the box anyway and they are laying on the deck so it gets kinda messy but the electronics chase / rod shelf that I put on the starboard side does help considerably over what I had before. I usually have six rods laying on that side and my son will have a couple back by him so we can quick switch tactics quick based on conditions. It may be a bit much having 10-15 rods in a little boat, but we manage alright.

We have a week long trip to a cabin in northern Wisconsin coming up next week. Should be able to really put it to the test and have some fun out there. These summer months make me think a small bimini top might be nice just to have a little shade on occasion.

 

[gatorglenn]

Really great fishing Machine! Love the layout and the super sharp paint job. I've got to find me a hull like this. I have a 12' but I want a 14 or 16'. It will be kept at my daughters lake house. So I don't have to travel the Tracker back and fourth. Great job [emoji106]


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[TDobb]

Where are you located Gatorglenn? Up here in Minnesota if you look on craigslist you can find about 50 boats that have an unmolested hull and anywhere from no motor up to a 25 or 30 horse. Price range is generally 1500 to 2500 depending on condition of the boat, motor, and trailer. Minus the electronics and trolling motor, if I was going to put mine on the market, I would price it at 3,000. Most buyers wouldn't want to pay for the upgraded electronics I have on there, but if they wanted them I'd work a deal. All that for naught though as this boat is ear marked for the boy when he turns 16. That is if I don't find a smokin deal on a better hull for another project.

To me, if I was going to look for the perfect hull for a project like this, I would look into one of the later model alumacraft hulls or the Lund SSV hull with the IPS design. Those hulls are a LOT more stable even though they are not much wider at all. They plane out faster and track better too. Part of me almost wishes I had sold this one the way it was before this mod project and bought an SSV hull to start with. When I was prepping to do this one though, there weren't any SSVs on the market. Well there was one but the guy wanted 5 grand with a 9.9 on it, so he wasn't really trying to sell it. That said, if I find an SSV hull and trailer for 1500 to 2000 I might jump on it for the next project.

Take care,
Tom

 

[gatorglenn]

Northern Indiana, and yes there is tons of them around here to. I feel the same ssv or a ips hull is what I want. Just wanting to do to much at a time. Iam doing my Tracker now. It will me a river boat. Your is what I plan to do for my daughters lake house lol just got to find the time. Thanks for the recommendation . We think alike


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[benjineer]

That's really nice. Giving me some new ideas. Do you have a pic of your rod box with it open?

 

[JohnsMedia]

Very smart to use the PVC rod holders through the seats. I may have to try that on my new 12'. Good luck with whatever you plan on doing with it in the future, and fish on!

 

[mrdrh99]

This is one of the cleanest renovations I've ever seen! =D> =D> =D>

Very nice, I'm in Nebraska and aiming for a 16' Lund later this year... Very very nice sir!

 

[TDobb]

That's really nice. Giving me some new ideas. Do you have a pic of your rod box with it open?

I don't think I have any right now, but I will shoot one early next week and post it up. Right now I have 9 rods stuffed in there with Rod Slix on them and you wouldn't see much if I took a pic in there at the moment. But I will take a shot with rods in and without the rods. I laid carpet along the bottom of the rod box all the way up to the very tip to protect the rods and reels inside of the box. I have some adhesive foam sheets that I am planning to line the walls in the back portion with to protect the reels a little more from boat rash, even though my reels are plenty rashed as is.

I have the boat loaded to the max right now, prepped for a week long trip to Northern Wisconsin. I think there are close to 20 rods piled in between the box and the rod shelf on the starboard side. Pair that with 4 life jackets stuffed into the front compartments and 18 Plano 3700/3600 boxes full of baits. Oh and three rubbermaid shoe boxes full of bass and panfish plastics. Might be a bit too much but a lot will come out depending on what we target each day. The really cool thing about the way I did the rod locker is that those three shoe boxes of plastics slip right under the rod locker from the rear starboard storage compartment. I can pull a couple bags that I think are gonna be working that day in the morning and have the rest tucked away. I do definitely have a plastic bait addiction. The pic below is just panfish stuff, the bass assortment is ridiculous.

I really need to do a video at some point and start from a clean deck and remove all of the tackle and rods from the boat to see just how much storage I built into this little 14 footer.

The lake we are going to has a bunch of bass and a very good population of big panfish, along with muskies. The management goal was 40 muskies over 40" in a 400 acre lake by this year and they have been working on it for the past 20 years to get there. My son has been bugging me about going muskie fishing this spring so we are gonna have a good opportunity for him to get on one out there.

Take care,
Tom

 

[TDobb]

JohnsMedia -

I liked the PVC tubes thru the seats but the problem I found with it in my case was that I didn't treat the ends of the PVC nicely. What I mean by that is I used an old hacksaw and just cut them, no sanding or deburring of any sort. I also used the thin wall sink drain style pipe, not the heavier stuff. I noticed that it left little scratches on the rods where they would make contact with the pipe and I actually broke a rod on a hookset right at the point where it had some scratches from the tubes. Hindsight, I would have made the tubes run up so that at least the tip of the rod was completely covered and the tube would be end capped. I also would have devised a better way to hold the butt end of the rod to minimize the contact points. Or you could use slightly bigger tube and run with Outkast Tackle Rod Slicks and you'd be set. I didn't get the rod slicks til this spring, and I wouldn't be without them ever again.

mrdrh99 -

I did seriously look around to see if I could find a 16 footer in the same style as what I had along with looking for SSV 14's. A 16 footer would allow an 8 foot rod locker without it protruding behind the middle bench I think. I don't have one to measure up, but I think you could make that work. Two feet is a LOT of real estate when you are talking about small boats. A 16 footer feels twice as big as a 14 once you start loading up some gear.

 

[TDobb]

I put together a video tour of the boat last fall before she went away for the winter nap. This video shows the design intent as well as the execution. Can fit a bunch of stuff in there and keep it clean and organized. It retains all of the original flotation foam as well as some additional extruded polystyrene. It isn't perfect but it works pretty damn well. A lot of work and very rewarding.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=hFaoEMc7tAo

 

[thomasdgs]

This build is so inspirational. Really. You did a real nice job on it. I am building my own 70's S-14 right now, and you have given me some great ideas.

I think the best thing I am taking away from reading all through your thread is that I don't have to get my boat perfect on this build. Being in college, the budget for my current project is pretty tight. Seeing the way your boat has gone through iterations was a good reminder that doing a lower key build now and getting on the water to fish sooner than later might be a better option for me right now, than slowly scraping together the money to do the full build I am invisioning (all the while missing out on fishing time). Your boat is evidence that theres nothing to say I can wait to build the boat exactly as I want in the next go round after I am done college and have the funds to do it right. It might sound simple, but it is kind of a lightbulb moment for me.

I have one question for you. I see you have removed all the support to the hull at where the middle bench was (flat bar gussets, and the tabs that originally attached the hull to the top of the middle bench). Have you noticed any ill effects of this, and is there some attachment to the hull at the middle bench spot, below the casting deck, that I missed?

Here is the link to my build so far, if you are interested:
https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=43755

 

[Photosarv]

I just bought a 1978 14’ Lund Big Fisherman a couple weeks ago. Your layout and build looks great. My boat has a casting deck already but I want it redesigned to maximize storage and to get the foot controller for the trolling motor recessed. I may just copy your design :LOL2: well done!