New boat...Final update!!!

Well... I decided I needed a new boat for the MS marsh and found what should be about perfect...

2012 Skull Island microskiff... 16' with 5" draft poling skiff made for the flats. 2012 Honda 4stroke. Nice aluminum trailer. Boat hasn't been run in 1.5yrs, fellow selling is getting a divorce and doesn't have the time to get it back into top shape.

I brought a battery and muff for the motor, expecting to have to pull the plugs and put gas directly in the holes, and I'll be danged if the motor didn't crank right up first try. Idled perfectly. Throttle cables seized, so I couldn't rev it up, but even if it needs 3 new carbs, I'll still be ok for what I paid for the rig. Comes with a 12v ipilot and GPS electronics as well.

Will turn Ethan loose on the hull with the pressure washer, polish the sides, replace the fusebox, and I should have her ready for the water in a month. Should make for a fun father- son project getting her in tip top shape!

Nice rig! Should be fun!

50/50 bleach and water is your friend on that deck. Put it in a pump sprayer and soak it down and let it sit for 10 minutes before you scrub.

Congrats on the new boat!

Great find! I think you will really enjoy poling that one around.

From having the T shirt, check the age of the tires. Having one blow out on the way to the ramp isn't a fun way to start the day.

Very nice! It should be ton of fun in the skinny water.

Congrats !!

Nice!

Awesome! Looks like the perfect project for something to go from dirty to perfect. You can just tell that thing will look brand new when you're done. Post after pics mega. Good find!

scn said:

Great find! I think you will really enjoy poling that one around.

From having the T shirt, check the age of the tires. Having one blow out on the way to the ramp isn't a fun way to start the day.

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Tires dry rotted and didn't trust them even to pull it 60miles back to my house... so I pulled the wheels and brought them back and had new tires installed yesterday. Will take those back to the fellows house and reinstall before I bring the boat home.

Clean first, then replace switches and fusebox.

Next, replace throttle cable, all fluids, filter, etc.

Launch boat in small lake and run engine while I replace all bunk boards on trailer.

Fingers crossed I don't run into any major issues, but for what I paid for it, I'll be fine spending up to $2000 to bring her back to her former glory

Half cup tsp plus half cup bleach in 1.5g water. Let it sit 10 min then pressure was off. Gonna be looking fine in a few days!

I cheered him on with lots of praise. Sometimes it's nice having an 18yo son!

I thought it would take a couple cycles of tsp plus bleach... but just once has the boat looking like new!

megalomaniac said:

I cheered him on with lots of praise. Sometimes it's nice having an 18yo son!

I thought it would take a couple cycles of tsp plus bleach... but just once has the boat looking like new!

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If you need to polish or clean up any aluminum then go to NAPA and get their aluminum cleaner. That stuff will flat out clean aluminum

Hduke86 said:

If you need to polish or clean up any aluminum then go to NAPA and get their aluminum cleaner. That stuff will flat out clean aluminum

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Ooh... good thought! I bought a jug of that stuff to clean up the motor of a used 4wheeler I bought a decade ago and still have some left. That will be Ethans project for tomorrow!

Never having done this before, so it took about 2.5h for my son and I to disconnect and pull the throttle and gear shift cables that are seized. Cabke length measured and new ones on order.

Drained the fuel tank of about 6g of some nasty looking gas, agitated the tank with fresh fuel and compressed air, then drained that as well. Refilled with a gal of new fuel plus carb/injector cleaner. Motor started right up, but impeller is weak, so we only ran it for a few minutes before shutting it down. Got new impeller and all the fluids for complete engine service on the way. Good father and son afternoon, even if we don't really know what we are doing

very nice. probably know this but as a reminder make sure you check/service the sacrificial anodes.

WTM said:

very nice. probably know this but as a reminder make sure you check/service the sacrificial anodes.

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Not really... I'm not an expert at all on boat ownership. I've checked the anodes, and they look to have about 60% of the material remaining. At what point should they be replaced??? 30%???

megalomaniac said:

Not really... I'm not an expert at all on boat ownership. I've checked the anodes, and they look to have about 60% of the material remaining. At what point should they be replaced??? 30%???

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about 50%. check the service manual for your engine, it may have an internal anode as well.

fyi, brackish and even tannic fresh water will wear anodes. not just salt.

I thought I saw a boat in the original post; now it has been confirmed. Looking good and nice project for ya'll.

Very nice Mega! Always wanted one but couldn't justify it, please keep us up to date how she fishes this season. You guys are going to have a blast!

Some updates...

Trailing arms on the trailer were in terrible shape... posted on the general forum for advice... didn't really know how to tackle them without damaging the splines on the axle too bad, so I took the rig to a local trailer place and they were able to grind them off the axle in 3 pieces and replace with new arms. Wasn't counting on having to pay for labor on this project, but I learned a decade ago... if I'm going to say more than 3 cusswords and throw 2 tools during a project, it's worth paying someone else to do it... unfortunately, part.of the deal was they got the income from pulling the bearings, inspecting, and repacking with new seals... they said they wouldn't leave their shop unless they did that themselves. Personally, I would have replaced the bearings, but they said the grease was perfect, bearings were perfect, and no need to replace them (I guess this was the one thing prior owner did maintenance wise)... so... $650 later, and I have nice shiny trailing arms and the trailer axle itself is in good condition per the shop and needs no replacement ( I was considering just replacing everything, but the torsion axle is custom and there is a 8w wait for Dexter to make a new custom one).