ReallyGottaSki

Thank you men!

@Kevin89MC

thats brave to sew, tempting, maybe i'll prictice that skill on the next project

This only looks good due to Gabe's crew providing me very nice skins!

no,

no way to check without drilling the floor somehow. BUT, openings are easy to cover up afterwards in certain locations...

under the rear fuel tank, can be opened 5-6" and a simple, non screw-opening access panel can be siliconed and screwed afterwards, no fiber glassing. its barely 1/8" high. the floor psi from above in that area is minimal, so the loss of structure is non-consequential.

forward in the tunnel is the lowest part in the boat, good place to check.

under the driver's seat, passenger seat, is a good place to bore as well. an access port can simply cover the hole, as its not walkable area. also serves as a good inspection plate for me now.

When you bore forward of the pylon, seat areas on the sides, just make certain the pilot drill is not running deep, as the hull -to-floor is not much distance. also beware the stringers are wider than they look from above, so give them room

Indeed

Just another morning before work in ma

Will get to rip up Maine water next month

Just a few little odds and ends left tonight to do

Trunk closes tight like ojs glove, gaps came out right on target

Trunk is skinned. Four hands are better than two

Tucked a horn into the ventalation inlet, under the cover,so the sound propagates out and forward, instead of at your knees

Our good friend who winters in FL, rip'n it hahd

Should be a big milestone week

2nd combing pad is finished and installed

Fillet and Glasswork on the trunk is completed, carpet is bonded underside, and foam is shaped topside

Last peice of vinyl should go on tonight

Trunk was roughed and shaped from 15/32 birch sanded for a core, and 3/4 cdx to reinforce the ends, bonded with epoxy and some screw to clamp

Trunk bottom got one ply of 10oz with 2-1, and while still wet, got the scrap of cloth laid on as well. top gets cloth tonight

Stbd combing pad, new foam and then scrim over everything then vinyl and lasly carpet on the bottom

the hdpe backing for the branding in the center was omitted on the new buildup

@ETskier not quite, but its quite a restomod story in itself..

Albeit it now has a Nautique aluminum engine cradle in it, that boat is actually a Glastron Sabreflight.

Found and rescued a week before it went to the crusher, a hulk restored by my friends' father, who is also a great friend and ski/barefoot mentor to me and others for decades.

He personally did all this work on it in his later seventies

The interior is out of it right now, but the inside is as stunning as the outside.

It flat spotted the reverse adapter roller (basically input bearing) on its velvet drive, so we have that apart on the bench right now, parts came in Saturday.

This Sabreflight runs a 330 Black Scorpion takeout from the Sanger, leftover when he upgraded to a stroker,

the orig interceptor Y 292, sidedraft, gauges, and BWVD is on a pallet, also needs a home for someone interested. its no doubt crusty inside, but complete, and not cracked as far as we can see.

Fundamentally, you are standing on your ski like a combo pair, that must be corrected before you go left, nor right.

This should be your default position after you get up., riding straight. loose this stance, stop, correct it before trying anything else else reinforce bad stance

Do not pull outside the last wake, that is where your high hands are coming from

width is a result of energy from the cut. Stand tall on flexed ankles. You should feel your torso between your upper arms. if not your azz is behind you before you even start.

run narrow as you can until you build that energy

Back couch is installed. This piece likely shows my lack of experience with upholstery best. Maybe a day in the sun will help it.

Waiting for some foam for the combing pads, I must have miscalculated, out of 1" material.

Trunk lid gets some woodworking this evening

@BlueSki , I believe I understand your inquiry now!

Overall, attitude of us both has been contagiously positive throughout. It made for a busy but satisfying winter and spring. Tangible forward progress most daily

A rehab plan was part of the entire boat search and endeavor, mission was to get a good hull

This boat was quite the paradox....a not abused engine and trans, an interior like fisher cat had its way with it, but a nearly blemish- free hull, aside from a couple light scratches, and a small, popped void near the rub rail on each side.

Surprises were the bent strut, shaft. Easy fixes.

Can't say I was surprised about it being a soggypants, they almost all are...

That setback was mitigated by devising a plan that avoided tearing up the floor and thus evaporating the labor and expense of replacing it with alternate composites.

No wrenches were thrown in the making of this movie.

Good thing, because the boat was flanked by my buds' father's two Sangers.

Now you fballers have to wait real-time, like everyone else ??

Stainless tnuts were bedded and screwed into the the rear panel, for the engine cover hinges

Sound abatement lining the engine cover

Fins brushed, just cuz...

Time for a shakedown..

It's vorking!

A few drips... Stern plug fixture, circ pump, tranny cooler, riser gaskets, and hairline crack in one muffler endcap

But, it works, even the pp activates.

Launches hard with the 515, and that was not all of it at once; easy then part throttle then a little more

Took out the muffler and ground out the crack, trying some epoxy with milled fiber and silica.

My bud took apart and soldered the cooler; leak tested, painted, no leaks

Stern plug hole was all mashed from factory. that got patched with same mix, drilled, and grooved to mate with the casting boss so it takes the torque instead of the screws, two of which had no meat behind them.

New riser gaskets, and circ pump.

Next outing will have the engine cover on, and spinning the 449. Maybe the couch also

@Ronny61 , oh yes, I do recall you inquiring if I needed your old platform!

Very gracious,. At the beginning of the project then, I had a lot of unknowns to work out still

I'm certain somebody is happy to buy it

@MISkier , valid concerns

Sound wise, experience steers me to not be concerned, as my supreme is also not cavity filled, by design, and has proven to be the quietest boat of our bunch with my other mods.

Level flotation issue, is admittedly a rationalization..

Foam always gets heavy, eventually.

There is 4" of foam under the top of the deck. so the boat will be recoverable I suspect.

I've been first to respond to a fairly new-at-the-time overturned centurion BW comp than never leveled, just the bow pointing up, the stern banged along the bottom to shore. So, it's not a sure thing level flotation is effective.

The foam that was in this boat, and many like its contemporaries today, was essentially already water. Pre sunk, if you will.

I put more air into it, so to speak.

It won't go down fast unless punctured.

Closed bow is a big plus on this model regarding stuffing it.

Gas floats...

Yes, all a calculated hamster wheel of rationalizations

Yes it may not float level all that long. but, will never bloat again either.

Replacing the foam was a serious consideration until I spoke more with other boat restorers, who seemed dismayed by their effort and temporary results, in all sorts of crafts. I didn't want to do this again on the same boat

@Ronny61 , good eye, yes plantation teak, atop 5/4 uhm, my bud says mahogany, I think it's meranti. We can call it mahogany, because he gave me those scraps from his deck project!

It is seriously solid, zero deflection even with the wide brackets and no support in the middle

So different than the springboard that it had

@ImperfectPass indeed, a stout design appears needed there. I anticipate bonding some 3/4 ply on top the 1/2 in those locations

@UWSkier my buddy found it at a local marina, I learned it was a trim ring on a pedestal seat destined for some bass tracker type boat

I'm sure some may point to this thread. I had considered mbc as a location to photodoc the build, but decided on here. mbc I find a bit clouded and diluted from my specfic interests lately, due to all the umbrella models, new watersports boats but relevance to slalom is a stretch and a search.

Battery installed, into fresh tray

And switch added, at an accessable location

@ImperfectPass Donny, my trunk lid has had the least progress to-date.

I have been going back and forth for months whether to glass ply, or try glass over foam board.it was time to pick

I just bought the ply for that project last night, so should get into that next week

Platform - done

Sanded, treated, and mounted to the brackets

Engine cover-covered.

The cooler hatch...

Epoxied ply, with some rtv for anto-rattle.

I had a peice of carpet bound, and bonded it to the hatch,

Passenger seat base in, driver's seat- in

Engine cover, covered with scrim

Driver armrest is covered in scrim, and some matching red, instead of factory white

Got this neat silicon edge molding from the Amazon, there was just bare fiberglass in the carpet wrap prior.

I'm deleting the drink holder , nla, and the netted pockets, for a clean look on the engine cover

More seat work..

Slow going, don't want to mess up

Platform construction

More like wood machining, if you're one who had done this