B.O.A.T.....Break Out Another Thousand

With all the mentioning of the big boat being broken, i guess it deserves its own post. So here is the story.
A few weeks ago while install a new drain plug, i decided to check under the boat and make sure everything looked o.k.. To my Horror, i discovered 8 GIANT cracks in the hull though the bottom of the boat! It was a pretty sick feeling!
After talking with the builders of the boat i was out of luck on them fixing it. So a Aluminum Fabricator here in Bellingham agreed to do the work. So after we made a plan of attack, i started in on dismantling the boat.

First things first. Off comes the big motor. tipping the scales at 500 pounds this was no easy task! Thanks to some expert help from my two good friends Gene and Jon, we had this job done in a little over an hour. I couldn't have done it without them. There connections in the marine/aviation industry were well used in both guidance and use of equipment!

This is a picture of one of the 8 cracks throughout the bottom of the boat.

A boat without a motor just doesn't look right!

As of yesterday i removed the center fuel tank, cleaned out the bilge area and only the fuel filter remains. My hopes are to get it to Dwayne's shop sometime tomorrow. His guess was he'd have it for 10 days to 2 weeks before I'd get it back from him.

In all he'll have a total of 16 cracks to fix. Once i started looking i found more and more. Hopefully his strategic placement of his new welds, a few added brace points, and better welding penetration will solve the problem!

So the plan is to run the boat (once fixed) through this summer, and then look at selling it this next spring and move up into a little more saltwater friendly boat.

From the north.......Where boats cost more than their owners can afford....and wives put up with a lot too!

Mark ......"The Iron skillet"