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89 Sea Nymph 19.5ft Aluminum Rebuild

46K views 135 replies 34 participants last post by  Catpaw 
#1 ·
I started this thread so I can get tips along the way, and also take everyone through this process. I cant afford a new boat, plus this boat means alot to me, so the next best thing is a rebuild.

Everything will be coming out, from the water logged transom, as well as all the additional water logged foam in the boat. This no doubt will be the most time consuming part of this project, but I want to do it right, and that takes time...So be it!

This boat will be painted as well at the conclusion of this project, it will no doubt take me all winter, which is why I waited until the end of the season to start this. Dont want to feel rushed at all. I will be posting pics along the way of my progress, hopefully it will help someone else in the future that decides to take something like this on.

Looking foward to it, hopefully I dont find anything terrible along the way, but we'll see.
 
#3 ·
I just did a strip and re-outfit of a 1986 17.5' Mirrocraft deep v aluminum too. Picked the boat up dirt cheap because the fella selling it thought it was junk. Took 3 weeks and it was water ready. All new wood, epoxied, re-wire, addition of live wells, rod rack, 14 rod holders, tune up the 40 evinrude, new pump/impeller, etc. It was great but I'm glad it's over! It made made a fine addition to the others. LOL

I'd be happy to shoot you a few pics. Trust me, if you have any skills and drive, you can whip out an aluminum boat re-do pretty fast. This is the 3rd one I've done but I think I'll keep this one to jug out of and drift with.
 
#8 ·
These are underneath the floor when I pulled it up. The foam was suprisingly dry on the top, but once I started to dig a little deeper it was definatley soaked on the bottom, and thats just what I could feel with one finger. Probably be hard to really know until I pull it all up. Since it is wet near the bottom I am gonna go ahead and pull it all. This will be the big time consuming part.

Havent pulled the front deck yet, this may be as far as I get until I can really dig in this weekend. Definatley have my work cut out for me.

Any tips on removing the transom? I am sure its not gonna come out easily since its so expanded. Still have to remove the rest of the brace on both sides, and all the rivets and screws.
 

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#9 ·
The progress is looking good. I need some time away from the other threads becuase I'm getting to worked up about dumb ppl so I will focus my efferts elsewhere. :Happy:Keep it up and don't halfass it and you will be fine. When I did mine there was serveral times where I wanted to skimp but for the most part I didn't. While you got the floor out you should make a rod storage compartment under the floor like I did. Sure comes in handy and it makes you feel better to know your rods are not visible for every thug to see. Especially where you fish.hahahaha
 
#10 ·
The progress is looking good. I need some time away from the other threads becuase I'm getting to worked up about dumb ppl so I will focus my efferts elsewhere. :Happy:Keep it up and don't halfass it and you will be fine. When I did mine there was serveral times where I wanted to skimp but for the most part I didn't. While you got the floor out you should make a rod storage compartment under the floor like I did. Sure comes in handy and it makes you feel better to know your rods are not visible for every thug to see. Especially where you fish.hahahaha
Yea there will be no half assing this one..I needed a project like this for many reasons, it relaxes me to work on boats, and on outboards. Will probably start cutting out all of this foam more today. Then the front deck has to be taken out. This is a Tournament rigged boat, and I have a 100gal cattle trough under the front deck. I think I will be building a custom livewell for the rear of the boat. Just dont like having all that weight in the front. Hope to drop a couple hundred lbs when I get the transom out, and all the water logged foam out. When I first put that motor on, there was absolutley nothing in the boat when I took it out to work all the bugs out, and it was pushing 54mph. Its a big goal of mine to get that speed back. 47-49 has been the norm. Just had to much going on in there, but that aint bad when it had 2 guys, 6 deep cycles, anchors, livewell and bait tank, etc....The less weight the better this time around. Upper 40's is plenty fast, but if I can get more thats what I want to do.
 
#11 ·
I know its a little ******* but I just used a aluminum truck tool box as a livewell and it works great. Well you might get a different answer from someone else but I havn't had a fish die in it. I have a recirc system, sprayer and a fill and dump pump. Also have air in it. The tool box is great bc its cheap, it locks(put stuff in it when im on the road), has side compartments for air pump and spare parts, also have a cutting board mounted on the top with a place to put my bait knifes and pliers. Then at the end of the day I just open the lid and diconect my fill line and wash it all down. It drains right into the splash guard and out the back of the boat. Just some suggestions if your doing it on a budget like I did.
 
#12 ·
I know its a little ******* but I just used a aluminum truck tool box as a livewell and it works great. Well you might get a different answer from someone else but I havn't had a fish die in it. I have a recirc system, sprayer and a fill and dump pump. Also have air in it. The tool box is great bc its cheap, it locks(put stuff in it when im on the road), has side compartments for air pump and spare parts, also have a cutting board mounted on the top with a place to put my bait knifes and pliers. Then at the end of the day I just open the lid and diconect my fill line and wash it all down. It drains right into the splash guard and out the back of the boat. Just some suggestions if your doing it on a budget like I did.
Oh hell man it aint like that at all, I love those truck box livewells they work perfect. Its just I have to relocate some things in the boat, like batteries and stuff, and I was thinking of building the livewell straight into the boat. Not to sure on what I want to do. I am just not sure if its something I want to be able to remove, or something that stays in the boat, and doubles as a bait tank, storage, etc..
 
#15 ·
Well I got a ton of foam out today. I was actually suprised at how dry it was, it was pretty wet on the very bottom, I was almost regreting taking it out, until I got to the very back. Removed some panels that basically go into the splash well. For whatever reason there are pieces of ply wood in there, that are absolutley rotted to nothing. Had I not removed all the foam, I wouldnt even have known. So i guess I found my first "goody"..I am not even sure what its there for. The only thing inside these areas are foam and lots of it, water logged foam at that. One side has the fill hose for the gas tank, the other side is nothing but foam. I am guessing its in there for support?

Anyway also took out the gas tank. I need to get the front deck torn down, and get everything gutted from the bottom of this boat. I want to make sure I can get in there with a pressure washer before it gets cold outside.
 

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#16 ·
Being an original Sea Nymph owner and doing a complete teardown just like you the project was a blast, my transom was intact but the foam was water log and I found a bad rivit area in the keel that was letting the water in, when I did mine I gutted everything then I made an appointment up at the Sea Nymph factory in Syracuse Indiana and they refoamed my boat, it was a very cool process because they told me to lay the flooring down and screw it down tight with S/S screws and they bored holes in the floor with a holesaw stuck the gun in there and filled it up at the time and this was back in 1994 they charged me $100.00, everybody was great because this boat had been built by these people and the serial number reflected boat number twenty from the factory and only two of the original employees still worked there, the foam is in there to help make the boat float, they now use white blocks of foam in most of the newer boats very few use that expanding foam and what they use at the factory is totaly different than what we can get on the market, travis if you need any help drop me a note you have seen my builds on my boats and yea I agree with Shadman the truck box is the way to go so many more uses than just a livewell here's the picture of my 1984 Sea Nymph after I redid mine I did the paint job had a new trailer built and bought a new Johnson 50 horse engine, took me all year to complete this work but I really enjoyed that project, kept the boat till 2001 when we purchased the Smokercraft and I rerigged that boat to my likings and kept it till 2009 when we bought the SeaArk and because of the two other boats I was able to rig the SeaArk in just a couple of months. Vehicle Bass boat Water transportation Speedboat Boat
................Doc
 
#17 ·
Doc brings up a Great Point about the Rivets, When you have it stripped completely, Take it down to the water strapped to the trailer and have someone back it in while your inside. Take a marker and mark any Rivets that may leak. Now is the time to repair or replace them before you refoam.

I may have missed it, but if you haven't removed the wood in the transom. To cut it out,you might consider using a router, set just short of the depth of the wood to "cut" sections loose. Then you could carefully brake the thin ply that is left against the alumium away.
 
#18 ·
Keep up the good work. Looks like funer than the funist- fun. How's that for NE ******* talk? I dont remember who said it but make sure you make it the way YOU want it. Everytime a friend goes with me they say, why didn't you do this that way or this way. And it's as simple as its my boat and that's that. Have fun with it. I enjoy watching all the mods, awsome stuff.
 
#19 ·
Doc brings up a Great Point about the Rivets, When you have it stripped completely, Take it down to the water strapped to the trailer and have someone back it in while your inside. Take a marker and mark any Rivets that may leak. Now is the time to repair or replace them before you refoam.

I may have missed it, but if you haven't removed the wood in the transom. To cut it out,you might consider using a router, set just short of the depth of the wood to "cut" sections loose. Then you could carefully brake the thin ply that is left against the alumium away.[/QUOTE

I have seen guys that were able to pull the entire thing in one piece, which would be ideal so I have a template to cut a new one. I realize that is wishful thinking though...I am enjoying this already, I just wish I had to penny's to rub together lol...But thats the beauty of it, all the important prep work is free!

And good advice on the leak checking. I sanded down my transom bc it was so covered in everything imaginable it was the only way I could get a clear look, and wow is there alot of holes in that thing, its a wonder it floats..LMAO
 
#21 ·
Yours has that low slung transom, those holes are in there to drain out that shelf area back in the back, those things were notorious for leaking and I think that they created a lot of transom damage over the years, if you do have a shelf on the back I would consider modifying it so that any water will drain into the bilge area and then can be pumped out, maybe fabricate an aluminum shelf that has a drain hole at the lowest point where it attaches to your Transom, the less wood you use the better, that Sea Cast stuff is pretty good............Doc
 
#22 ·
Almost done with the tear down, got the front deck disassembled..I actually was impressed with how sturdy that thing was, I doubted myself when I built it last year, but it was a bear to break down. Only a couple more pieces to get out from underneath the 2 consoles, and remove the rest of the carpet. There wont be any carpet on the boat this time. Carpet and Catfish just done mix. I want to have it so I can just hose the boat down on the inside to clean it.

After that its just back to the transom and splash well. Have to remove all the foam thats inside there as well, and then fight this transom out. The plywood underneath the consoles was rotted as well, I didnt replace it when I first got the boat, so its all coming out. Should be down to all bare alum by Sunday I hope. The plywood under the consoles definatley supports them. Also found quite a few rivets busted on some stringers. So will have to fix those as well. Man its very overwhelming to look at now. Kind of the "what did i get myself into" deal...
 

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#23 ·
So are you going to put a casting deck back in that, or were you thinking of doing something else with the area? I'm not a big fan of casting decks because I'm either drifting or anchored off. Just wondering what kind of ideas you had in mind. I know a trolling motor up there is nice to keep in place if your drifting or floating, but other than that I have no use for them. You could build just a small spot to mount the TM and then make storage or bait wells up there and have the live wells in the back.
I don't know, not my boat, and its late and I may just be talking out my backside. Anyways keep up the good work, I'm enjoying the pictures and watching the progress.

Man I love the site!!!! USCA RULES
 
#25 ·
I think since you will be refoaming over the rivets. Once they are all repaired/checked out. I would coat the topside of them with a blob of 3M 5200. (It takes a couple of days to fully cure)

It does a couple of things.Can help seal a small leak, but more important, If one gets stress,it will prevent it from "Working" as fast over time and actually wearing the hole bigger/rivet smaller making the leak happen faster.
 
#26 ·
I think since you will be refoaming over the rivets. Once they are all repaired/checked out. I would coat the topside of them with a blob of 3M 5200. (It takes a couple of days to fully cure)

It does a couple of things.Can help seal a small leak, but more important, If one gets stress,it will prevent it from "Working" as fast over time and actually wearing the hole bigger/rivet smaller making the leak happen faster.
Good point. If you use the 3m 5200 put it on the rivet before you insert it into the hole. Thats what I did. Then you could put some on top of the rivet when you are done. Then there is no way it would leak. Well at least in our lifetime.:Happy:
 
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