fshnmgcn76 Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 I am new and don't know how this site works yet so I hope these pics come out. This is a 1970 Hewes Bonefisher 18' that I purchased about 3 weeks ago. I took it out on sea-trial for about an hour around Key Largo and fell in love with it. It currently has a 1994 115hp Johnson powering it, which runs pretty well for a 13 year old 2-stroke. Unfortunately, it doesn't still have the original cap, and most of the decking has been constructed of 5/8" and 3/4" plywood. The front deck has been re-configured to be flush with the sides like a modern day hewes, and due to the plywood construction, dry storage is not really a strong point. I have a little damage to the floor around the port side stringer, and there is some dry-rot in areas on the deck. I hope to start restoring this beauty in the next few weeks, but since she is running well at the moment, it has been hard to decide on a start date. I have had a few trips out already, and I was kinda planning on hitting Flamingo a few more times before i start. The big concern for me is how far I am willing to take it. Funds and Time are my biggest considerations, as always. I have seen some photos from Chest Pains restoration, and I will use that as an inspiration (Great job Bruce), but any help any of you would like to add is always greatly appreciated. I will try to keep this post updated with photos of the progress as I go along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishybusiness Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Great Boat!! If you have any questions about the boat and a rebuild please ask. I did the same thing to mine. Where are you located, I am in the keys weekly and would love to see it. Good luck and welcome to the family!! Its a great boat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 very nice! check out the early edition of 'saltwater flyfishing' by lefty kreh....lotsa pics of him in a boat just like that! nifty! how would you go about putting a factory style cap on it? the boat appears to be in pretty good shape....maybe just fish that ***er and cross those bridges when they need it. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted March 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Thanks for the kind remarks squid, and trust me, fishing now and dealing with problems as they arise has definitely entered my mind, I may try to get through the summer with as much water time as I can get, and start the bulk of the work in the fall. Funny you mention Lefty Kreh, growing up in South Florida I always had Lefty and Mark Sosin to look up to. I was taught Custom Rod Building by a master, Jack Justis, who lived down the street from me. He made a few rods for Mark Sosin and I had the pleasure of meeting him a few times when I was a kid. Those guys set the stage for Skinny water fishing down here. I will have to get a copy of those pics of Lefty in the old Hewes. By the way, great pics of that Tunnel hull. Only ever seen one once before, and it was in pretty rough condition. Yours looks great! I would like to see some running shots, so get 'em posted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 thanks! i will have to get some running shots....if i think about it, i will scan some of the photos out of the book. very cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chest Pains Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Keith, That's a great boat you have there. Glad to see Anyone willing to take on the job of keeping these old school beauties on the water. Thanks for the compliment on my baby. I was finally well enough to put her in the water for the first time, other than a ten minute test run, since April of last year. though we didn't have the opportunity to fish, we ran from Tavernier Creek to Shell Key. She runs good at 44 mph and handled sloppy water better than our Mako open. I can't tell you how good it felt to see your hard work come together. I'm no expert but i'm always willing to give my thoughts and ideas, just ring me up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 chesty, i have been watching your resto for some time, and i can say that if anyone deserves more time on the water it is you! good luck getting the back healed up. i hope everything is going well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yjwrangler95 Posted April 24, 2007 Report Share Posted April 24, 2007 chestpains, how do you weld the cap back to the hull after it comes off. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted June 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2007 Well time has come to start the restoration. I was hoping to get a few more months of use out her before I started, but a recent major set back with the motor has sped things up. I found alot of water in the cylinders, changed out the head gasket and also have a leak in the manual choke. Repair to the engine will be major, so I think I am just going to start the gl*** work on the boat then go with a re-power. I will begin the tear-down in the next few days (weather permitting) and will get some pics up to document the itchy process of giving this lap strake a much needed face lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketoyo Posted June 28, 2007 Report Share Posted June 28, 2007 Sorry to hear the bad engine news! Give me a ring if you need a couple extra hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted June 29, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2007 Thanks Mike, I will be calling you soon, I need some extra hands on the teardown for sure. I went over there this morning and removed the rub rail. The I disconnected all the rigging from engine and running lights. I may head over this week end to remove the console and start pulling the decks up. I'll get some pics of the phase 1 up here soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2007 Finally got a day to start really digging in. It was hot, itchy work but I removed the entire cap, front and back decks. knocked out most of the forward bulkhead along with the console & gas tank. hopefully will be complete with the Demolition by the end of next week so I can start on the transom/stringer rebuild. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yjwrangler95 Posted August 6, 2007 Report Share Posted August 6, 2007 How did it look inside? Did the stringers move from side to side? How bad was it? Any pictures? The reason I"m asking is I have the 72 bonfisher and need to tear her down as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2007 The cap itself was pretty soft in aft, forward decking was much more solid. I am still replacing it all anyway. I haven't pulled the floor up completely, so all the stringers are not exposed, but what I can see doesn't look terrible. I have pics, but need to recharge my battery so I can upload them. I will try to get to that this evening if I have time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 Spent a few hours on the demolition today. Yanked the engine off the transom, lifted up part of the floor and started grinding. This is hot, itchy work in summer. I exposed the stringers and they look pretty solid (thankfully). The transom is shot and will be replaced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 here are a few pics of work to date: [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/breakdown%20begins%206-07_2.jpg[/image] [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/hatches%20removed%206-07_2.jpg[/image] [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/2cap%20off%208-07_1.jpg[/image] [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/stringers%20off%208-07_1.jpg[/image] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted August 17, 2007 Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 wow.... i'm not scared of tearing apart anything....and that makes me SCARED....hehehehe good luck.....thanks for posting some picks....looks like a very solid boat underneath... what's the next step? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 I have to finish ripping out existing bulkheads and decking. Then I have to spend lots and lots of one-on-one time with the grinder. I will remove the rotted transom, but leave the outer skin in place. The gl*** in a new transom. re-build the bulkheads, then lay the floor and decks in place. Finally, paint. Not sure what colors, but leaning toward marlin blue or Jay grey on the hull, and oyster white on the topsides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted August 17, 2007 Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 cl***ic mako have you ever seen this? lotsa good boat re-building info on here.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 hey, thanks squid. I have been lurking around the cl***ic whaler forum, they have a good bit of project knowledge around there. But that Mako site is cool, I'll have to spend some time checking out the project boats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2007 Great Cl***ic Mako link, I have already found a great technique for refurbishing the console, easy way to make molds out of formica pieces, tips of fairing and structural repairs along with some neat ideas for customizing (fish boxes, built in coolers etc..) Anybody reading this who is interested in some great fibergl*** techniques should check this out. THANKS SQUID!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted August 20, 2007 Report Share Posted August 20, 2007 your welcome! it is a cool sight ...i think there is also one for old sea-pro boats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fshnmgcn76 Posted August 29, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2007 Got some work in this past weekend. I somehow even talked my good friend Brian into donning the Tyvek suit for some grinder / sawzall action on the rear bulkheads. It is so hot in those *** suits, we were only able to work for short periods of time before heat stroke set in. Later Sunday night I started on the console. Here's some pics: Brian in the Tyvek [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/brian%20tyvek.jpg[/image] Surgery on the aft bulkhead: [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/cutting%20bulkhead.jpg[/image] Here is a shot of the stripped down console [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/old%20console.jpg[/image] It would be too much work to fill in the holes, so I just decided to give it a new face. Here I cut the old away [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/cut%20console.jpg[/image] Here I dry fit 1/2" Marine Plywood for the core of the new face. This will get gl***ed in and faired over then the whole console will get a fresh coat of paint [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/dry%20fit%20console.jpg[/image] Finally, these are the new Console door and switch panel I just got from Marine Connection Liquidators. They are new, just surplus fromwhen the factory changed models. The great part is the switch board came pre-wired to the fuse panel. This saves alot of time and money. [image]http://www.forumpictureprocessor.com/pictureprocessor/images/console%20accessories.jpg[/image] Hopefully I will be done grinding out rotted transom and getting ready to "screw and glue" the new one in by then end of the month. Wish I had more time to work on her, but finding free hours is getting harder and harder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestFoto Posted August 29, 2007 Report Share Posted August 29, 2007 That is some crazy work there. More power to You. WOW. Thanks for keeping us updated with photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidmotion Posted August 29, 2007 Report Share Posted August 29, 2007 fibergl***, tyvek, high heat/humidity......NO THANKS....hehehe mind if i ask, did they have any extra of those switch panels? that is the same one that goes on mine, and i would like to get a new one.....my panel has a small crack......how much do they go for? screw and glue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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