Marlin re-fit/restoration

[Salmondogs]

Figured I'd just start a generic post so I can post updates about all the stuff that I've got going on.

After the wife and I quickly learned that our 24' Trophy was a lot of fun but just too small and lacked the amenities that we wanted for week long trips in the San Juan Islands I started looking into larger boats. I realized pretty quick that the only two boats that I could reasonably afford and still do what we wanted were the 2902/2802 Trophy's or a Marlin. I don't have any animosity towards Trophy's but the prices the 29's command I wasn't willing to pay when I could have a nicer riding Grady for not much more. The fact that our family has been a Grady family for a long time probably influenced my decision a little too lol. Fast forward and last month I was able to score a 2003 Marlin locally on a nice trailer that was repowered fall of 2018. The boat needs a lot of TLC and there's a large crack in the hull just inboard of the STBD chine, which brought the price down. BUT it only has 25hrs on brand new 300 Yamahas that came with extended warranties! Also, I'm no expert, but I do know experts and know enough about fiberglass to know the crack is safely repairable.


Our old Trophy with my buddies 2902 in the background, both waiting for 4th of July run to Roche Harbor a couple years ago.

The new boat on its trip home from the previous owner!

 

[Salmondogs]

First major step was sending the boat of to get sand blasted. The previous owner bought the boat out of the Carolinas so I was worried about possible hull damage that had been covered up other than the already visible crack. I was happily surprised that after blasting there was only one other hull repair done near the keel and it looks like a quality one. The visible crack is actually a failed previous repair that looks like it was done very sloppily with lots and lots of filler and very little structural fiberglass work. I really wish I could keep the hull all white but the blasting left the gelcoat just a little too rough to polish out so it will be getting a barrier coat and bottom paint. She has a date at the fiberglass shop in town at some point but with the state on lockdown I'm not quite sure when it will be.

 

[Salmondogs]

As of right now, since I have a ton of time on my hands and a boat that doesn't float haha, I've got the inside of the boat all tore up, and I removed the gen-set yesterday. I'm very picky about clean rigging and wiring so I've already gutted the dash and will be posting about what I've done once I have more pictures and time. I'm always happy to answer questions and look forward new ideas and input!

 

[ScottyCee]

I'm jealous. I'm considered "essential" and trying to run a construction site using a bunch of subcontractors that are apparently "non-essential" - read "staying home."

What did they do to that thing? That looks like they really nailed something!

 

[family affair]

Congrats on the new boat!
I'm no expert on bottom paint, but have read about a number of people who have used some type of white epoxy after stripping bottom paint. It doesn't look like new, but looks very good. I think a member here did it. Look up barclayrl.

 

[Salmondogs]

I'm jealous. I'm considered "essential" and trying to run a construction site using a bunch of subcontractors that are apparently "non-essential" - read "staying home."

What did they do to that thing? That looks like they really nailed something!

I wish I could be working but I also have high risk parents so I understand and am happy to do my part whatever that is.

I have no idea what happened to the boat, the guy I bought it off of had no idea it had a repair until it failed. The more you look at it the stranger it gets too. You can get to the back side of the repair from the aft bunk and it seriously looks like someone took a circular saw to the boat, there's actually no evidence it took a hit. Most of the original glass is still in place and is in good shape, no white "dead glass" just cuts that are straight as an arrow and have a nice 1/16" kerf to them! My glass guy said he's going to grind back to the first lifting chine on the bottom and about a foot, possibly more, up the hull side to get into undisturbed glass so he knows he can get a good structural bond.

 

[ScottyCee]

Very strange indeed...

I'm definitely coming over to see it. I just keep getting sucked into my own restore and working until I'm too tired to walk. 8^) Feel free to drop by any time as well...

 

[seasick]

That is some crack. I suppose it could have been caused by running over something pointed and sharp. At first I though it was side impact related but I would expect more damage to the outer hull. I suppose it might be related to possible freezing of water in the hull in which case I would expect you to fine separation of one or more bulkheads form the outer skin. Regardless, your glass person seems confident and that is good. The boat is a beauty and I love those motors. Good luck and keep the updates coming.

 

[seasick]

You know what, the more I think about it, the more I think it ran over something like a dock and got cut by a fitting or bolt or bracket edge. Let us know what the inside looks like. If that is the case although ugly, it would be very fixable

 

[Salmondogs]

You know what, the more I think about it, the more I think it ran over something like a dock and got cut by a fitting or bolt or bracket edge. Let us know what the inside looks like. If that is the case although ugly, it would be very fixable

I'm leaning towards this as making the most sense. I'm a pretty skinny guy and I've crawed all around inside the access hatches in the cabin and the all the bulkheads seem to be in perfect shape. I pulled the deck up to inspect the fuel tanks as well and from what (little) I can see everything in the midship and aft part of the boat structure is ok as well, soooo??? And yea our local fiberglass guy is a Rockstar, I know people that would fix it for less but I don't want a little voice in my head the first time I head offshore out of Ilwaco towards the tuna grounds!

 

[Fishtales]

I'm thinking riding a dock and a cleat during a storm.

 

[Salmondogs]

Yesterdays adventure was removing the gen-set...real redneck haha! It only has 88hrs according to the meter but it's a compete rust ball! The fuel pump is a fire waiting to happen, one of the motor mounts has failed and the starter solenoid looks like its ready for a 4th of July show. I plan on putting an inverter bank in the boat as most of the boating we do is in and around the San Juan's and we usually stay somewhere with shore power.




The only useful Corona!

 

[Salmondogs]

Today I more or less finished up making the new battery switch panel. its not perfect but it's not bad for only having relatively simple tools and I'm pretty happy with it. I need another waterproof condom for the center smaller breaker and I ran out of the hardware to permanently mount some things but it's all on order. I swapped the main breaker for a larger 80amp unit and added a standalone breaker for the windlass. I'll never understand why boat makers always put in the absolute smallest (many times too small) wire to power house electronics. This boat had a single 6 awg wire powering the entire house including the windlass. According to Lewmar the windlass by itself requires a 6 awg wire! Also the breaker for the windlass was mounted on the dash when it should be MUCH closer to the battery to properly protect the circuit. I will be running dedicated wiring for the windlass and the main power feed for the house will be upgraded to 2 awg so that I never have to worry about power.

Original panel


New panel


backside of new panel

 

[Salmondogs]

(clears throat loudly and steps onto large soap box)

Allow me to rant for a second at this point. As someone that works on other peoples crap for a living, can every DIY-er here do me and all my friends a favor?

Take a look at the fallowing picture and notice the little tab still sticking out of the cut zip tie. This little bastard, left by the use of regular side cutters, is the bane of my forearms existence. They have caused me to loose probably quarts of blood at this point in my life and made me curse in ways that would make a sailor blush.



But I'm here to tell you it doesn't have to be this way! In the fallowing picture is a pare of "flush cuts" they are more or less specifically made just for the purpose of eliminating this problem and the best part is they are available at most hardware stores relatively cheep!


The result of this magical tool is something that quite honestly is one of the most satisfying things that a professional in the marine (and auto) world can ever behold....

ahhhhhhhh….so nice.

Thank you for your time.

(tips hat at crowd and walks off soap box)

 

[Fishtales]

Yesterdays adventure was removing the gen-set...real redneck haha! It only has 88hrs according to the meter but it's a compete rust ball! The fuel pump is a fire waiting to happen, one of the motor mounts has failed and the starter solenoid looks like its ready for a 4th of July show. I plan on putting an inverter bank in the boat as most of the boating we do is in and around the San Juan's and we usually stay somewhere with shore power.
View attachment 11701
View attachment 11702
View attachment 11703
View attachment 11704
The only useful Corona!

Interesting, most gen sets have been Fischer Pandas. Is that a Kohler? Don't recall the horizontal strip of material on the inside of the liner above the shore power connector. Did the bolsters rest on this? Nice job working the gen set out. I've found that the Zep Mold and Mildew cleaner (get at HD in gallons) works real well below decks. Spray, wait a few minutes and rinse out the plug. Ensure boat is positioed so it drains.

 

[Salmondogs]

Interesting, most gen sets have been Fischer Pandas. Is that a Kohler? Don't recall the horizontal strip of material on the inside of the liner above the shore power connector. Did the bolsters rest on this? Nice job working the gen set out. I've found that the Zep Mold and Mildew cleaner (get at HD in gallons) works real well below decks. Spray, wait a few minutes and rinse out the plug. Ensure boat is positioed so it drains.

Yes it's a Kohler. I've notice that the Fischer Panda is the norm, but I have seen a few early 2000s marlins with Kohlers when I was searching for one. In the owners manual I downloaded for the 2003 MY I noticed there were two generator options, one had higher output but I cant remember which one off the top of my head. The strip on the gunwale is just a trim strip I guess. The combing pads sit just above and the trim piece pretty much disappears once they're on, or at least my eyes don't notice it. I use a house brand HD bilge cleaner from LFS, our local marine store. I normally really like Zep products, but the LFS stuff works really well and is just easier for me to get. The rust staining is really bad, once I get a few days of nice weather I'll be prepping and painting the mounting pad with Bilgekote.

 

[Salmondogs]

By the way where do they mount the diesel tank for the Fischer Panda's? I'll probably be installing a diesel heater before this fall and have been wondering where to mount a tank.

 

[SkunkBoat]

(clears throat loudly and steps onto large soap box)

Allow me to rant for a second at this point. As someone that works on other peoples crap for a living, can every DIY-er here do me and all my friends a favor?

Take a look at the fallowing picture and notice the little tab still sticking out of the cut zip tie. This little bastard, left by the use of regular side cutters, is the bane of my forearms existence. They have caused me to loose probably quarts of blood at this point in my life and made me curse in ways that would make a sailor blush.

View attachment 11708

But I'm here to tell you it doesn't have to be this way! In the fallowing picture is a pare of "flush cuts" they are more or less specifically made just for the purpose of eliminating this problem and the best part is they are available at most hardware stores relatively cheep!
View attachment 11709

The result of this magical tool is something that quite honestly is one of the most satisfying things that a professional in the marine (and auto) world can ever behold....
View attachment 11710
ahhhhhhhh….so nice.

Thank you for your time.

(tips hat at crowd and walks off soap box)

they do make a tool that tightens and cuts flush with the squeeze of a trigger

 

[Salmondogs]

Spent an honest 8 hours under the dash today continuing to tearing out old wiring and unneeded/redundant circuits. Got the new battery cable ran and generally got most things finalized, just need to run new power and ground for the stereo and add about 1000 zip ties. I scored a fancy pants Fusion head unit with DVD player last year on a going out of business sale but it wont fit in any of the regular rigging spaces so I'll be making a custom enclosure for it. I'll add pictures when I'm done with the wiring, the boat looks like a spaghetti mess right now!

 

[GWL139]

What are the chances that boat took on water as a result of the chine damage and visibly deteriorated genset? I'd start to look in other concealed spaces as best you can to see if there's any staining or other telltales of intrusion...