Advice for a newbie on a Devlin repair/restoration

Jim Cricket said:
Good on the Penetrol. I use Kirby?s marine alkyd, and Penetrol is essential to proper flow out. Works far better than their more expensive proprietary thinner.
More pics!
Click to expand...

Jim,

I also use Kirby's on my W&C canoe projects. As a matter of fact, I'm currently using it on a new build that I'm completing. I find the paint to be very thick, requiring thinning and Penetrol. I roll and tip and find that I often must add more Penetrol as I go along once the brush starts to drag.

I'm curious about your technique. How much Penetrol do you use initially and do you have to add more as you paint?

Thanks,

Matt
 
Hi Matt, yes and yes to your questions/comments. I use quite a lot of Penetrol initially to thin, and on a long session will add more as I go, particularly in hot weather. I do use some Kirby thinner initially but it?s mostly Penetrol. I think George?s batches will vary somewhat being thicker sometimes. On my first purchases from them, they sent me a free qt. of thinner because it was thicker than usual. I found the paint difficult at first, but got used to it. I roll and tip on the outside hull but just brush out the interior. I find it settles out after use to a silky satin.
Jim
 
The boat looks great, Richard. I like that Yamaha 25, too. Very light. Also, thanks for the link to the manual jack plate. Seems like Steve?s Wood Motor board would work though. I think you definitely want to get the cav plate up closer to the right height. I?ll look forward to your solution.
Jim
 
After weighing all the options I had for the transom, I ended up going with the Vance mechanical jack plate. I really prefer the looks of the motor plates Steven constructs, but I like the idea of being able to adjust the height up and down to get it set just right. I went with the 7" offset model based on the manufacturer recommendation. I think I probably could have gotten away with the 5" for this Yamaha 25 hp. The only thing I don't like is that it is advertised as a clamp on motor option, but the motor clams hit right on the metal brackets, so I'm going to have to add a piece of wood temporarily and bolt on the motor eventually. I removed the old metal transom protection plate (which seemed to only be attached by gravity), cleaning up the wood, replaced the top cap of the transom with a piece of mahogany, drilled out the holes for the jackplate after measuring at least 5 times to make sure I didn't screw it up, and gave everything a few coats of epoxy (after the below pictures).
View attachment 20200727_203754.jpg

View attachment 20200727_203019.jpg

I'd like to paint the transom before the final mounting of the jackplate, but the test fit results looked good. I think this gives me something like 5" of adjustment in motor height. It looks like I can get the cavitation plate a few inches above the bottom of the transom with it adjusted all the way up, to a few inches below with it all the way down. It isn't something I can adjust easily like the higher dollar hydraulic models, more a set it and leave it model.

My next project is working on the floor. I did a separate thread for that hoping to get as much input as possible. I'd really like to get this jackplate mounted up and go test it out again, but I think I will need to epoxy in the floor supports before I can paint the inside of the hull and transom. Teal season is coming pretty quickly so I need to make some hay in the next few weeks.
 
The evenings this week and the weekend were taken up with prepping for paint and painting. Not my favorite type of work but has to be done. I'm looking forward to some days without sanding anything. I was able to get 2 coats of paint on the inside the hull. This morning I put the first coat on the top of the deck Things went pretty smoothly for the most part. The deck will probably need a least a few more coats. I also went ahead and put the jackplate on for good this evening. I'm hoping to get it back in the water to try out in a week or two. I've also started getting in all my electrical supplies, so I may be doing some wiring this week.

View attachment 20200809_174307.jpg

View attachment 20200809_174253.jpg

View attachment 20200809_174241.jpg

View attachment 20200809_174233.jpg
 
Richard

She looks really nice. I'm sure your ready to be done but also feel quite satisfied by the transformation. How did you end up doing the floor supports? Also, do they make a jack plate that tilts? The one thing I dislike about my motor is the tilt and trim doesn't allow it to kick up and over stumps very quickly.

Eric
 
Thanks Eric, it is nice to see the boat come together. I'm very ready to be able to use it, but looking forward to the projects to come. For the floor, I'm going to go with an approach similar to what Steve suggested with the supports attached to the removable floorboards for now. If it doesn't work out like I want, I'll go back and epoxy in supports to the hull if I can come up with a good design.
 
I think I did see a jackplate that had trim/tilt, but I believe it was on hydraulic model that was quite a bit more of an investment than this mechanical one. I looked into factory power tilt/trim on the engine, but I think I was told it was not available on the short shaft 25 for some reason, and it did add quite a bit of weight, which was a problem.
 
Richard S said:
I think I did see a jackplate that had trim/tilt, but I believe it was on hydraulic model that was quite a bit more of an investment than this mechanical one. I looked into factory power tilt/trim on the engine, but I think I was told it was not available on the short shaft 25 for some reason, and it did add quite a bit of weight, which was a problem.
Click to expand...

Actually I meant tilts as in hinged, not equipped with power. In other words does the jack plate rotate up when the motor strikes and object? These type of plates take the hydraulic tilt out of the equation when you hit something but the motor's tilt still works when you want it. Some people call them break-away jack plates.

Eric
 
Last edited:
It does not have the breakaway feature. Do you think there is a benefit of having that for a manual tilt motor with a tilt lock you can switch off? It sounds like it would maybe serve the same purpose?
 
For a manual tilt motor, no, it would serve no purpose. By manual tilt I mean no hydraulic assist at all. Merc made a "manual tilt" that actually was hydraulic assist and it SUCKED just as bad as power tilt and trim for jumping stumps and downed trees. Those motors hang on everything since they can't kick up and over fast enough with the hydraulic cylinder slowing the process down. I was curious about the new F25 and looked at Yamaha's web site and thought it came with hydraulic tilt. If it is manual tilt it is much better suited for stumpy waters. I have never cared for anything but manual tilt in motors 25 and under. The break-away plates allow someone to have the best of both worlds. That being power tilt and trim and the ability to quickly kick up and over obstacles.

Eric
 
I went with the electric start with manual tilt/trim, model SWHC I believe. I think Yamaha has power tilt and trim listed as an option for the F25, but when I called around to ask about weight difference between the two, I believe I was told they didn't offer it on the short shaft for the 25 for some reason. They may have just said it wasn't available and that is how I interpreted it though. After only a short time on the water, it seemed pretty manageable. I'm looking forward to seeing how it does on the jackplate, hopefully this weekend.
 
I've been working on some smaller upgrades the last few weeks.

I finished up a battery box
View attachment 20200822_094109.jpg

View attachment 20200829_154837.jpg

and I also did all the electrical, including a panel box and shelf
View attachment 20200829_131230.jpg



View attachment 20200829_154844.jpg


and I'm pretty close to finishing up mounting the front nav light with a small mahogany plate.
View attachment 20200829_182338.jpg

The main thing I've been played around with are the floorboards/duckboards. For the time being I cut down the plywood floorboard a previous owner had in there and added some temporary support braces to try that out and see what I think. I'm got some cypress I'm going to use for the permanent braces, and white oak plans for the floor planks once I decide on how high/low I want to set it up. After a few hours with the current setup, I'm thinking it may end up being my pattern, maybe a little smaller/narrower.

View attachment 20200823_113632.jpg

View attachment 20200822_123534.jpg

I purchased a cheap LED light bar from harbor freight that I may add to the front at some point. I'd like to hunt out of the boat for a bit to decide if I'd use it much or not. I did add strips of green LED interior lights, and I'm pretty impressed with them for what the go for on Amazon.

View attachment 20200829_220443.jpg

I'm still working on my splash guard, hoping to have something to try out by next weekend. Teal season is getting close, but I'm sure I don't have tell folks here that.

View attachment 20200829_182338.jpg
 
Good morning, Richard~


Beautiful workmanship as always.


I applaud your "let's try it and see" approach for the floorboards and lights. Lots to be said with living with different features for a season as the best field testing.


All the best,


SJS

 
Rich,

I too like your electrical panel/box. I am definitely going to redo the one in my BBIII. The previous owner has the fuses behind the front cover and buried behind all the wires within the box. Not user friendly at all.

I do have to ask; Do you plan to secure the battery to the boat hull?
 
Really nice work Richard. You've given me a lot of inspiration for my own bbII.
Where did you get that nav light and electrical panel? I like that simple shelf for shell boxes, etc. Might have to copy that one soon!
 
Thanks Dave. The oak battery box is attached to the hull with 4200. I do plan to secure the plastic box to the oak box as well. I was planning on a strap and buckle system I had until I realized it is not even close to long enough, so I need to work out a new attachment method.

So far the panel box seems to be working out well. It was also a good place to leave something wood finish and try my hand at varnish rather than all paint.
 
Thanks Kyle, look forward to see your upgrades to the now boat. I think I got the electrical panel on Amazon. I had trouble finding that specific model elsewhere. My one complaint is the 4th circuit switch runs the two outlets. I didn't read closely enough when I ordered it and was thinking I would get 4 switches plus the outlets rather than 3. It is plenty for what I have now but if I had to do it again I might look for something with more positions. I do like the outlet and USB outlets though. I'm sure those will be nice to have.

The front nav night I picked up from west marine I believe, nothing special but it is LED and was easy enough to disassemble to repaint. The mounting plate was another good excuse to have something varnished. It was a really nice piece of wood so I'm glad I'll be able to look at it for hopefully many years.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top