I was looking for a used fishing
boat when I came across an oddity. It was a tunnel hull fishing
boat. I was under the mistaken impression that tunnel hulls were
made for speed and speed only. Intrigued, I set an appointment
to view the boat for the next day.
Arriving at the designated time I had about 20 minutes of daylight
to talk to the seller and check out the boat. My first impression
was; Wow this thing is wide! The boat and trailer together look
to be about ten feet wide.
Getting into the boat was easily done by way of steps welded
to the trailer frame. (A nice touch that I will improve upon.)
At any rate, I noticed that the left rear deck was very soft near
the live well. Reaching inside I was able to scrape wet, rotted
wood away with my thumbnail. There were a few other noticeable
things that needed care as well, the rub rail was in poor condition,
the front deck was covered in blue outdoor carpeting, all of the
hatches where cracked or missing handles, most of the electrical
did not work, the trailer axle was bent and many of the fittings
and accessories where corroded beyond repair.
On the bright side the hull was in very good condition as was
the T-top and Johnson 225 outboard. The front deck had been replaced
with a layered composite and the motor had a stainless stand-off
that would allow shallow running. (A must for a flats boat)
After a bit of haggling I drove away with the boat behind my
GMC pickup. The first thing that I noticed was that this boat
was HEAVY. This boat felt about the same as pulling my father’s
twenty four foot I/O cuddy cabin. The second thing was that it
was long. With the standoff it was actually longer from tongue
to prop than my father’s boat.
I found out just how long when I pulled into the local gas station.
Demonstrating my fine driving skills I took the fire extinguisher
right off the service station wall. Inspecting for damage I found
that I destroyed the fire extinguisher box and bent a little of
the boat rub rail. To my chagrin the gas station employees found
this quite amusing. Fortunately I had put them in good humor and
after buying a full tank of premium and a couple “cokes”
I put the station behind me. Without further mishap my new boat
and I reached home about an hour after dark.
The next day found my 17 year old step son (who knows much more
about boats) and I going over the boat more thoroughly. Well,
there was a lot more to be done than what I was expecting. Once
the large cooler/seat was removed we found the floor rotted and
completely waterlogged. It was not noticeable before because foam
had been poured underneath the flooring on both sides and in the
center rear. The center front was blocked by a bulkhead and the
foam could not get to it.
Instead of just replacing the rear deck I now had the opportunity
to replace the cockpit floor as well. I was not prepared for what
was in store for me. Fortunately I didn’t understand what
I was taking on.
We tested the motor and then started removed all of the fittings,
hatches, trim tabs and sundries with the intention of working
on the boat the following weekend. We talked quite a bit about
what had to be done to make it a decent flats/bass boat, had a
bite to eat and went to bed.
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Boat pic in add
Pic of "Flatout"
(Same type boat)
P ic of "Reelnative"
(Another of the same)
Carpet removed from the front deck
Front deck with rub rail in place
Front deck gelcoat rubrail removed
Another pic of gelcoat
Overall view of the front deck after fitting hatches
Rear deck removed
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