Sharkat 700 Rebuild

[Grand_Marlin]

Ok, well here is the Sharkcat ... 700 series Hardtop, with a single volvo sterndrive. 200hp Turbo, to a 290 leg with duoprop.
The boat is 7m or 23 ft.

It was originally a rescue boat, and has more recently been a spanner crabbing boat, out of Mooloolaba I am led to believe.

It was in terrible cosmetic condition when we bought it, but it is mechanically and structually sound.
The leg needs new seals, which will be done very soon.

As most people know, I work on boats for a living, and still thoroughly enjoy playing with boats in my spare time, boating in general, and love game fishing.

So, following the Yalta Odessa 2000, this is our next project.

The basic shape / structure / setout of cabin etc is in my opinion faultless, so we are not intending to do any major fibreglass modificatoins.

It will be totally refitted, repainted and fitted out with a good electronics package. Most probably Raymarine.
The idea is to create an awesome fishing platform for game and bottom fishing that can also be used for family weekends on the bay.

These are pics of the boat as we bought it.

I welcome any comments or ideas as we do the boat up.

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Back of boat, with additional pods for buoyancy. Leg has no trim at the moment

[Grand_Marlin]

Helm, with many holes to fill...

[Grand_Marlin]

Front cabin ... what a mess

[ShaneJ]

Looking forward to seeing some progress pics mate :)

[Grand_Marlin]

Main cabin

[Grand_Marlin]

Main cabin

[Grand_Marlin]

Motor - Original

[ShaneJ]

Any pics of the deck area mate? Thanks

[Grand_Marlin]

Still to come Shane ... I didnt realise that I hadnt taken one of the entire back deck

[longtail]

should be an awesome rig when its finished

look forward to watching this rebuild in progress.

good luck with it .


cheers
jason

[StevenM]

How many hours on the engine Pete and I hope you are not changing the curtains in the main cabin.

Is it too rude to ask what ya paid for it??

cheers

steven

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks Jason,

Steve, it has 2200 hrs on it.

Purchase price was $15 on trailer

Cheers

Pete

[Darryl]

At least i know the gps that i got from you Pete wasn't stolen. ;D ;D

Was just thinking about the cat and wanted to know what year you reckon it was built in?If it was late 70's there is a good chance my mother did the final detail on it and my labrador was tied to it in Bruce Harris's yard on Brisbane road Labrador.Whilst i being a kid rolled around getting itchy in all of his boats on the production line every saturday morning

Wouldn't mind helping you on this one, as it is my goal to own a Brucey. Plus i have no life. :o ;D

Darryl.

[2iar]

Thanks Jason,

Steve, it has 2200 hrs on it.

Purchase price was $15 on trailer

Cheers

Pete


I'll give you double that when you fix her up mate ;)

Good luck,
Mike

[ahoj]

Grand Marlin....
Why the stainless steel sides re-enforcing or damage? Or for fishing reasons??


I am looking forward to see the progress of ( what name is the cat?
we will see this cat all plastered fireglassed sanded sand blasted leg re-dun motor repainted and then tape it all up get in to a spray booth come next morning and valla' --- magic Just magic. The reward the glory and the smile from total satisfaction...... and it will be even bigger thrill since you just love CAT's.....

Please preferably NOT yellow Can i suggest a name?? " MEOW"

PS. Tell Renai she has a taste

Good Luck ----Ahoj

Who's boat is it? lo lol

[ShaneJ]

$15?? :o Bargain :-X

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks Mike,
Might be worth a little more than that when it is finished #;)

I will call you tomorrow, be there on Friday to do your boat


Ahoj, the stainless "cladding" was to stop damage when it was used commercially for spanner crabs .... dragging the pots over the side wrecks the gelcoat very quickly.

It is my boat ..... MY BOAT .... get it ??? MY BOAT
oh crap, she just walked in ..... Our boat :-*

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Ok ... Names....

Any suggestions? (except meeow ;D) thanks Ahoj ...

And any suggestions on colour?

I am thinking Metallic Gold.....

[ShaneJ]

Black on the outside I reckon. Tufff ;)

[Grand_Marlin]

Something like the HSV Panther Mica ... Black pearl with the blue / silver fleck through it ...
Could look good #:)

[Darryl]

2 pack white hull, lotsa stainless.

[ahoj]

2200 hours = equal to 160.000 road km and a diesel = Just run in==== thats how I like to see motors keep on going not paying 20K outboard with high revs--- burn out in 200 hours and throw it away and those fictitious services costing the earth to change spark plugs prematurely...
you run a outboard motor @ 5ooo revs per minute for an hour its like a grand prix speed car... on the other hand run a diesel @ 1800 revs and it will run forever... 10.000 hours is not unusual so long as one look after heat exchanger and replace regularly...I like that double screw.... Marlin you are going to have a nice and ecconomical CAT unit I like .....

Ahoj

[lippa]

she'll be a sweet ride mate, i'm a mobile spraypainter(not putting my hand up for the job) but if you want to experiment with colours give me a yell!!!i carry a full tint system on board (like the panel shops only more condensed) just grab colour codes from various vechile manufactors and i can make small amounts up on the spot. can spray test panels on it to get a true indication of your colour choice. pm me if ya want a hand.

cheers

lippa

[Angla]

Huge scope for improvement.

How long do you envisage this thing will take to bring back to life

Chris

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Crestcutter,
White looks neat, but I want something different.

G'day Ahoj,
Thanks for the comments, and hopefully the diesel will see 10000 hrs.
It looks a bit shabby in the pics, but it is all cosmetic.

G'day Lippa,
Thanks for the offer. I will catch up and have a chat to you sometime.

G'day Angla,
I think it should only be a few months to completion... the only factor will be finding time from work duties....

Cheers

Pete

[bcb20]

Pete,

This looks like an awesome project and I envy you. I'll be watching the progress with keen interest, given that as a "ankle-biter" my family had quite a bit of involvement in cats in there early years through various people and also owing a 21ft Wind Tunnel, from the old "Pacific 1000" days (now that going back in time!).

Best of luck and I hope to see plenty of pictures during the project......

Sabre

[fez]

Grand Marlin,

It is refreshing to hear someone who works in a job and enjoys it sooooo much that when they get time off they work on the same sort of job. After looking at the yatala rebuild photos I am sure this Cat will come up a treat and you (sory both of you) will enjoy it very much.

Look forward to seeing the end results.

Cheers,
Fez

[Argle]

Hooray another "Ausfish Rebuild" for us all to drool over. good on you Pete for sharing it with all of us.
That will be one hell of a family/fishing/glamour machine when its done if the Yalta is anything to go by. Although you may find getting time to work on it a bit hard to come by as I am sure you will be seeing a lot of new customers knocking on your door that have been "referred" from Ausfish. 8-)
I look forward to seeing the rebuild unfold as im sure everyone else does.

Cheers and beers
Scott

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Sabre, Fez & Argle,

What kind words from you all ... nearly enough to make a bloke blush #;D

Aaahhh yes ... work on boats all week, play on boats all weekend, and talk on Ausfish when I am relaxing ... Life doesnt get much better #;)

So far, we have stripped all the shag pile carpet off the walls, carpet off the floor, removed all the old bolts that werent needed (1/2 a 9 litre bucket of stainless screws and bolts), removed all the timber work, electronics, electrical wiring, switch panels,curtains #:(, steering wheel, etc etc etc ... ready to renew it all.

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Kieran stripping cabin

[Grand_Marlin]

Do you like the helm setup??

What about the custom gear shift?

[Grand_Marlin]

Cutting out the old table platform ... it was all glassed in and took a day to cut it out.

[Grand_Marlin]

Dont you hate working when you look out at days like this?

[blaze]

first thing I notice is a handsaw, come on Pete give the workers some power tools, theres enough work to do by hand without cutting it up by hand. LOL
Nice looking rig
cheers
blaze

[Grand_Marlin]

Behind the poor old Triton ... notice the back wheels are only just touching the ground?
This was one job we had to do on the trailer ... move the wheels back

[Grand_Marlin]

First time on the water.

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks blaze ... nah make em earn their keep .... #sad thing is it was me on the end of it #:(

The grinder was just creating too much dust in the cabin. Even with the 1/2 face respirator, it was still too harsh.

Cheers

Pete

[ahoj]

Gee she sits very proudly in the water and that is without the curtains lol wow

Ahoj

[Kid]

Hey pete, i'm fixing up a 15 foot aluminium cat what do you think it will cost me for sandblasting and paint job.

Brent

[Grand_Marlin]

Hey Kid,

Depends on how good you want the job .... (everyone says they got their car painted for $200 bucks and a carton of VB....)

If the hull comes up ok after blasting and doesnt need too much filling, then you will be looking at around $500 (estimate) to blast and $1000 of materials and $1000 to paint.

Cheers

Pete

[ahoj]

Hi mates

Came acros something very pleasing. This canoe with home made outriggers seem to be the ultimate what this sort of vesel can handle Equiped for 2 people very stable and with 3 HP motor electric motor and fishfinder ---went like a rocket...
I would classify this vesel as MINI CAT 1
My calypso conversion --- -- MIDI Cat 2
And Marlins 23 footer ---- SUPER CAT

Ahoj

[Camo]

Hey Pete, it's going to be a top rig when you finish it. Christ $15 for the boat and it was still running, pretty good value that. Mate are you going to leave the pods on the stern, are they necessary, or are you going to replace them with somthing else? Can't wait to see how it turns out. Are you going to sell it when its finished, of keep it for yourself?

Camo

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Camo,

15 grand was the price ... not 15 bucks (I wish) ;D

Undecided about the pods ... they look like $hit, but do perform a role in additional buoyancy
Cats have a habit of flooding the back deck with any weight on the back. I will give it a couple of runs first, then see what happens.

I am most probably going to take them off for painting, so I can then try the boat without them...

Any thoughts anyone????

I will be keeping this one :)

I have always wanted one of these ... you could say my dream boat.

Cheers

Pete

[seatime]

Hi GM

I guess the previous owner though the pods where needed.
Is the diesel heavier than two OBs, hard to see, and weight is further forward with the inboard. If it was used for crabbing the pods may have helped with the extra load, getting out of the hole and coming home.
regards Steve.

[Grand_Marlin]

Hi Steve,

The boat was a spanner crabbing boat, which would ofter carry a tonne on the back deck. The pods would have been needed to help lift the extra weight in the load.

Cheers

Pete

[Darryl]

Was on a 23 footer thursday night at Moloolaba that had twin 175's on it and 800 litres of fuel tanks in the rear as well and asked this guy if it was boggy in the rear and he said no it wasn't to bad.(Had no pods like yours).

So i spose if you compared the weight difference 2 175's plus 800 kilo of fuel compared to diesel donk and leg might give you an idea Pete? Depends we your tanks are too and what they carry. I dont think you would need them as a spanner boat carries a lot of weight in pots etc. But hey, what do i know.

Darryl.

[Grand_Marlin]

I think you are right Darryl, it doesnt need them ... bu tthen again, they arent hurting anything either.

It is something that I will make the decision on, once I get a chance to give it a good run in some sloppy stuff, also with a gutful of fuel.

Speaking of fuel, it has four separate tanks, but I dont know how much fuel it holds... guessing around 480 (if the were standard sharkcat tanks)
I was told 600 by the bloke I bought it off, ... but he wasnt sure.

Any ideas?

[2rods]

G'day Pete,
Love the new boat mate with a bit of TLC you will be the envy of us all. ::)

As for the pods if you don't like the look of them what about glassing them or painting them some realy flash colour??? or just take them to sims metal and get a few cartons for them ;D ;D might help with the rebuild/refit stress.

cheers
2rods

[Darryl]

I dont reckon it would hurt to leave them on Pete , i mean there not in the way of anything and can only help the boats bouyancy in the rear. #

Apology's Pete, it was 500 in the rear tanks (standard cat) and 300 in the front. It was the spit out of your cats mouth and was yellow as well, but from memory Bruce had two colours he used(yellow and white) in the late 70's/ eighties . I believe this would be when yours was made to???

[boatboy50]

Hey Grand,

Not bad. Can't wait to see the finished product. 15K is a good buy. Was it based on the Gold Coast, I know there is a pro here who used one very similar to yours.

As for the pods, I would say the previous owner being commercial used them for extra flotation, as i'm sure his catch each day weighed it down, and the flotation to hold the engine and catch would have been good piece of mind, and also allowed him to keep even more of his catch, and stay out longer. I'd personally call Wayne Hennig at Noosa Cat, as I know he kept a diesel version for some time to himself (may still have it), which his friend used as a pro boat. He would be the best man to make the call on the pods.

My only comment, from someone who has completed some similar projects is to watch your spending. 10K-15K can add up extremely quickly, and will push the boat back to the point of breaking even. If you go too far you'll lose in the end.

My comparison is another which is on boatpoint as we speak, a 23 harris built sharkcat with flybridge, all cruising amenities and twin mid 90's 175 Evinrudes for 32k. With some bargaining it puts this boat down to well below 30K easily. There are a lot of outboard cat fans out there (including me), but not as many diesel cat fans.

Regards

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

Hi 2Rods,
... I think the Sims Metal option has its benefits [smiley=beer.gif]



G'day Darryl,
My cat is 89 model (supposedly)

If I leave the pods on, I will paint them.


G'day Boatboy,
Mate, I am keeping a close eye on costs ... they never seem to end.
I am lucky that I have access to trade prices, and can do all the work myself.

I love the outboards myself, and that personally would be my boat of choice.
BUT, I could not afford to run it. It would end up sitting on the trailer and only used on special occasions.

The main idea of this particular boat is to have a bigger, comfortable boat that we can afford to run... and in turn , use regularly.
Hopefully the diesel will do this, and we still retain the legendary Sharkcat ride and stability.

I agree on the Cat fans preferring outboards over diesel for performance ... but with fuel prices the way they are ... and not likely to ever get any cheaper, then I think there will be a lot of people looking at the diesel with great interest in the future.

From the people I have talked to, we should be able to run this boat all day trolling off the Cape for about 100 litres of fuel.

I dont have any fuel usage reports as yet, but it will be interesting to see.

Cheers

Pete

[ahoj]

Hi Pete,
How many HP and what liters what name of motor?

Ahoj

[insideout]

Grand Marlin, keep up the good work mate, looking foward with great interest on your future posts.....

[leezor]

Hi Grand Marlin,

Had one of these donks and duo prop in a 26ft Glass Marksply, would cruise all day at 22knots and burn around 30lt per hour.
You may find the cat will chew a tad more but should ride alot better.
Also had a 328 Powercat with twin 165hp Volvo AQAD40, this used around 50-60lt per hour depending on conditions.
The cat was an awesome reef boat, have many fond memories and countless nights fishing the reefs up here off Townsville.
All the best with the rebuild mate.

Lee

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks very much Lee,
That will be a good benchmark to start from.
Lee, what sort of revs did you find were the most and least fuel efficient in the Marksply?
What sort of revs did you normally cruise at to get the 22 kts?

Ahoj, it is a 200hp Turbo Volvo ... dunno the litres.



I filled and sanded the dash on the weekend, ready for paint.
I will choose a colour today and give it a test run on the dash to see what it looks like....
Stay Tuned ..... we'll be right back ;D

[leezor]

Hey Grand,

Cruise at around 32-3400, max revs where 3800 from memory.
Engine capacity is 3.59lt (220cubes), and engine weight is around 450 odd kg's

Cheers

Lee

[fishingrod]

Speaking of fuel, it has four separate tanks, but I dont know how much fuel it holds... guessing around 480 (if the were standard sharkcat tanks)
I was told 600 by the bloke I bought it off, ... but he wasnt sure.

Any ideas?



The yellow "Sea Rescue" cat is a 700 and fitted with twin 175hp 2/ carby Yammys. ( i posted a piccy in the "go for it" thread) It has twin tanks and the pervious owner said about 240L each. There is one on each side, roughly amidships.

The most we have ever put in is about 220/230L each side. I asked if they dipped the tanks (we have a dip stick) b4 they filled up ... and they said no. So i dont know how empty they really were.

Ours has 16 water tight compartments (8 per side). We had a leaking bung and the rear compartment under one engine almost totally filled will water. When stationary at the wharf you could see the hull has a slight lean. Underway the extra weight was hardly noticable re trim and handling.

[2iar]

Hey Pete,

Considering the work she requires,my suggestion for a name would be:

Cat-A-Tonic

Good look,
Mike

[ahoj]

Kiss-Cat----- Kiss- puss... lol

Ahoj

[ahoj]

How much salt particles are cought in the AIR CLEANER-FILTER? i would say it will need replacing as often as if it was in the truck... any comments?


Ahoj

could filtration be the cause of 2 stroke motors malfunction(2 st using more air then 4 strokes) at best unable to run at full speed due to air starvation?
Interesting....

[caloundra]

nice choice of boat there Pete
look forward to seeing more pic's along the way

Daniel

[Grand_Marlin]

Well, we decided to try the metallic gold....

I had the dash repainted today to a) let me fit the cabin out and b) see what the colour looks like.

What do you think?

[Grand_Marlin]

Metallic Dash

[inspired]

will be a great investment
hey dont you sleep

[seatime]

Pete,

The gold is easy on the eye, white gauges like the Evinrude's would look great on the gold. cheers Steve

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Inspired,

;D Sometimes I sleep ;D ... I am just trying to think of the last time I did ....


G'day Gelsec,

I have a slight dilemma with the gauges.

The Volvo gauges are made by VDO, but apparently the sensors for Volvo are different to the standard sensors they supply.

To replace a genuine Volvo instrument cluster is apparently about $1800 :(

I am about to start looking at my options.

I am not spending $1800 on new ones ... that is just ridiculously expensive.

First thoughts are to remove the old gauges from the Volvo instrument panel and mount them on a carbon fibre panel....

What do you think?

Cheers

Pete

[familyman]

Welcome to owning a volvo.Pete we have a volvo 850 sedan and it needed a new o2 sensor for the injection computer,only genuine would do the job $650.00 for the part alone,generic ford or holden sensor $80-100 ...... >:(
Swedish precision mmmmmm
boat looks good though,
cheers jon

[ahoj]

Those footsteps are standard?
Ahoj

[Grand_Marlin]

The drivers side is factory standard.

The passengers side has been cut in as an afterthought .... same moulding, but a pretty crap job of installation... look at the curve in the top.

Cheers

Pete

[Darryl]

Different that's for sure Pete. :-?

I will let you know if i like the colour when i drive it. ::)

Darryl.

[boatboy50]

Hey Pete,

In my experience keeping it original will enhance the resale, and in the end looks the best.

I'd go a white base, and maybe a matt black for the dash tops to stop the glare on the screen. But then again, if repainting i'd repaint the boat all white with some decent graphics and original shark cat stickers, which imho would beat even the best paintjob in metallic paints and all. But, It's easy to say it, not so easy to do it!

Regards

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Guys,

The idea is to have something different, yet still attractive (hopefully)

White always looks neat, as does the original colours.

But

I want something different....

Maybe pearlescent lime green?

Check out this photo now the plastic has been taken down off the windows, and the sun is on the paint ... the colour is more life like in this pic.
If you look closely on the right hand side of the dash, you can see the original colour where mark couldnt get with the gun ... this gives you a direct comparison of the old and new colour.
The new colour is about 3 shades darker than the original yellow, and obviously is metallic as well. #It is a bright gold, called midas gold.... in the original pics it looked greenish due to the afternoon sun filtering through the overspray on the plastic sheeting on the windows.

If anyone wants to check it out in person, I will be on the boat again tomorrow ... I would like some other opinions.

I also value your comments, and criticism if you think it is warranted.

The family likes the colour, but they are the only ones to see it as yet.

The boat is at Sandgate ... call me 0419 263 264

Cheers

Pete

[Fishin_Dan]

Mate - I quite like that colour! It will certainly be different to every other boat out there...

You need to get a bad "Dutch" accent like Goldmember from Austin Powers now! ;)

[2iar]

Hey Pete,

Well you did ask for opinions, otherwise I'd have kept my mouth firmly shut :-X

The gold just doesn't do it for me mate. (In my opinion of course) it's a tad tacky, and wouldn't look out of place on a 70's Star Trek set. Perhaps it looks better in the flesh, but if you're after something different rather than original or standard, I'm sure there must be a heap of options with a bit more class - something less gaudily Las Vegas.

Sorry :(

Of course, it's your call mate. From what I've seen of your work, they seem to turn out alright in the end. I hope this doesn't offend you (or jeopardise my chances of a spin on the finished article) ;)

Good luck,
Mike

[matthill80]

i recun it will look sweet
and as for the name of the big girl i think that 'goldmember' is surely a stayer


cheers matt

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Mike,

Mate, I will be around at your house at 4am with the angle grinder to take my gelcoat back out of your boat after those comments #;D ;D ;D

Nah, just jokes, I appreciate the honesty

Trust Me Mike #:o :-/

And yes, I think "Gold Member" is leading the race for the name.

Two other thoughts:

"Thats Gold"

or

"Cat with a gold tooth"

or maybe back to my original thought .... "What the ?"

Anyone coming over tomorrow?

Cheers

Pete

[masterdusky]

Mate what a great project.. the colour choice will look awesome mate.. just my.2c though :D
keep us posted and keep the pics coming ;)

[2iar]

G'day Mike,

Mate, I will be around at your house at 4am with the angle grinder to take my gelcoat back out of your boat after those comments ;D ;D ;D



[Thinks: "It could have been worse, he could've threatened to paint my boat the same colour..."]

Gulp. :o

What was I thinking? I meant to say how stylish, elegant and urbane it will look. No, honestly, I did. ;)

Have you considered tartan? ;D

Good luck,
Mike

[Grand_Marlin]

Mike, you absolute idiot ;D ;D ;D I like that comment ;D


Yes, I have considered Tartan, but my missus wont let me in the Valley at night :o :o

(get it?)

Cheers

Pete

[2iar]

Mike, you absolute idiot ;D ;D ;D I like that comment ;D


Yes, I have considered Tartan, but my missus wont let me in the Valley at night :o :o

(get it?)


I do, but not in the Valley ;D ;D

No worries. I hear tartan paint's difficult to mix in any case. ;)

Good luck,
Mike

[Darryl]

"Have you considered tartan?"

My Mrs has nearly finished those tartan curtains you ordered last week Pete, You paying cash or cheque mate? ;D ;D

I would put the gauges in it and suss the dash out with a bit if colour in it before i made a decision Pete.It's like painting a car in my books, your not going to get a feel for it until you start putting the bumpers back on it and taking the tape of the chrome so too speak.(IMO)

This cat has to look the goods as she is an advert for the excellent work you do.Hence why it needs to be an out there boat. I dont mind the Trekky colours mate ,and i understand what you are doing.

I think it looks ok, just wanted to clarify that as i dont want to upset you either and ruin my chances of a ride. ;D ;D


Darryl.

[Fishin_Dan]

GM - I might be interested to come say gday and have a look... Can you email me the address (fishin_dan@ausfish.com.au)

I'll see what I can do. Probably more towards the arvo than the morning.

Cheers,
Dan

[Blackened]

G'day Pete
Mate, go the gold. Looks ace. It's close enough that if there's any damage to the paint it'll blend in pretty well. Catcha soon
Dave

[Fishin_Dan]

Good the meet you & the family today Pete! Thanks for the look at the boat!

This boat certainly will be a fishing platform and a half when it's done!!! The gold on the dash certainly does look pretty good. And with the plans he's got for the instrument panel, it will come up tops...

As I said to you though Pete, I don't know if the gold (after seeing it) will suit the WHOLE boat...

Thanks heaps for the info you gave me too. Certainly answered a few things I was unsure of.

Seeya again soon, and hope I get put on the list for deckie roster once you've got her going!



Cheers,
Dan

[seatime]

G'day Pete


That's a dilemma with the gauges allright. The genuine Volvo parts price is scary. Keep looking for the after market option.

I love goooold, you must've fallen victim to an unfortunate smelting accident also.

Getting off the topic, we had a 225 Optimax with a cowling full of saltwater today, on approach to the Sth Passage bar. The "brass" connector for the return cooling hose had corroded through. This brass fitting was screwed into the top of the leg inside the cowl, screwed into cast alloy! Bolting two annodes to the leg and bracket doesn't make freshwater motors saltwater motors.
cheers, Steve.

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day All,

It looks like most like the colour, some dont.... I will keep experimenting.

I am not sure about the colour over the whole boat, but I am unsure of how to break it up .....

Good to catch up Dan, and happy to share some advice.

Gelsec, I will keep looking for gauges, I will talk to the VDO rep this week.

Mike, I thought I might have got another phonecall after your outing on the weekend, but Dan tells me you kept it in the deeper stuff this time ;D
I can however make you a good line guard for the motor ;)

Darryl, the curtains are appreciated, but why are you changing the currency?? Contraband was always your preferred choice. ps That south american Iguana you gave me is looking ill.....

Cheers

Pete

[insideout]

[quote author=Grand_Marlin link=1145436662/75#76 date=1146397081]G'day Mike,

Mate, I will be around at your house at 4am with the angle grinder to take my gelcoat back out of your boat after those comments #;D ;D ;D

Nah, just jokes, I appreciate the honesty

Trust Me Mike #:o :-/

And yes, I think "Gold Member" is leading the race for the name.

Two other thoughts:

"Thats Gold"

or

"Cat with a gold tooth"

or maybe back to my original thought .... "What the ?"

Anyone coming over tomorrow?

Cheers

Pete



hows about XXXX (gold)?

[Darryl]

It's been a good month for contraband so thought i would go for the cash instead. ;)

Iguana is ill? maybe you have had him to close to the FGI bucket my friend,No refunds on iguana's sorry Pete. Have you made room for your lama? Should arrive this week. I do a six month warranty on those.;D ;D

Darryl.

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Insideout,

xxxx Gold is quite likely ... but I would need sponsorship on an ongoing basis ;D


G'day Darryl, ;D ;D

I knew that Iguana would cause trouble....

Looking forward to the Llama though :-*

Cheers

Pete

[2iar]

I can however make you a good line guard for the motor ;)


:'( :'( :'( :'(

One of these days, mate, one of these days. Hopefully next weekend.

Good luck,
Mike

[cooky]

Blue and Gold always looks good.

My brother in law recently cleaned up old volva gauges and installed on a custom made black alloy plate - so I think the carbon fibre look is a great idea. My father and friends get old motorcycle gauges looking almost brand new with a bit of work - so if you can keep the originals - you'll save heaps.

Otherwise you could go the patriotic Green and Gold - have some sort of Australian theme. It's an Australian icon in the boating fraternity (Sharkcat).

Gold hull, Green accent with Australian flag airbrushed to the rear quarter. Just some thoughts.

If you've got some some larger sized photos of the boat (resolution) I might have some time to do some photoshop work with options for you (purely for fun).

[Blackened]

G'day
Cooky, that sounds line a damn good idea.

Maybe some old WW2 style graphics like those of the lancaster bomber of some spunky lady in a bikini with the aussie flag wrapped around her and the name inscribed in that?

Dave

[Grand_Marlin]

Fair Dinkum ... I've created a monster .....

Cooky, PM me your email address again - I will send you some pics

Cheers

Pete

[ahoj]

Blue and Gold is far too Monarchist..... You'll have pasers- by saluting your CAT

;D ;D ;D

Ahoj

[Figjamm]

Hi Pete,

She's looking good as gold #:)

Saw your Yatla rebuild and I'm sure this one will look just as good when you've finished her.

Can't believe you do this for a living, then play on your own in your spare time! Man, you need to get a life.... go fishing or something for a change ;)

--
Bev

[Grand_Marlin]

Hi Bev,

Thanks for the comments :)

I would go fishing more often except for:

a) I dont have a boat

b) I cant catch fish (only pelagics ... I am good on them, but if i wanted a feed of Schnappers .... not a hope in hell)

One day .... one day....

Cheers

Pete

[lippa]

g'day pete, i think the gold will be a bit much to paint the whole boat, be a great accent colour though!!. are you using clear over base or a mono coat polyurethane 2 k? my offer stil stands!!

cheers

lippa

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Lippa,

Mate pm me your ph number, I would like to catch up and have a chat.

It is Dupont Imron 6000 matallic base, with polyurethane clear.

The monocoat polyurethane in metallic wouldnt give the same depth to the paint profile, or accent to the metallic I thought....

Cheers

Pete

[catchy_fishy]

Monarch stuff aside blue and gold does really work well.

But change the primary and accent colours around - use a metallic dark blue, with white and gold trim outside, obviously chrome / stainless as applicable, and then inside reverse the colour scheme so you keep the gold panel, but use white and dark blue trim.

This will make the boat look ultra classy.

Green would also work, but it would need to be a dark forest green in metallic. IMHO

I have embedded an attachment of a logo done in gold on black for our luxury train service to give an indication of how it could look.

Mike

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks Mike ... I just dont know ...

LIPPAAAAAAAA - HHHEEEELLLLLLLPPPPP


Here are a couple of pics of the trailer mods - before shot - it only had the centre bar part way down the trailer.

It now runs full length, to make it a viable drive on trailer .... only thing that worries me is the fact that a sponson could go up the centre of the trailer if I am not careful.
I will have a look at it, but there isnt a lot I can do, as the Cat has a centre pod to direct flow around the leg. This would hit any cross bar at the end of the trailer....

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

New Bars on Trailer

[Grand_Marlin]

Centre Pod

[saurian]

Pete , got cat & trailer only has 50 mm rises each side of sponson to help
guide her on.
Basically trailer flat with teflon skids that are sikaflexed to flat and to rises on inside edge of tunnel.
Yeh i avoid speedhumps at speed , but huge frame in middle is steerwith nuts poo.
I have timber walkway full length of trailer , too easy.....

[saurian]

Pete , had another look at your trailer pics, where your teflon strips end i have 50 mm strip on inside of each sponson that is angled at about 40 degrees, this extra bit stops sponson drifting across trailer when you drive her on.
My missus walks down 2 planks to start the boat on the trailer , once she is 1m on i yell out "getout of the way"( i gun it) she avoids 2 hulls and a winch post to enable me to come to within 20 mm of winch post .
Huge.... winch on and we are off .
The easiest boat retrieve and launch i have ever had...

[seatime]

#Ok Pete, I'm no expert on cat trailers, actually have to build one for an 18' soon. But I reckon your centre bar or "fence" as I call it could be extended back as far as legally possible. This would be easier with OBs, but with the fence being the first part of the trailer the boat makes contact with, it should line up straight. If you know what I mean.

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Saurian,
I understand what you mean, but not what I need ... keep in mind I have 3 tonne of boat here ... and if it is blowing 30kts while trying to put it on the trailer, then I need it to be self sufficient with loading / centering.

G'day Gelsec,

I did extend it right back.
The fence sticks out about 400mm past the back of the boat when it is on the trailer.
It works well and centres perfectly.
First use of the trailer was on easter monday when it was blowing 25kts... it worked perfectly.

The thing I have to watch is that the fence goes up the centre of the pontoons. Outboard powered cats dont have that centre pod to deal with, and therefore they can have a closed loop on the rear protruding end of the fence.

I cant, both sides of the fence have to be separate ... I cant put a closed loop at the end of them, due to the fact that the centre pod would hit it when it came up the trailer.

I just have to watch that the sponson of the cat doesnt get in between the fences ... otherwise I am gonna wreck things :-/

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

See Wot I Meen??

[Grand_Marlin]

but huge frame in middle is steerwith nuts poo.



Please explain (in english) :-/ ;D

[seatime]

Yeh I'm with u, could u raise the height of the fence halfway up the trailer leaving a dip towards the back for the centre pod.
When the trailer is half submerged and ur driving on only the higher front part of the fence will contact the hull until all the boat comes on, are u with me. Steve.

[Grand_Marlin]

Yep Steve, with you totally.

I thought of that as well, and with a bit of mucking round I could make it work.

Only problem is, I can then have no extension out the back of the boat, due to the leg...

Toss up of what is best.

I will give the trailer a few runs as it is now, if it turns out to be a problem I will alter it again

Thanks

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

I have found the colour on another boat....

[blaze]

Hi Pete
When doing heritage type signs we often combine
heritage green, burgundy and the gold you are trialing and they seems to go well in most cases
cheers
blaze

[Blackened]

G'day Blaze.
Heritage colours sound good. That gold on the stabi is nice. Being heritage will be spot on and come to think about it... may give a few clues as to petes age;)
Dave

[blaze]

Hi Blackened
Any one that owns a boat (exspecially rebuilds) ages well beyond their years
cheers
blaze

[Grand_Marlin]

How true is that .... I am aged well beyond my years.

A lot of it has to do with running around replacing damaged goods on boats (horns) created by others (blackened) ;D ;D ;D

Blaze, I forgot how much fun it is laying upside down grinding fibreglass, with very little ventillation.... :( :( :'( :'(

The minister for making important decisons put her foot down today and said "DEFINITELY GOLD"

So, me being the type of person to stand up and have my say at any given opportunity, and will not be walked on by others, especially with such an important decision to be made .... stood my ground, got on my soapbox and said "ok, dear"



So, GOLD it will definitely be ... now all we have to do is work out how to break it a little......

Not much progress today ... getting the overhead console ready for a "glass up" ... and started on grinding out in the cabin below the foredeck. The foredeck is softish due to stressing in the glass from regular traffic from by heavy peeple

Nothing major, just adding a couple more layers of glass to stiffen it back up.

Cheers

Pete

[Blackened]

G'day
Haha yeh.... definatly aware of that blaze;). Those damn horns pete yeah... how' the come up? Anymore ideas on how to break the gold up? Howd the dash come along with the carbon fibre?
Dave

[Grand_Marlin]

The carbon fibre panels are ready. I went to pick them up on saturday, but due to work holdups, when I got there they were shut ... so I will pick them up tomorrow.

[Angla]

Pete, How would it go if there was a post installed at the back end of the trailer, that rose up the outer sides of the boat. I have seen them with a roller on too. make them tall enough to see while coming on to the trailer. With a strong wind you could then use them to rest the nose of the boat on while you bring the back around to line it up.

Angla

I have tried to do a drawing.

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks very much Angla,

That too would solve the problem.

Cheers

Pete

[saurian]

Pete, BULLSHIT , i have 2.5 ton of cat no problem 25 kn.

[saurian]

Sorry last post is english for" steer with nuts poo."
Pete thought mod12345679 would get upset, sorry to get confusing.
I know you have welded new tunnel guide on , but i am dealing with same problem, guiding large 2 hulled thing onto trailer with minimal help.
Look it works , not my idea , someone is brighter than lots of us.
No need for huge tunnel guide except to scrape bit that troy hates the most.... Can not help it , bought it that way.

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Saurian,

Witty ... very witty...

Do you have a pic of your trailer, maybe it is different to what I am thinking?
The ones I have seen that fit your description only have a small (say 3") return on the 45 degree angle.

Also, I just spent $500 on steel to modify it, so I have to work with what I have got.

It works fine, and I dont have a problem with its function ... just that it is possible to get a sponson up the middle of the fence if I dont watch what I am doing.

Cheers

Pete

[lippa]

sent you a pm pete

cheers

lippa

[Darryl]

Page 3 , :o whats going on Pete?

[Grand_Marlin]

Update tomorrow ... been too busy getting things ready for the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show.

Sylvania Marine (Caribbean Dealers from Sydney) have a 35ft Caribbean called "Blank Cheque" on display. We did the entire fitout of the boat.

If you are at the show, take a look.

[saurian]

Pete, 3 inch return is about it. I have never had a problem with over shooting approach onto trailer even in windy conditions, if the arse end is off to one side it gets pulled straight as i progress onto trailer.
I think high centres on cat trailers are useful if you launch retreive in swelly conditions, as the boat rises and falls it does not get lifted off and
onto sharp galvanized metal bits.
Yes $ 500 already well spent , next time .Sounds like middle engine sponson needs its own little guide system to hold it on track .
I have never seen one in practice so cannot help there.
Maybe a few extra slides in the middle of the trailer where the 3 rd sponson sits will give it some support.

[Grand_Marlin]

Gee... I couldnt even find my own post !! it was down to page 8 :-[

The carbon fibre panels are made and installed, along with the old gauges.

I had to take a bit of time to decide exactly what to do ... the original Volvo dash panel was stuffed, so I re mounted everything in the carbon fibre panel.
This created its own dramas, as wires etc all had to be extended, and the alarm panel was actually part of the old dash ... not just inserted like a gauge is. So I had to cut, shut, modify, swear a bit, think lots more, araldite, stainless allthread and voila ! ... new dash.

I am waiting on a new gauge bezel for the missing gauge. As you can see from the picture of the old dash, it was broken and just sikaflexed in.

I would have loved to replaced all the gauges, but at $1800 it was money I wasnt prepared to spend. They are VDO gauges, but as stated before, the yare specifically tuned to the volvo A41. Putting in an after market gauge will apparently give an innaccurate reading according to my mechanic who knows these things inside out.

I spoke to VDO and they couldnt give me a straight answer ... so, old gauges it is.

They still need a bit more polishing ... and I should have cleaned the dash before the pics were taken ... but anyway, here it is.

I have also repainted the inside window surrounds.

And I have been working on re-wiring. Pretty boring stuff, but absolutely necessary.

I am now at a stage where I can pretty much start re lining the cabin.

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

New helm Pic

[Grand_Marlin]

New Dash Pic

[Darryl]

Sweet , nice simple plan that isn't over the top. Looks good Pete. Goes good with the gold. Good onya.


Darryl.

[youngfisho]

thought id stumbled across a scene from star trek for a minute there.

grand marlin you sure have gone where no man has boldly gone before, that helm looks pretty clean and simple but damn it looks good too. its amazing the amount of talent within the ausfish pool. how about you all come around and fix my boat and ill sit with stubby in hand and watch the procession.


andrew

[bidkev]

Nice to see you back Pete.....I was waiting on another update. She's looking neat. Now can Ausfish please have more of your attention and bugger anyone else ;) ;D

kev

What some people mistake for the high cost of living, is really the cost of living high.

[Fishin_Dan]

Pete - Damn! It's looking great!!! That gold really did go well. Will have to come and see it again soon... Might have to bring a few drinkies along and pick your brain a bit more....

[Az]

nice work pete, helm looks great this cat is going to be a ripper!!

where's the deckies list?? you can put me down ;)

[Mr__Bean]

G.M.

I am contemplating a redesign of my dash to incorporate a larger GPS/sounder combo unit, looking at your carbon fibre panel this may also be a solution for me rather than welding up the holes in an aluminium helm.

I could do the weld job but it would mean stripping out a lot of other wiring etc and a repaint, both of which I would prefer not to do.

Can I ask.... roughly what cost is involved and how strong it is? As I may end up flush mounting a 12 inch screen just behind the wheel the dash panel needs to be strong enough to stand up to the pressure that the steering wheel gets sometimes in a bad sea.

Please Message if you prefer.

- Darren

[snappa]

mr bean

i have got the avatar for ya ..... :P

[Mr__Bean]

Thanks for that, I have been looking for somewhere to keep my live bait.

- Darren

[snappa]

can someone tell me where my work boats ended up ..... :(

[Grand_Marlin]

Mr Bean,

My panels are acryllic so they wouldnt be strong enough.

The panels can be made from aluminium with the same finish, they would be strong enough.

Then it just depends on how you attach them

Cheers

Pete

[steveg1100]

Grand Marlin

Where do you buy the carbon fibre that you used on your dash from??

Steve G

[Lone_Wolf]

Hi Pete,

How is the boat coming along?

LW

[Hot_Snappa]

Guys,

This is an absolutely rivetting post! I don't know any of you, but its like reading a great book - you can't wait for the next page or chapter.
Pete, you ought to be congratulated for not only doing a fantastic job but also for sharing it with all of us on Ausfish! The Cat really looks the goods.
I can't wait for the next installment.
Keep up the good work Pete. ;)
Cheers

Dave

[maxwell9]

Thanks for the interesting read. Do you think you will be finished before Play Pen?

[lippa]

got your pm pete, noworries

cheers

lippa

[ahoj]

Hi Pete

Starting a new one---- looks naked --name" VODNIK " will finish in couple weeeks-- then i will give you race .. ;D

[Dr_Dan]

Any further updates on the rebuild???

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day All,

Sorry for the frustrating wait ... still snowed under with work.

Ok ... well, not a lot has changed...

Finished putting fuel gauges & compass in dash,

Finished re-wiring old gauges

Ground out cabin roof ready for a couple of layers of glass to stiffen foredeck

Brother came down for a visit from Cairns, so I got him to fix all my welds on the trailer :-[

Booked in to have the leg done in 2 weeks ... I am also pulling the motor out for a repaint at the same time.

I drained the fuel tanks through the filler neck. I was pretty confident I had all the water etc out of them. I decided to cut fuel senders into the tanks, and when I cut the hole I could see more water / fuel in the bottom of the tanks.

As I now had better access, I pumped them out again ... I got an extra 40 litres out of one tank and 25 litres out of the other .....

Anyway, here are a couple more pics.

Thanks again for your support / interest

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Wiring Pic

[Grand_Marlin]

Cabin Pic.

[Grand_Marlin]

Dash Pic...

[Grand_Marlin]

Fuel Sender.

This was interesting ... they are stainless steel tanks, mounted in with fibreglass.
I had to cut away the glass first, then cut into the stainless tank, then drill & tap the holes to mount the sender unit ... all through a 100mm inspection hole !

[youngfisho]

pete,

that spare hole!, is that for your stubbie? :D

cant wait to see it completed, that dash is looking pretty trick.

maybe some pillar mounted guages and a pro comp tacho with shift light should see you in with the fashionable crowd. maybe one of those pop off valve thingies for the turbo too!!!!!! :o :o :o

how about some fully sik fluffy dice too.

on a more serious note, what paint will you use for the motor? have you thought about HPC (heat proof coating) which will help keep the motor cool and give better performance.


andrew

[Blackened]

G'day
Haha blow off valve and pete with black sunnies on and gold boat. That'd look the goods;) I think he may have a spare set of fluffy dice somewhere in the back of the ute hey pete? Maybe you can hang them from the rocket launchers?
Dave

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Again,

Took the boat from Sandgate to Scarborough today to the Mechanic.

The leg work will be done this week.

We are also pulling the motor out so as I can check all electricals, sump, hydraulic steering etc ... and so as I can re flowcoat the engine bay.

The boat used 20 litres of diesel to do the trip (I am estimating about 12 miles) travelling at 3000 rpm (estimate 20kts) and took 35 minutes to do the trip

This gives a fuel usage of around 35 litres per hour, which is in line with comments made by others earlier in the post.

Also, we didnt have any trim, so the cat was running well and truly nose down which wouldnt have helped the economy ... we will know more after the trip home when the leg / trim is all fixed.

I will get some pics of the motor etc. during the week

Cheers

Pete

[dnej]

Hey Pete,
I will come over the bar with you.I can see how how you can jump
Regards David

[23-sharkcat]

Grand Marlin,

Took my cat out over night to tangalooma and in the morning shot up to Cape Moreton. Really shi##y weather about a 2m swell and about 1m of chop on top of that. worked out that we used about 70 litres for the round trip back to Schultz canal. All up about 100klm's or so. Looks like the new props did the trick....

Darren

[Mr__Bean]

Saw a funny looking guy standing in it today at the Scarborough Boat Harbour. ;D ;D ;D ;D

I am sure he was thinking things out, but he didn't look very productive when we went past.

Sure does make that ute look small...

- Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Darren,

You actually saw a very worried man standing in it today.

Things aren't quite going to plan.

An estimated $3000 repair bill is now around $10000 :'( :'( :'(

I am now just looking at what options we have.

The motor is mechanically fine, but the peripherals such as turbo housing, exhaust riser, trim and tilt are all looking very sad.

The leg is the major problem - it can be fixed, but for what it will cost v's what it is worth v's the current overall physical condition of it, I dont know whether it is worth working on that particular leg, or trying to source another one, preferably later model.

It might end up with twin outboards on it yet !

Any thoughts / help appreciated.

The motor is a Volvo AD41A, with a 290 leg.

Cheers

Pete

ps - you should have called in and said G'day

[Spaniard_King]

An estimated $3000 repair bill is now around $10000 #:'( :'( :'(





geez Pete, not a good scenario that one. what are they talking of replacing, sounds a little more than bearings and seals :'(.

Are they talking the housing, surely the shafts dont cost that much, have you looked OS for parts could be worth a try

cheers

Garry

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Gary,

It starts with the lower gearbox pinion set - stuffed - $2640

Gearbox needs re shimming - apparantly 12 hrs labour, as the wear factor is outside the factory given shim guide / tolerances ... so there is another $1000 in labour.

Add $600 for bearings and $450 for seals and the labour to do the rest...

Trim and tilt rams & motor look very doubtful ... but it is yet to be confirmed "dead" ... if it is, add $3000 for that.

Exhaust riser $1500, but I have an idea to fix that.

Turbo, due to housing being highly corroded on the back $3000

add a few more bearings where needed, props are not brilliant either ... and whammo ... 10+ grand just like that.

I knew there could always be problems with an older leg, but didnt expect to find this amount of repairs.

The big thing I have to decide is what to do ... which way to go ... and all without over capitalising....

Cheers

Pete :o :-/

[23-sharkcat]

Pete,
Have you thought about putting a fuel injected V8 in there with a bravo leg? These cats once they get up on the plane take no effort to push through the water.

Look at my set up with a combined size of the 2 engines being 460cui or 7.4 litres to do over 100klms of distance and only use 70 litres in some pretty average conditions, you will not get much better than that. I would find it hard to beleive even some of the big 4-stroke outboards would get a lot better than this. The last trip worked out to be lucky if it was using on average 30ltr's per hour combined.

You will get a lot of go for you dollar with a big V8. There was a guy down the gold coast selling 2 big block chevs with all the running gear for $10000. And I think they where reconed as well....

Darren

[ahoj]

seen few legs on e-bay I am sure you could utilise some could be lucky to pick just the one you need.. I am sorry you are on a cross road--- such enthusiasm and excitement---- don't give up--- ecconomise do it up to be safe and look good ----and forget using 24 carat gold paint ..

Best of luck

Ahoj

[Blackened]

G'day
Ooh not good, sorry to hear of the problems pete. How much to stick a lighter turbo diesel in? More HP wont go astray and with a new leg and all...... Is it a possibility? Mercruiser, Yanmar... or is it just too damn expensive?
Dave

[Camo]

Pete I know it's a bit early to consider outboards, but I remember seeing this a few weeks ago and it may be of interest:-


Try again , OK Father in law sold the haines formula and doesn`t need his 2 Johnson 225 oceanrunners. they are 1997 models extra long leg and one is counter rotating. These outboards were COMPLETELY overhauled in 2004 at a cost of nearlly $14000 (i have receipts) and haven`t been in the water since . They came off the coastguard 28ft powercat and the hour meters show 520hrs and i`m not sure these are the original motors for the hull , These motors are perfect and can be started easily as they are on a stand ,and are started regularly to keep the oil through them , started ,not idled and not revved ,just up off idle for a few minutes . HIS LOSS YOUR GAIN $12000 steals them . they have cables controls and gauges etc. cheers Strongy
Back to top johnson_225_2x.jpg « Last Edit: 06.07.06 at 22:00:57 by strongy »


He's dropped the price to $10000, might be worth a thought if all else fails.

Camo

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Guys,

Thanks for your concern.

Nope - not going petrol.

New Diesel & Leg approx $35,000, so not an option.

Ahoj,
Myself and my work through Valet Boat Services is always A1 - no compromise ever.

I havent solved the problem as yet, but at the end of the day the Cat will be exactly as I want it and expect it.

Problems like this $hit me to tears, but I always find a way around them ...

Stay tuned ....

Cheers

Pete

[ttone]

Hi ya Pete, keep going mate, I believe that there isn't a problem YET that can't be solved. Looking forward to your solution.
regards Rod

[blaze]

easy to say Pete
spend the 10g
it was the setup you wanted but with a few hiccups, do what you can yourself but without compremise. The 10g may shrink a bit.
best of luck
cheers
blaze

[23-sharkcat]

Pete
Just remember that if you do put another combination of motor /leg in there you will need to get the leg that has the 3" or 4" extension on it. I do not think it will be an easy thing to come across.

The big problem with twin outboards on the cats is the salt air the engines breath in because of the spray the engines put off. I have been told never to buy second hand engines off a cat.

Pete why would you not go petrol. Is it the saftey side of it or the fuel efficency. I dont think if you would really see that much difference in the fuel side of things. If it cost you an extra $30 in fuel every trip you went out on that would be offset by the mataince costs of running a diesel....

Pete have you thought about looking to get an engine out of the states?

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks TTone, Thanks Blaze.

G'day 23-sharkcat,

Safety and economy and performance will stop me from putting a single petrol in the Cat... I know where you are coming from and I know the performance of your boat is excellent ... but a single petrol is not for me.

The diesel can run without the extension ... it was apparantly fitted more for commercial boats carrying a lot of weight up forward.

Going to another brand really isnt the way to go.

Volvo have always been fitted to the cats and I see no need to change that.

Do you have any reliable contacts for Volvo in the States?
So far I have had no joy.

Cheers

Pete

[23-sharkcat]

It's funny you say that about the commercial boats with weight up front. I was told this by a pro that runs his cat out from redcliffe somewhere. Are you goung to have that much weight up front. Does your leg have the extension on it?

When I had that first Sharkcat for sale that you looked at I was weighing up my options for engines and there is a guy that was out cleveland way that had a few reco engines and legs for around the $15000 mark. He would probably do a trade...

[23-sharkcat]

you should also give Styer Marine a call as they do a lot of repowers. I know I went around and had a look at there diesel set up on a 230hp. It looked pretty sweet but for $32,000 it would want to.

[boatboy50]

Hey Pete,

Check out this link for some Volvo's for sale in sydney

http://www.graysonline.com.au/sale.asp?SALE_ID=50225

Petrol's with legs but may help you.

Regards

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Boatboy,

Thank you, I will keep an eye on that.

23-sharkcat, thanks for that.

I do have the extension, but apparently my cat will run ok without it.

My preference is to have it in there due to the turbulence created in the tunnel.

I wont have huge weights up the front, but I do have the full cabin which will add more weight up front.

I will track down Styers and see what they have.

Thanks again

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Boatboy,

:-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-*

Thanks for giving me the link to those legs.

I bought them at auction (sight unseen) and they are on their way from Sydney this Friday.

If they are in reasonable conditoin, you may have saved my ar$e.

Picked up both legs for $1650 total, and getting them delivered for $250 ... gives a total of $1900

Compared to a $10,000 repair bill on my own leg ... it is looking good.

I just hope sooooo much that they are in good conditoin.

Time will tell.

Thanks to everyone for their help, the info by pm's and email as well... It wouldnt have happened without ya's. [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Ok, well the legs turned up, and all in good condition.

BUT

There is a twist....

I found a late model 200hp Volvo Diesel - 1999 model with 2003 model leg ... all in schmick condition, so I bought that too.... ::)

I looked at all options ...

Twin 4 strokes on pods would set me back $35 grand

Twin 2 strokes on pods would set me back $20 grand and give me a $500 fuel bill every trip.

At $15 grandThe new Volvo is the most economical option all round ... and I can sell the other motor and legs and end up comong out of it cheaper than rebuilding the old leg :)
So, we are now back on track - finally.

Cheers

Pete

[outsiderskip]

hi pete
was good to catch up with u today
what was the new motor like u picked up today like
u might be on the water sooner than u think now

cheers pete

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Pete,

I think I can start taking names for a deckies list ;D

Getting close now.

Cheers

Pete

[Blackened]

G'day
Pete... Deckies list hey???

PICK ME!!!!!

Do we need to wear sparkly gold suits to match the goldmember theme???

Dave

[Grand_Marlin]

Yes, sparkly will be the theme, so you will be quite ok dresed as normal ;D

[boatboy50]

Hey GM,

Just checked in for my dose.

I take it I've earnt a spot as deckie??? ;)

Hope to see her running soon, sounds like you did pretty well money wise on the petrols anyway, so you can't really lose.

Regards

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Darren,

The petrol legs were perfect, and will be worth a bit more than I paid for them (hopefully)

Yes you have earned a deckies spot ... you may even get to sit on the captains knee ;D

Cheers

Pete

[boatboy50]

Lol

I'll keep an eye on the post!

Darren

[Fishin_Dan]

Yes you have earned a deckies spot ... you may even get to sit on the captains knee #;D

Be careful Darren.... He gets his i's and his e's mixed up!!! :o


HA HA HA HA!!! ;D


Good to hear its nearly done Pete!

Dan

P.S - I know a good deckie ;)

[Az]

Yes you have earned a deckies spot ... you may even get to sit on the captains knee #;D

P.S - I know a good deckie ;)



Thanks for the kind words Dan ;D

[Fishin_Dan]

::)

[Peter_Mitchell]

Hi Pete,

I'm yet to get that Stabicraft tender. Might have to wait for a while due to work commitments.....

;)

Cheers, Pete.

[jimbo59]

Hey darren your paying GM a bit of a compliment by saying y'll keep a eye on his POST a'rnt ya.No wonder the call him tripod :o

[dnej]

Hey Pete,
I recon the first non deckie spot,holiday type bloke should be me,seeing as how we wouldnt be able to cross the bar,without reference to my expertise.
Good to hear the project is progressing well.
David

[Grand_Marlin]

Ahhh ... looks like no shortage of deckies :)

You are all most welcome when the time comes.

Pete, a 6m Stabicraft would look very neat swinging off davits on the back of the cat ;D

Anyway....

Have been busy on the weekend changing all the gauges, rewiring (again) and getting the motor well ready for the new donk.

Here are a couple of pics of the latest changes.

Engine well as I took the old motor out ... there is literally an inch of oil, dirt, crap and various items that had been lost forever .... spare bilge pump, 2 sidchrome spanners, multiple hose clamps and nuts / bolts.

[Grand_Marlin]

And after a scrub up, some replacement rotted plywood surrounds, some fibreglassing and a re-flowcoat job.

[Grand_Marlin]

I bought her home as the motor will be fitted just down the road....

I dont think 23 Shark Cats were designed for urban living ;D

[Blackened]

G'day
Hey pete.... those sidchrome spanners must be a bonus!!! throw them on ebay as "vintage sharkcat branded limited edition sidchrome spanners???" May even pay for your rebuild? ;D

Now I know what you were talking about with the height of the house.......time to put a second story on or a shed with a really high roof?

Nice job on the engine bay aswell..... I still think the tunnel of the cat will look good with some neon lights...
Dave

[Peter_Mitchell]

Hi Pete,

I do remember looking up at your boat and thinking that it was bigger than a house, and there you go... !

The Stabi would go well as a tender I'm sure!

cheers, Pete.

[23-sharkcat]

Maybe you need a bigger house.........

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h258/rxv3000/DSC00600.jpg


you didn't tow it with your 4X4 did you.

[Grand_Marlin]

you didn't tow it with your 4X4 did you.


;D :D ;) ::) :-X

.......maybe 8-)

[23-sharkcat]

I dont like towing it with my 5.5 ton Hino Truck

[ahoj]

Marlin---- on your searches have you come across a leg( small size) for about 25 hp motor?
Or anyone has one or know of one?

Taaa Ahoj

[Grand_Marlin]

Cant say I have Ahoj

Sharkcat 23 ... My cat is certainly daunting behind the Triton ... top speed of 30k's when towing with permit.

It wouldnt be hard to get the "tail to wag the dog" in this case if you werent super careful.

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

Fair Dinkum ... 2 months since last post :-[

Way behind estimated finish time, but I guess thats life when you are busy at work.

Ok ... whats new?

The new motor is in, just have to adjust the mounting points, and reconfigure the hydraulic steering, as this new leg is slightly different to the old one.

I sold the old motor and the legs I bought from Sydney.

This has really worked out well.
Remember I said it was going to cost $10 grand + to rebuild the old leg...

Well in the overall scheme of things, it has only cost me $7 grand to change over to the new motor and leg :)

I have repainted the sink / cupboards in the cabin, and I have fitted the new carbon fibre doors.

I have most of the cabin lining in the main part of the cabin.

I have bought the LED cabin lights, LED nav lights, 27Mhz & VHF radios and aerials.

The boat has been totally stripped down and the bow rails etc all removed.

I have today started sanding back ready for paint.

There is probably 2 - 3 days work left sanding and filling.

I will have more pics tomorrow, I just have to resize them.

Cheers

Pete

[seatime]

G'day Pete

a paint question if I may, the bro-in-law's 560 Sportsman has been 2 pac polyurethaned yonks ago and is looking real sad. it's SAR yellow top and bottom like yours.

is much prep needed, or just a rough-up to allow another poly 2 pac to bond?
hoping not to have to take it all back to original gelcoat.

thanks
Steve.

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Steve,

A rough up and repaint should be all that is necessary.

The old 2 pac acts as a good primer for the new 2 pac to stick to.

Just run it by Lippa, he will know more than me ;)

Cheers

Pete

[Fishin_Dan]

Geez havent you finished yet Pete??? ;D :P :-X

Will definately have to get you over for those beers soon. I got the mask, but have a few questions about what my options are for a few things...

[Grand_Marlin]

You keep threatening me with beer Dan, but it hasn't happened yet ;D

[lippa]

old troy is the expert now ;D ;D
but i would do the same as pete sugested

cheers

lippa

[troy]

Lippa,
If i tried painting Gelsec's boat i would burn your mobile phone out in no time. ;D ;D ;D
Troy

[lippa]

;D ;D ;D

[brush]

G'day, GM.... Thoughly enjoying your thread on the CAT.
What a project, keep the tribe informed.
Safe Boating
cheers brush.

[Homer_Jay]

I hope we are all invited to the first official launching of her pete.

Never know you might be able to convert a few more to the cat fold

;D

[Homer_Jay]

I have worked out why its not finished yet.....

He is still working out how to tow the thing..... I am sure he would have filled his pants towing her with the triton. Not to mention that the triton is probably bent and wont drive straight anymore!!!

:-?

[Deiter]

Any advances GM, how's the rebuild coming along?

Got any new pics for us yet?

Damo

[Grand_Marlin]

Geez Damo ... where the hell did you find this post ???? :o :o :o

It must have been 500 pages down the list :-[

I was hoping to have it done for christmas, but was just way too busy with other work.

We have just started back into the boat last weekend... A couple more weekends and we are ready for paint.

I will keep you informed, as I am not stopping again until it is finished.

PROMISE ;)

Cheers

Pete

[kingtin]

Nice to see the thread pulled back up again Pete. C'mon mate, get the lead out! ;);D

kev

[Grand_Marlin]

As promised ... still sanding .... haven't stopped ::)

Gelcoat repairs that seem to be never ending, all thanks to pathetic workmanship from the Factory that did the outboard to sterndrive conversion.

I go to grind out a hairline crack and end up re-gelcoating half the boat >:(

Anyway, it I am very motivated now, as it is booked in for paint in the first week of September :)

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

A couple more...

[Homer_Jay]

Mate, that looks very much like child labor there!!!!

Dont let little Jonny Howard see that or he will be getting more ideas!!

Cant wait to see her finished.

[Blackened]

G'day

comin along nicely pete. Good to see keiran in there getting dusty :)

Dave

[Grand_Marlin]

Yep, child labour, slave labour, hired labour, borrowed labour and my labour ... whatever it takes to get it ready ;D


Kieran loves helping ... he knows more about gelcoat repairs than most people and he is only 9 ;)

I cant wait to get it done either ... the origanal 4 months has dragged out to 18 months .... way toooo long.

Cheers

Pete

[wadeo]

Looks like she's well on her way now pete. Good job too by the looks. Can't wait to see it finished.
Wadeo;D

[Mr__Bean]

Any new pictures?

Many of us have followed your progress with great interest.

- Darren

[Tangles]

So GM, im wondering how this rebuild has gone, any new pictures mate

mike

[Blackened]

So GM, im wondering how this rebuild has gone, any new pictures mate

mike

G'day

Don't hold your breath mike, pete's been flat out, I've been on his case as well :P

Dave

[hungry6]

I think you need a chainsaw to cut the trees that has grown up around it since last. ut last I saw it had new interiors. Looks like it's decored for older ppls. haha.

[northernblue]

C'mon Pete the end is in sight.....You can do it!

[Az]

Hey Pete

Very longtime no chat mate.. I can't remember the last time I was on here but glad to find this thread after all this time!!! How's everything been going? I thought this would have been on the water by now :P haha

Hope all is well!
Cheers
Az

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day Guys,

Thanks for the encouragement, but Hungry is right .... I have landscaped around it and painted a garden gnome on the side.

Sadly, my Dad took crook in August, and I have been seeing to a lot of his business affairs, as well as my own.

Therefore something has to suffer - and yes, it is the boat.

I will keep you informed as soon as I get back into it.

Cheers

Pete

[Az]

sorry to hear about your dad mate!!
Wish you and your family all the best!!

[boatboy50]

Hey GM,

After the rebirth of that other thread I thought i'd find this one and bring it up again (sorry if it's bad memories!)

Have you done any more to the boat? Do you still own it? It would be good to see the progress.

Regards

Darren

[Dean1]

Hey GM,

After the rebirth of that other thread I thought i'd find this one and bring it up again (sorry if it's bad memories!)

Have you done any more to the boat? Do you still own it? It would be good to see the progress.

Regards

Darren I spoke to Pete today and he's too busy working on everybody elses boat to work on his own!! Im still waiting on the starting line for the 560 to show up!!

[Blackened]

I spoke to Pete today and he's too busy working on everybody elses boat to work on his own!! Im still waiting on the starting line for the 560 to show up!!


I detailed the 560 a bit before christmas last year Deano.... I'm waiting for a trip in it yet!!

As far as I know the 560 is about 12 hrs away from finish and the big girl is due for paint.

Don't forget you lot, Pete's busy building a house atm, but he had his priorities right with getting the shed up first!

Dave

[Dean1]

I detailed the 560 a bit before christmas last year Deano.... I'm waiting for a trip in it yet!!

As far as I know the 560 is about 12 hrs away from finish and the big girl is due for paint.

Don't forget you lot, Pete's busy building a house atm, but he had his priorities right with getting the shed up first!

Dave Yeah mate id kill for a big shed.. 4 bay nice and high for the boat to fit under.. Aaahhh dreams are free ;D Hows bussiness Dave??

[Blackened]

Yeah mate id kill for a big shed.. 4 bay nice and high for the boat to fit under.. Aaahhh dreams are free ;D Hows bussiness Dave??


G'day

Flat out like a lizard drinking.... just came off of a 46' hunter today.

Gotta have the dreams Deano, if you don't, you will perish.

Dave

[nickstock]

What a fantastic project, I hope all works out for Pete and this baby gets finished!

Cheers,

Nick

[Grand_Marlin]

G'day again Guys,

This is like "Grand Marlin - This is your life" ;D
Everyone keeps finding my old posts.

Well, I suppose an update is in order.

My Dad is doing quite ok after his heart attack.

My 560 Sportsman is all but complete.
It has the new floor in, Hydraulic steering, transom lifted for 25" motors, motors fitted, 2 x 90 litre ice boxes.
All it needs is a service on the motors, the new HDS Lowrance units to be fitted and it is away. (I will be sellng the brand new Lowrance 525 sounder and 5200 GPS, I fitted them up, but they have never been used.)

The 7m Cat hasn't been touched since last post :-[
It is definitely next on the agenda.
It is so close it isn't funny - just needs a few weekends to get it done.

As Dean mentioned, I have been extremely busy doing work on boats for others and haven't had a chance to get stuck into my own.

We have just bought an acreage property, put up a good size workshop / shed, so now people can bring their boats to us if they wish and we have plenty of storage room.
We are still mobile as well, so nothing has changed there.
The workshop allows us to take on other types of jobs that were very hard to do when mobile.

Hopefully I can give an update soon of some progress on the big cat.

I have them lined up, just need to shoot them.

Cheers

Pete

[boatboy50]

Lol @ GM,

Very nice collection of toys (even if their not all yours!)

Any cat finatic would be proud of that garden!

Is that a 6.2 Kevla in there getting a remake also?

Love to see a thread on the rebuild of the 560 too if you have the time!

Exactly what is it that you do work wise GM?

Thanks again.

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

Lol @ GM,

Exactly what is it that you do work wise GM?

Darren


Collect Cats ;D ;D ;D

[dnej]

Come on now Pete.Tell him your story.
Darren he is great at his work, but a little shy sometimes.
You can do it Pete.
David

[Grand_Marlin]

Seriously Darren,

My business is Valet Boat Services.
I supply and fit all types of accessories to boats - electronics from base sounder / gps units right through full Raymarine, Furuno and Lowrance systems with twin screens, digital radar and autopilots, rewiring of boats, dual batteries, Stereos, deck wash / live bait pumps, VHF Radios, Sani Loo onboard sanitation units & toilets etc etc etc.
I also do rod holders, bait boards, game fishing accessories such as outriggers & chairs from Reelax, carpets, gelcoat / light fibreglass repairs, refurbishments, trailer work - including mods for drive on.
Pretty much anything to do with accessories on boats.
I work both mobile between Brisbane, Gold Coast & Sunshine Coast, and at our new workshop on the north side of Brisbane.

Yes, that is a 6.2 being redone for a client.

I will get some pics together of the 560 for you to see.
I have them, just have to resize them and post them up.

Cheers

Pete

[Noelm]

hey, is that the 560 that you got a while ago? I thought you had sold it if it is the one I am thinking of.

[boatboy50]

Thanks Pete,

Good to see business is going well.

Darren

[Grand_Marlin]

Yes Noel, that is the same boat ... a number of people have asked if I am interested in selling it, but I don't want to part with it yet.

Thanks Darren,
Business is going well.
It is such a shame (and very scary) to see so many boat builders / yards etc going under.
In the face of recession, we are busier than we have ever been ... touch wood that it stays that way, but you never know unfortunately.

Dave,
Thanks for the encouragement to come forth and spruik.
I was going to say "come out of the closet" but I know where that would have got me :-X

Cheers

Pete

[Grand_Marlin]

I bought the 560 sight unseen from Sydney.
This picture shows exactly what a professional boat surveyor calls "a minor soft spot near the drivers seat."

[Grand_Marlin]

Rebuilding.

I used Huon Pine for the underfloor framework.
It is well known as a ship building material because it does not rot.

It has all been glassed in and is as strong as.

The floor itself is glassed ply ... glassed both sides.

[Grand_Marlin]

This is the actual boat and the new dash layout.

[dnej]

Niiiiiice one Pete.
Out of the closet would have given me some scope( LOL)
David

[Noelm]

probably the best model 18' sharkcat ever made that one, except for the few that had pods (but they had some drawback as well) but that one was the best compromise as far as seating position, cab size, windscreen height, anchor hatch and access, they had it all worked out by that one, then scrapped the whole thing! Oh well never mind, now if only I could find an unloved centre console for myself at the right price, I would be set!

[lippa]

friggin nice paintwork on that lil pussy pete......................

hurry up and get that big gold bitch done, then ya can teach me how to catch those stupid looking fish with bills!

[julian1]

probably the best model 18' sharkcat ever made that one, except for the few that had pods (but they had some drawback as well) but that one was the best compromise as far as seating position, cab size, windscreen height, anchor hatch and access, they had it all worked out by that one, then scrapped the whole thing! Oh well never mind, now if only I could find an unloved centre console for myself at the right price, I would be set!


How does that model 18' go in relation to the 23', i know that size matters but the 560 would be great little game boat with a pair of the new lightweight 90 Zukes. I see a guy is remaking them now in NSW and has added a wave piercer etc and is going under the name of Abcat (not to be confused with the WA built Ali cats) i'm thinking these could be a great little outfit that are nearly capable as the 20 or 23' ??

[Noelm]

I reckon (and this is just my personal view) that the 18' Sharkcat has got to be the easiest Cat of all to just get in and go, even if you have the motors trimmed wrong, have no idea what you are doing it would be almost impossible to get one to broach in a following sea, dig in one hull in a stern quarter sea or almost anything else, they were/are great, and that model is the pick of them, now get that boat with some big Motors, (and some did have very big motors), give it to someone who knows what they are doing, like (say) and Abb diver or someone who has some Cat experience and you would be stunned at the performance!!

[Noelm]

I must add, there is a dozen boats better than an old Sharkcat, for features and finish and so on, but you will buy 2 18' sharkcats for 1 of them!!! shame someone did not make a "delux" version that did have all the goodies straight off.