New Apricot Viper - So HAPPY

[Da Bull]

That motor/boat combo was very popular in our 115-150hp stock class way back in the 70`s-80`s in the old SORA racing days. I`m glad you have two very nice example`s for us to look at.

DB

[427Man]

That motor/boat combo was very popular in our 115-150hp stock class way back in the 70`s-80`s in the old SORA racing days. I`m glad you have two very nice example`s for us to look at.

DB

Thanks. I'm very excited to have the chance to put one together. You have to have a 3rd motor as a spare. The FrankenMerc will be made up from 3 motors but it will be a J block / short shaft with low water pickup.

[427Man]

Dragged it into the sun over the weekend. Incredible weather for February here in MD.

[Scream And Fly]

It's a thing of beauty! Like a classic muscle car. Just so awesome. Very few boats have this kind of classic appeal.

Dragged it into the sun over the weekend. Incredible weather for February here in MD.

[W2F a V-King]

Dragged it into the sun over the weekend. Incredible weather for February here in MD.

VERY NICE....Don't mind sayin I'm a little jealous..

On a side note, and this just my $.01...please put some bunks under that beauty....have seen some real damage to boats over the years due to roller support trailers...jmo...

[427Man]

VERY NICE....Don't mind sayin I'm a little jealous..

On a side note, and this just my $.01...please put some bunks under that beauty....have seen some real damage to boats over the years due to roller support trailers...jmo...

Yes I am well aware, it's part of the short term plan. When the boat goes to have the floor pulled and the core underneath checked out, I will pull the trailer home and upgrade it.

I am worried about it, it's been sitting on that trailer 40 years. I don't see any obvious damage so far. What I can see of the core above the floor is all white wood so my fingers are crossed. If the core is solid under the rollers I might be ok.

[boatman14544]

any updates?

[427Man]

any updates?

Slow and steady. I have most of the materials I need to get the bunks on the trailer. I will be working on that tomorrow. Almost finished with my redneck engine stand. The XS will go on that so I can get the trailer/bunks finished. I should be ready to haul it to Raybo for the core inspection and other work in a couple of weeks.

Last night I was up to 1:00 AM bead blasting parts for paint. That will allow me to start assembling the other XS motor. The basket case finally arrived and it looks to be all there and in very good shape.

Last weekend I bought 3 more long shaft 150 motors with power trim and controls that fell in my lap. I sold two and have two 1977 150 motors to sell. I think one is spoken for.

[boatman14544]

Darrell, the stand looks great but the swivel casters and the low supports make me nervous to support the whole motor complete, almost 300 lbs. especially a long shaft at a touch over. I would be afraid of the supports spreading at the rear of the pumpkin. The old Merc show stands supported the motor under the cav plate on a flat surface. Are the castors straight up and down or are they offsets? again just a fear of them swiveling to the inside making the whole thing a little tippy. I am sure I am just overthinging stuff like I do. Great Job
>

[427Man]

Darrell, the stand looks great but the swivel casters and the low supports make me nervous to support the whole motor complete, almost 300 lbs. especially a long shaft at a touch over. I would be afraid of the supports spreading at the rear of the pumpkin. The old Merc show stands supported the motor under the cav plate on a flat surface. Are the castors straight up and down or are they offsets? again just a fear of them swiveling to the inside making the whole thing a little tippy. I am sure I am just overthinging stuff like I do. Great Job
>

I wish I could take credit for the stand but it is not my design. I found it when I was in Canada picking up the XS. It was in the back of a shop and has been proven to hold an inline 6 as it has been used for decades. I just cleaned it up and threw some paint on it. The dolly is my creation, I will be finding out tonight how it works. If I have to move the casters out I can. I have seen the old cast iron Merc stands with wheels. The wheel spacing is much tighter on those. I'll see how it goes and send pics.

[427Man]

The stand works. Very solid, rolls nicely, no tendency to tip over without a lot of effort. Quite a difference between a poor reproduction XS faceplate decal and an original.

[FUJIMO]

[427Man]

Mr FUJIMO - you are a legend. Thanks for all of your great pics

[427Man]

Well I finally got the bunks in. The hull now sits very solid on the trailer. I didn't realize how unstable it was with the rollers. The side rollers barely made contact, they just served to keep it centered. There was no damage from them, some rubber had become stuck to the hull, but it polished right out. For 40 years the entire weight of the boat sat on the keel rollers. I pulled all of them out to replace them, as they have deteriorated and distorted. Now they will make slight contact and serve as a guide when loading the boat on. The weight of the boat is now on the bunks as it should be. One roller did leave 2 divots in the pad, but they don't look too bad.

I know people say that tapping on the hull to check the core is useless. I am going to find out for sure about the core, but I can say that tapping on the pad produces a completely different sound compared to areas where I can see the core is good. If there is rotten core, it's in the pad. I will know soon enough.

[boatman14544]

Darrell, we need updates with new pics !!!!!!!!!!!