So apparently I have a winter project.....

[Capt.Insane-o]

Today we have a new grinder, a very nice sheet of marine ply from menards, I'm impressed for the price!, a load of resin and assorted mat and core goop. Thursday if the weather cooperates the boat will be clean and ready for planning out.

[Sonik]

And you've owned it HOW LONG?!

I bet you're sittin on a hot rock...shouldn't be long now.

Bernie

LoL, the way I see it Bernie, the ugly mailbox lettering is the least of my problem for now. Ordered the jackplate Monday....went with a Bob's convertible on the advice of Riverman. And I'm working on rebuilding the seatbox and filling/sanding the coned 200 gearcase while Lynn does his magic. And yes, I'm chompin' at the bit to get it home so I can hang the motor on it and start working the instruments and wiring before I get the interior back in. You better be ready sir, TN isn't but a weekend hop, skip, and a jump away


Jeff

[oldskier]

LoL, the way I see it Bernie, the ugly mailbox lettering is the least of my problem for now. Ordered the jackplate Monday....went with a Bob's convertible on the advice of Riverman. And I'm working on rebuilding the seatbox and filling/sanding the coned 200 gearcase while Lynn does his magic. And yes, I'm chompin' at the bit to get it home so I can hang the motor on it and start working the instruments and wiring before I get the interior back in. You better be ready sir, TN isn't but a weekend hop, skip, and a jump away


Jeff

If I can keep the mota in one piece, I'm ready! We'll burn up the local lake then you can come to the house and we'll grind on my Powercat together!

Nah, If you make it, we'll find something better to do. Got three nice mountain lakes within a half hour. Not many hotboaters, we'll cause a stir at any local ramp with two Vipers.

Bobs convert is a good plate, which setback you planning to use? I'm at 2 in.

[Sonik]

If I can keep the mota in one piece, I'm ready! We'll burn up the local lake then you can come to the house and we'll grind on my Powercat together!

Nah, If you make it, we'll find something better to do. Got three nice mountain lakes within a half hour. Not many hotboaters, we'll cause a stir at any local ramp with two Vipers.

Bobs convert is a good plate, which setback you planning to use? I'm at 2 in.

By "cause a stir" you mean play with the fishin' boats, or have a nice conversation with DNR officers?? LoL I'm going to flip the plates and keep the setback as short as possible for the time being so we'll see what happens. Lynn has a dinged merc 26 big ear he's getting fixed that I may get a chance to try out so hopefully that'll put me about where I want to be.

[Sonik]

I'd like some input on this before I make a pseudo-educated decision on which direction I want to go here. The factory seatbox, while providing some sort of additional hull strength, whether torsional, lateral, etc etc.... is large and cumbersome to negotiate when getting into and out of the front seats. I'm keeping the original back to backs but my thought process here was instead of rebuilding it similar to the original as a single piece, build 2 individual boxes just large enough in width to accomodate the original seat bottoms allowing a "walk-through" if you will between the seats. Can anyone see past my logic here and see a potential problem with going this route?


Jeff

[BeefKid]

I'd like some input on this before I make a pseudo-educated decision on which direction I want to go here. The factory seatbox, while providing some sort of additional hull strength, whether torsional, lateral, etc etc.... is large and cumbersome to negotiate when getting into and out of the front seats. I'm keeping the original back to backs but my thought process here was instead of rebuilding it similar to the original as a single piece, build 2 individual boxes just large enough in width to accomodate the original seat bottoms allowing a "walk-through" if you will between the seats. Can anyone see past my logic here and see a potential problem with going this route?


Jeff

It would definitly be lighter....

[transomstand]

i'd Like Some Input On This Before I Make A Pseudo-educated Decision On Which Direction I Want To Go Here. The Factory Seatbox, While Providing some Sort Of Additional Hull Strength, Whether Torsional, Lateral, Etc Etc.... Is Large And Cumbersome To Negotiate When Getting Into And Out Of The Front Seats. I'm Keeping The Original Back To Backs But My Thought Process Here Was Instead Of Rebuilding It Similar To The Original As A Single Piece, Build 2 Individual Boxes Just Large Enough In Width To Accomodate The Original Seat Bottoms Allowing A "walk-through" If You Will Between The Seats. Can Anyone See Past My Logic Here And See A Potential Problem With Going This Route?


Jeff

No, No, And Hell No. Keep The Seat Box Original!!!!

[Capt.Insane-o]

I'd do the walk through.

[JWTjr.]

The seat box is a torque bridge and gives the hull better stiffness and shape retention. If you remove it you will need to provide another way to keep the hull straight. Besides, you will also need to modify the original seats as they use the seatbox for the front cushions' mounting area.

Leave it stock, it's all original otherwise anyway. It'd be a shame to do that to it.

JT

[Riverman]

I made mine very tiny and low. If I scrunch down nice and low I can almost get my head out of the wind, even without a screen.

With regard to the seat box being used as structure, I feel that the combination of the triangular floor-hull structure and the stringers being bedded into the floor bottom no additional structure is needed. My seat box was poorly attached anyway. I could see if the boat is heavily loaded with four large people, but IMO the Viper is too small for four people anyway.

[Capt.Insane-o]

Grind grind grind, sand sand sand. All out save for the pad and stringers Found a couple small dry spots that need attention. Taking a few days off to battle what is either a sinus infection or the start of strep throat. I'll post progress pics soon.

[Jo Boone]

i love the color of this stream...makes me want to re-paint mine from white

[Sonik]

Been a loooong time since I posted any progress on this so here it is.....

Drove up to Bay City, MI this weekend to meet Lynn / Capt Insane-o for the Champ boat race and watched Shaun Torrente lay it down on everyone in qualifying on Saturday. He put on a great show. This was my first champ boat race and man was it a blast. I snapped a buttload of pictures so Greg, I'll send those your way if you want to post up some of them.

The Viper is now home and as of tomorrow it will be azzholes-n-elbows getting a seatbox and bulkhead rebuilt and glassed in. The boat had so much moisture in it that it was caking the sanding disks...so after several days with a dehumidifier under the cover, Lynn pulled most of the remaining layers out by hand.....the boat was laid up horribly thin with little to no base anywhere in the boat to adhere the core to...its amazing it didn't delaminate even under the light use it got with the V4. It now has a biaxial base on the inner skin, which was paper thin, followed by the core itself bedded with core bond. Everything under the floor is sealed and then coated with bilge-coat. Lynn ended up doing the bow twice as the first layup didn't kick....so it all came out and he did it again....big fun there. The floor is no longer 3/8 ply as was the original but 3/4 now and man, the boat is rock solid. My inexperience led me to believe I had a solid boat but obviously now after tapping on the hull with the new core in it, I know what it should sound like. Lynn did a great job at a fair price....kudos to you man

To be continued............

[RONNIE]

when can I pick it up ?? it needs some real power on it now

[transomstand]

He probably wants a motor you don't need to pull with a rope