1989 Checkmate Spectra resto

[skialot2]

I bought a 1989 Spectra 171 Project in February.



Somebody had painted over the sunburnt and faded gelcoat with what almost looked like bedliner. I used Fiberglass paint stripper to remove it section by section.



Then I used a DA sander with 320 grit and sanded deep into the sunburnt red gelcoat until the crazing was gone. I can't believe how thick it is... was. Then I wet sanded the whole boat with 600 then 1000 then 1200 then 1500. Then I used old school compound and wax and got a mirror shine.



Then I found a soft spot in the floor behind the driver's seat. Went to fix the floor and boy did that snowball. Removed the floor, found rot in the stringer's I ended up having to pull them out from midway back. The old stringers were tabbed on both sides to the floor. But only glued to the hull and tabbed on the inside only. No fiberglass on the outside of the stringer at all. It's no wonder they rotted. But it is 34 years old.



New stringers are in. Much stronger than before.



New floor is half glassed in. I ran out of materials.

Will update as I go.

[282]

That looks great! I wet sanded a 17 sport fire checkmate a long time ago.... it is a ton of work. What power are you thinking for that? The Spectre is a nice looking boat.

[skialot2]

I just picked up a 1989 Merc 150. It has a Nosecone and torque fin on the lower unit. It has a Merc racing offshore mid section. And the oil pump block off plate is marked "FULL RACE". I started it and it sounds like a full race motor.

[skialot2]

Bought the front bucket seats from Amazon. I had the back seat made to match. I used EVA foam decking instead of carpet. Let me know what you think.
Not quite done but getting there.

[skialot2]

Homemade side panels. Stitching is not perfect but good enough for my first try.

[89LASER]

Nice work, interior looks great.

[skialot2]

[skialot2]

Took it for a ride today. Unfortunately, my brand new hydraulic steering is defective. It does not respond to small movements of the wheel. But I hit 62 on my GPS with a little more to go.