Cockpit Mezzanine & Tuna Tube Winter Project

[rustybucket]

Just a few pics, started working on non-skid this past weekend. Got all the lids and hatch covers finished up, got the cockpit floor prepped. This coming weekend we will prep the flybridge floor and finish the non-skid there and in the cockpit. Getting real close to splashing her!

View from the bridge while prepping the cockpit floor.

The dash turned out great! It's amazing what getting rid of old inoperable electronics/junk and filling holes..etc can do for a dash! This wasn't even on the project list when we started this whole thing, we just kinda did it as we went along.

For non-skid I am using Awlgrip in hatteras white. I spray the part with the paint, then I use a cheap harbor freight spray gun with a big nozzle to spray the dry griptex particles onto the part. I've been able to achieve dang near perfect coverage with very little effort. By far the best way to apply non-skid that I've ever used. After it kicks I spray a coat of flattened awlgrip over it to seal everything in. We are using the fine griptex particles.

 

[rustybucket]

Non skid going on in a few places in the cockpit

 

[SKYCHENEY]

The non-skid looks great. I like the original non-skid look.

 

[rustybucket]

Nighttime is the RIGHT time!! Jesus God almighty it's hotter than blue blazes down here!! I'm going through like 4 or 5 sets of clothes a day, humidity is 90%+ at sunrise...


But progress is being made.

First coat of non skid on the bridge and cockpit floor!

Also got the bottom (underside) of all lids painted with awlgrip

 

[rustybucket]

Non skid went on great, very pleased with the texture and the grippiness of it.

This is the underside/inside of the freezer lid

Tackle center drawers built out of 1/2" coosa and 2 layers of 1.5oz mat

 

[rustybucket]

One side project that happened recently is the conversion of our normal ladder back fighting chair to a chair backed with a rocket launcher. So the rocket launcher was built by laminating 2 pieces of 3/4" coosa together with a layer of 1.5oz. Then we cut it out, shaped it and laid a couple layers of 1.5oz over it. I'm just now learning how to weld stainless so these brackets are my first major stainless fabrication project. Very pleased with the results.

This is the finished product before buffing/shining. I don't have a pic of the final piece yet. This was built from 1/8" x 1" angle and a little 1/8" flat bar.

 

[rustybucket]

Came across some pearl/glitter paint in my shop, couldn't help myself, mixed it with some blue and gave our school of skipjacks some neon/glittery accents!

 

[rustybucket]

Last night in the boatyard!!! Soooo glad to see this journey coming to an end!!



Couldn't hardly sleep, was returning some things to the painters shed and looked down and saw some yellow, blue, red and green bottom paint.... Thought to myself, dang I bet I could paint a mahi with that....

So.... now the boat has a small pod of mahi off the stbd side.

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[rustybucket]

Launch Day Baby!!! Lets GO!!!!

 

[rustybucket]

Lots of little jobs to wrap up but DANG it feels good to be back on the water.



After splash we did a quick seatrial to make sure everything mechanically was still good. Hit our rated rpm of 2350 and she purred like a kitten. Then back to the dock to get back to work!

One last fishy pic I forgot to post

We pulled all the old gold rod holders off the bridge rail and welded on stainless rod holders, wow what a visual difference/improvement it made just getting the old gold off the boat.

Hope to wrap everything up and head offshore this weekend and give her a good 4th of july shakedown!!

So, from start to finish the mezz, baitwell and bridge overhang project has lasted 1yr 7months. Man does it feel damn good to check a lot of these items off the punchlist!

Thanks to all that followed along with this thread and contributed. I'll continue to post updates and progress and better final pics along with some good before/during/after pics I have.

 

[racclarkson@gmail.com]

SuperHat

 

[rustybucket]

SuperHat

Hahaha, I don't know about that lol. It's definitely still a Hatt, maybe Hatteras Game Boat would be the most appropriate label.

 

[rustybucket]

Well, first shakedown trip went ok. Lost steering at 70 miles offshore and had to limp home. Ever since we purchased this boat the steering hydraulic cylinder would leak down over a couple weeks. Which was ok, but very annoying to have to top off and re-pressurize the hynautic steering system before each trip.

So when we hauled out I had the cylinder removed and rebuilt, thinking that would fix the issue... well it didn't. At 70 miles out we lost steering. Cylinder was leaking at the shaft seal. I had approx 1.5gals of steering fluid onboard. We turned around and started easing back in. When running or using auto pilot we were blowing out about a quart an hour. When moving at hull speed an manually steering we were gettting about 6 hours out of a reservoir full.

After all 1.5gal of the hynautic fluid was gone we switched to 15-40 delo (generator oil). We used 2 gals of it and were about to switch to straight 40wt when we got back to the dock.

So we just trolled our way back in. Kinda sucked but at least we got back in. Lost a sailfish after a short hookup so at least there was a little excitement lol.

She really is looking sharp, was very happy with how everything is turning out. Was great to get to see and use all the things we modified. This boat is really going to be dang near perfect for us.

The unfinished tackle center with temporary grill in a drawer.

 

[rustybucket]

The girls named the pineapple Mr. Wilson.

 

[rsmith]

Mezzanine really looks like it crowds the chair

 

[SKYCHENEY]

I had a similar problem with a steering cylinder. I repacked it and it still leaked. I found a used cylinder and put a kit in that one and its been okay. I didn't see anything wrong with the original cylinder when I had it apart but there must have been.

 

[rustybucket]

Mezzanine really looks like it crowds the chair

How much room do you feel is necessary between the mezzanine and the chair?

We were on the boat all weekend and it never felt crowded to me. Plenty of room to walk between them without turning sideways. I was actually kinda wishing we had made the rocket launcher a little bigger, I think we could have come out 4 more inches and added a rigging tray to it.

The cockpit felt HUGE compared to what I'm used to with coolers and baitwells on the deck. I feel like we picked up a lot of usable space with the mods.

 

[pdog]

Looks great. What kind of cruise speed and fuel burn are you getting loaded up for fishing?

 

[whoover]

The boat looks really good and glad to hear how happy you are with it. Just out of curiosity what was your budget for the paint and how close were you staying under or over it?

Thanks
Walt Hoover

 

[rustybucket]

Looks great. What kind of cruise speed and fuel burn are you getting loaded up for fishing?

Bay seatrial after splash, light on fuel and water.

2350rpm = 22.5 knts
2300rpm = 22 knts
2000rpm = 20 knts
1950rpm = 18 knts
1900rpm = 17 knts


Loaded heavy, full fuel, full water, full gear...etc for multi-day fishing trip, 3' head seas with a 10knt head wind.

1950rpm = 16 knts

Fuel burn at 1950 loaded heavy seems to be somewhere in the 45-50gph neighborhood.