posted 07-15-2005 10:48 AM ET (US)        

Setting a goal of seeing the 2005 July 4th fireworks from the water, I started my journey with what I had hoped would be the easiest and quickest route. After a couple of months of diligently watching eBay and this website however I decided that if I was to make the 7/4/05 objective I needed to change my course of action. Now, given the quality standards set by the Boston Whaler name, I knew that buying a generic stern light and screwing it into the teak gunwales was not an option. Instead, I embarked on a mission to fabricate my own stern light… a stern light that would be up to the Boston Whaler standard.

Before proceeding, be advised that fabricating your own stern light the way I did requires a commitment. If you have the opportunity to purchase an OEM one (as I did after I had already purchased all the materials to build my own) I would recommend doing so. The process I’ve outlined below cost as much, if not more than what you can buy the OEM for. I’ll also tell you that I plan to do a little more work on the one you see in the pictures (it is afterall my first attempt… I’ll be bringing it back to the metal fabricator to weld the “learning” holes. Good news… the fireworks were nothing short of GREAT!

So, here we go….

BILL OF MATERIALS:
(1) SS Tube: 1.25” OD x 0.065” wall thickness x 36” length ($22)
(1) SS Bar Stock: 0.25” x 3” x 12” ($18)
(1) Light Assembly: Perko #965 ($30)
(3) SS Machine Screws: Size: 3-48 ($1)
(1) ¼” (ID) Rubber Grommet ($.30)
(1) Male Plug Pigtail: Sierra trailer wiring kit TC43604 ($9)
(1) Two foot length of 2 wire (no ground) 16 gauge water resistant wire ¼” OD($1)

NOTE: All SS is 316 grade and purchased at Online Metals except the screws which weren’t available in that grade and were picked up at my local hardware store. Marine grade aluminum would have been preferred (easier to work with) however I was unable to find that aluminum in the above dimensions. Prices are 2004 vintage and do not include shipping

TOOLS REQUIRED:
o Circular Saw
o Circular Saw Metal Cutting Blade ($3)
o Bench Grinder
o Belt Sander
o 1 ¼” Punch Die and Hydraulic Punch Machine (local metal fabricator… It cost me $20 to have him punch the hole in the 0.25”x 3”x 12” SS Bar Stock and weld it to the SS tube)
o 3-48 tap ($14 from McMaster Carr <> PN 83538A82)
o #47 Drill Bit ($1.50 each from McMaster Carr <>PN 3033A262 )
o Green Scotch Pad

FABRICATION PROCESS:
Objective
The objective in building this stern light is to build a metal “washer” that will slide over the SS tube and become the mounting flange for the light assembly (on the OEM stern light, this was a plastic flange which no-one seems to be able to find an available source for). Build the “washer”, slide it over top of the SS tube at one end, weld the washer in place, fasten the light assembly on top of the washer, run the wires, go boating at night.

Build the Washer
(1) Take the top of the Perko #965 light assembly and place it on the 0.25” x 3” x 12” SS Bar Stock. Using a fine tip magic marker, trace a circle around the outside of the light assembly.
(2) Using the circular saw with a metal cutting blade, cut down the SS Bar Stock to the rough dimensions of the circle. (yes I realize that the circular saw will only cut straight lines. The next step addresses that issue)
(3) Using the bench grinder, grind off the excess material until all you have left is a round coin the size of the circle you outlined in step #1. (after the bench grinder, I also used a belt sander on all surfaces to clean it up further).
(4) Bring round SS coin (you just built ) and the 3’ long SS Tube to a local fabricator. Have him punch a 1 ¼” hole in the middle of the SS coin creating the “washer”. Slide the “washer” over one end of the SS Tube (should be a snug fit) and have the fabricator weld the “washer” to the tube. (NOTE: I had my fabricator weld the washer on the side that the light assembly will mount on. This way, once assembled, the weld will not be visible. Additionally, when the fabricator “punches” the hole, it will slightly bend the ¼” SS washer. I positioned the washer so that the concave side was facing the light assembly… this made for a cleaner mounting)

Mount the Light Assembly
(5) To mount the light assembly, you need to drill and tap 3 holes in the “washer” to receive the size 3-48 screws (this is the reason I selected 0.25” SS Stock. The thickness of the stock gives you the ability to create a thread substantial enough to hold the light assembly with out having exposed screws hanging out the bottom or a nut and bolt situation… remember, we’re going for Boston Whaler Standards).
(6) Place the light assembly on the washer and mark the three places where holes need to be drilled.
(7) Drill the holes. Be careful when drilling… SS is very hard and #47 drill bit is very skinny and fragile. I broke a couple of drills before I learned how much pressure and speed to apply. You might want to try a practice hole on some of the scrap material.
(8) Tap the holes. Be even more careful at this step. I broke more taps than I did drills. (each time I broke a drill or a tap, I needed to re-do all three holes since the broken pieces would lodge themselves in the hole). I originally approached tapping these holes using the tap wrench with a cross bar for leverage but I quickly found that it gave me too much leverage. I then switched to just using my fingers against the tap wrench’s post (see pictures). You might inquire with your fabricator if he can do steps #7 and #8 for you.
(9) Use the Green Scotch Pad to apply a patina finish on the assembly. I used the scotch pad the length of the SS Tube as well as on the outside circumference of the washer. This puts a nice finish on everything.

Complete the Assembly
(10) Drill a 7/16ths hole 20.5 inches from the bottom of the light assembly for the ¼” ID rubber grommet. The positioning of the hole should align with the light assembly such that both the direction the light shines in and the hole for the grommet are facing the same way.
(11) Mark and drill a ¼” hole 1.5” from the bottom of the light assembly for the alignment post located in the bottom mounting bracket. It is critical that when you mark the hole that the light assembly be shining port. Once you drill the hole, use a hack saw to extend the hole to the bottom of the light assembly. Finish up the rough edges of this section with a file.
(12) Run the 2 foot length of wire through the rubber grommet up towards the light assembly and splice these wires together. I used regular wire splicing connectors which I added silicon to after crimping then covered them with shrink tube.
(13) Attach the male plug pigtail to the other end of the 2 foot length of wire (side that will be plugged into the boat wire harness.
(14) Screw the light assembly onto the stern light assembly
(15) Go boating at night.

SUPPLIER WEBSITES:
http://www.mcmaster.com
http://www.onlinemetals.com
http://www.sierramarine.com/catalog_pdf/Sierra_8023-29.pdf

posted 10-07-2005 05:17 PM ET (US)            

This was not an economical way to acquire a stern light. It did, however, yield a part that is clearly superior to the original and aesthetically very pleasing.

The essence of the problem (of building one of these stern lights from scratch) is figuring out a way to mount the light to the pole. MyOutrage's "washer" is a beautiful and beautifully simple idea in principal.

For the record, I spent about $110 on the necessary parts. Everything I used was new, even though I had a used light and some wire, plug, screws, etc. When I started out I hoped to get my hands on some used parts but the light mount was to most important and this did not come through.

Once I had the washer roughed out I knew it was going to look too good to NOT put a new light on top of.

I used 316 tubing as well but I used a seamless variety with a much thinner side wall. This is more like what Whaler used. I think is it was .028". I bought this from McMaster-Carr and paid perhaps twice what MyOutrage paid for his much thicker welded seam tubing.

I used type 304L 1/4" plate for the washer. There was no incompatibility between the two when I had them welded together.

I could not find any shop with the capability to punch the hole in the washer. Instead I had a machine shop bore it on a lathe. This alone cost me $20 (cash, under the table) I returned the next day after drilling, tapping and sanding the washer to have it welded onto the polished tubing and they charged me a token $10 to do this.

I used a medium sized machine shop that caters to the commercial fishing industry here in Seattle, They are old school and were quite busy. I think I was just lucky that one of the guys wasn't put off by my nuisance job and simply walked back to get on their guys to do it for me. For this I am very appreciative.

Their work was flawless too. Nice even bead on the weld which must be held BELOIW the top plane of the washer so the light itself will sit flat.

I chose to use #4-40 machine screws instead of MyOutrage's #3s. I simply felt this would be safer and stronger with less chance of breaking a tap. I tapped all three holes without any trouble but I went very slowly. It took me fully one hour to tab the three little holes. I used a gentle hand and lots of lubrication (I used WD-40).

I used 16-2 SJOOW cord (wire) that I bought at my local electrical supply house. This had an outer diameter of more than 5/16" unlike the 1/4" of MyOutrage's.

I chose not to use a rubber grommet but instead used a plastic two halved clamp bushing that grips the cord where it exits the pole. This part is made by HeyCo which is also the manufacturer of the plastic snap bushing in the light's mount.

The bushing necessitated a much larger diameter hole in the pole, 9/16" I think. I am not entirely comfortable with this large size but it is what it needed to be for this cord and bushing.

I should point out that the OE lights did not use a rubber grommet either but used these snap bushings.

I also drilled the hole for the cord on the port side of the pole, not the stern. Whaler had the wire exit on the port side and is clearly shown in this position in the exploded parts diagrams for the Outrage 18.

Also the location for the hole that tops out the locating notch in the bottom of the pole is erroneously described by MyOutrage above as being 1.5" up. The center of the 1/4" hole should be 1/2" up so the total length of the notch is about 5/8"

To polish the tubing I made wooden plug equal to the id of the tubing then I bored a hole through its length and installed a machine screw through it. By chucking the screw into a drill motor I was able to slip the tubing snugly over this wooden "plug" and turn the drill on with one hand while gripping the tubing with my other hand in the palm of which was an adhesive backed piece of 320 grit sandpaper.

posted 10-08-2005 08:49 PM ET (US)            

1) You can't say I didn't warn you. This isn't the cheap way out of getting a stern light for your classic whaler.
2) You used 4-40 machine screws v. my 3-48. I selected the 3-48 because the bevel of the screw head fit nicely into the perko light assembly. Curious how the 4-40's fit or how you modified the perko light assembly to accommodate the larger screw (You definitely would end up with an easier tap with the larger screw)
3) Why'd you go with the thinner walled SS tubing? Aesthetically, I'm thinking the two are comparable. Price wise, the thinner was more expensive.
4) I agree with you on the snap bushings... I couldn't find them so I went with the rubber bushing. I'll probably change over the winter.
5) Good catch on welding the tube lower than than the surface of the "washer". You're right, had you not done that, you would have found yourself grinding down the weld so the Perko Light Assembly laid flat. In my case, the pressure of the punch actually created a concave effect to the washer so I didn't have that worry.
6) You went with 304 SS for the washer. I was worried about rust so I went with 316 grade. I'm guessing that the 304 was a little easier to work with so that would have been my first choice. Did I over-engineer w/ 316?
7) On the machine shop... I jused the same type of machine shop here in the north east. I think those guys like dealing with something a little different from time to time. Regardless of what modivates them, they're the only way to go.

posted 10-09-2005 05:12 PM ET (US)            

#3 screws would fit the light better, but the #4 are not bad. Of course I used oval head screws which mitigate the imperfect look of a screw head's bevel does not sit perfectly down in the fixture. I considered trying to enlarge the recess for the screw head in the light but decided the #4 looks good enough as they were.

It really bothers me that Perko makes that light with such small holes. There is no reason to. It should really be set up for nothing smaller than a #6.

I used the thinner wall tubing because that is what I had. I had bought this 6 foot piece of tubing a while back for another light project I never completed. The real reason I bought the thin wall for that was because that is what Whaler used and also because it is lighter weight; no need to add weight to a boat if you don't have to.

This tubing was more expensive because it was a higher grade, not because the side wall was thinner. In any given category of tubing the price goes up as the thickness goes up.

Ideally I would have found a source for "ornamental tubing" which is already polished and generally thin wall. 15 years ago I did find a source for this type when I made a tall stern light for my Outrage 18. This time I was not able to. McMaster-Carr had the closest thing to it with the type 316, .028" sidewall seamless that I used.

Given the amount of sanding and buffing I did to this piece I don't know think it makes much difference. Type 304 (304L in this case) is just fine. The vast majority of the stainless steel hardware on Whalers is 304 (a.k.a. 18-8). Type 316 is a bit better I understand but I'm not sure it really makes any difference. Time will tell.

posted 10-17-2005 05:38 PM ET (US)            

Since you posted this thread I have done more research on these lights.
I have found out that there were two types of original light bases (or washers as stated above).

1. The earlier base was made out of aluminum

2. The later base was made out of nylon

Here is a photo of the aluminum base/mount
http://whalercentral.com/photogallery.php?photo=575

I also found a place to buy the Snap-In Cord Grips so I purchased a bag of 100.
http://whalercentral.com/photogallery.php?photo=574

If anyone here needs one of the Snap-In Cord Grips, please send me an email with your address. Please, only if you need one and I will send it FREE.

posted 07-24-2007 08:52 PM ET (US)            

THE BAD NEWS: I lost my stern light on the trip. This was truely heartbreaking since I spent so much time designing and building the first one(see below) and I think it came out really good. Lesson to all... when tubing off an 18 outrage, don't leave your stern light in place. On one of the turns, the water tube's rope went from the port side of the boat (tied to the cleat), over the engine and over the stern light all the way on the starboard side... when I straightened out, the upper bracket and the lower bracket were torn off the boat and the stern light went in the drink.

THE GOOD NEWS: quite a few things.. 1)no one got hurt 2) I didn't loose the upper bracket or lower bracket to the drink. 3)I've already built one of these things so I've got experience.

ONE MORE PIECE OF BAD NEWS: The price of Stainless Steel Tubing had gone up 2.6 times over what I paid when I originally built this stern light... translation: next stern light will be made out of aluminum. Oh yeah... one other thing... about 2 weeks ago I saw a stern light on eBay that sold for less than $40... but I didn't need it then.

posted 07-24-2007 10:42 PM ET (US)            

http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/012247.html

posted 07-26-2007 03:12 PM ET (US)            

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