posted 05-28-2012 04:03 PM ET (US)        

This past winter I decided to do a major update of the boat. I had Hall's Nautical make a new interior set for the boat. Since I have never been a huge fan of the Newport front bucket seats I designed and had them fabricate a new front seat that looks more like a Montauk Cooler seat cushion for the font to go with the Montauk Seat Back Rod holder and cushions I have installed on the console. I also had them make a new RPS cushion for the boat. The other updates I did was to remove the old mahogany console cleats and made new mounting cleats out of 2" aluminum angle. I then fastened the console to the cleats using screws with self locking nuts on the back of them. This way no matter how rough the water may get the console will never come loose again. I also removed all of the railing screws and thru-bolted all of the sanctions with the same self locking fasteners to prevent the railing from coming loose as well. The final step was to refinish the forward locker hatch as well as the Sapele mahogany RPS seat back I built.

All in all I am pretty proud of how "Hells Bells" is looking these days. The OEM cushions sure make a world of difference when in come to the level of appearance and class on a Classic Whaler.

posted 05-28-2012 08:58 PM ET (US)            

Count me in as a "like" on the forward seat. Is it removable for access to storage underneath?

posted 05-29-2012 05:22 PM ET (US)            

Don, I designed and had Halls add the so it could hinge forward or mount to the existing holes that were there for the bucket seats. My goal is to build a custom vacuum formed kydex storage tray that is located under the cushion and adds some good line storage on the boat. That project as well as making the hinges for the seat bottom are going to have to be a winter 12/13 project.

posted 05-30-2012 08:14 PM ET (US)            

Jimh, I agree there is a harmonious aesthetic quality that happening with the interplay of colors on the boat. I often wonder what I would do if I repowered. A white motor would I think look the best.

Rich, The waxing / polishing of the hull is a multi step process to start out. I no longer believe in wet-sanding gel coat to start with. I believe that process removes far to much precious gelcoat thickness for one. More importantly, when you start removing the outer most layer of gelcoat you can expose porous areas of gelcoat. It is tough to see these while sanding but, the first time you way all that dirty wax gets into those tiny voids and it looks like there is dirt embedded in the gelcoat. Once in you can not get the wax out.

I start with a heavy cut compound and a wool wheel mounted on a high speed angle grinder / polisher. I used this over all the larger flat areas of the hull and hull sides. After that I will go back with a fine cut compound with the same polisher. I finish by putting on a good wax by hand and then remove it with a porter-cable dual action buffer and finish with a polish by hand.

For yearly maintenance I do a once over with a fine cut compound and the porter-cable unit (if needed) then hand wax with a protectant wax (mothers) then a coating of a polish to finish. Then will polish once a month for the season.

In the past I have used Starbrite's Polish with PTFE Teflon.
http://tinyurl.com/7easpmc

Late last year I ran out of the Starbrite and ended up using Nu-Finish because I had a new bottle that was kicking around for years and figured I would use it up to get rid of it. I honestly did not give it a lot of credit due to the old "as seen on TV" type ads for it but, I have been super impressed with the finish it gives and how long the shine lasts. For $8.99 a bottle instead of the $34.99 for the Starbrite I might consider buying another bottle of Nu-Finish and continuing that route.

http://www.amazon.com/Nu-Finish-Liquid-Car-Polish/dp/B000BPSW7C

posted 05-31-2012 06:40 AM ET (US)            

If you ever decide to replace / repair the forward shelter, contact me. Walt Steffens and I sketched out a shelter that took advantage of some of that models attributes.

posted 05-31-2012 09:16 AM ET (US)            

I am always impressed with you guys that have this talent.

posted 05-31-2012 10:18 AM ET (US)            

I would be interested to know what you and Walt came up with. I have the original Mills Duck Cloth foul weather set for the boat and I never have cared for how the forward shelter works. The set is in pretty far condition but the cotton canvas is starting to show it's age.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v427/jeff_rohlfing/ 76%20Newport%20Near%20Complete/45c72ae5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v427/jeff_rohlfing/ 76%20Newport%20Near%20Complete/46d8bb8b.jpg

John,