The Story of the Restoration of a 13-footer

[2wheelDuke]

Greeting folks.

Looking around the internet, this seems to be THE place for Boston Whaler information. I'm here to share the ongoing story of my 13' Boston Whaler.

Back in 1993, my parents helped me buy a 1983 13' Boston Whaler. It came with a blown 40hp 1983 Merc on it. The guy before us had it painted bright Awlgrip white. I believe that we were the 3rd owners. It got re-powered with a 1993 40hp Evinrude with power tilt/trim.

Things really got good in 1996 when I turned 16 and could drive myself to the ramp to launch it. I dug through some old pictures and found some to share. These are from my 1st digital camera, back when that was a crazy new idea. Somewhere I've got some film photos I need to scan someday.





I've had some great times in that boat fishing inshore and even a bit of offshore, freshwater, and backcountry.



This bonnethead shark was caught off Marathon in the FL keys. I used to catch and release over a dozen of them on a good night.



This little bass was somewhere in the FL Everglades. I went bass fishing when it was too windy out to fish saltwater.



Here's one of Betty Boob the beagle on her only trip in the boat. She jumped off the bow in the middle of the Intracoastal Waterway when I was on plane. Whipping around to recover the dog in the middle of a busy channel was a pain.

Somewhere around 2002, my brother blew a motor in his El Camino and blocked my boat in. It was over a year before I could get the boat out again. Not using the boat was a death sentence.

In the decade since, life's been in the way and my poor old boat was more or less forgotten. This is how she looked as of a week ago.



I took the motor off and had it re-worked in a friend of a friend's shop. It's had the rotted out parts of the wiring harness repaired, the carbs gone thru, a new fuel pump, new water pump impeller, and everything gone thru and freshened up. It'll need some cosmetic love, and is waiting in my garage for me to go over the rest of the boat.

Over the years while I didn't live there, all sorts of parts from my brother's projects and other junk came to rest in my old boat. Then there was all the plant matter that landed in there. Carpenter ants and rot had their way with the mahogany interior. My boat has basically become a composter.

I've got the hull pretty well emptied out now. The teleflex and shift cables are still good. Happily, the hull feels nice and solid still. I'm working on the trailer now so I can move it around and start to work on the hull to prepare for paint.

I'm planning on Awlgrip white for the exterior, but I'm considering a vintage style blue paint job inside. Then again, the more I read on here, the original "desert sand" might be better.

Since my interior has completely rotted away, I'm thinking of replacing it with Star Board. I'm still working on pricing that out and finding a source. With the size of the yacht/boat industry here in Ft. Lauderdale, I'm sure there's a supplier nearby.

March weather is usually not Boston Whaler friendly here. Hopefully I can keep my project on track and have her ready to go by the time the weather is nice. Stay tuned for updates.

[Maverick]

Wow, great story, great memories! Thanks for sharing.

If it was me, I'd want to restore it for sentimental value, plus the 13 is a really fun boat. I've had a few over the years, and thoroughly enjoyed fixing them up and running them...everyone should have one at their dock.

In the early 1960s we used to go the Florida keys as a family, and stay at a mom and pop resort which is still in business. They had an old 13 we could use that had cable steering ...the cable used to come off all the time, and to run the boat you had to first fix it, hah.

Great memories. Funny thing...last time I stayed there, like 5? Or so years ago, I walked the place, which is fairly big and a bit overgrown, and would you believe it...I spotted that old beat up 13 upside down in the weeds. Been there awhile...probably a crocodile and 6 pound grasshopper living under it. I contemplated asking the proprietors about buying it, but one whaler at that time was aplenty. So my wife told me. Hah. Probably still there.

Said all that to say that the 13 is a timeless classic, and I'm sure that olde keys boat will endure a lot longer than my old mortal frame. Best to you on your 13! I like it!!!!! Mav

[macfam]

Great memories!
With such a classic, would you consider going back to wood?

[Barnacle]

I have to agree with macfam. Even though wood appointments can be a pain in the ass to maintain, nothing says classic Boston Whaler quite like the brightwork.

[2wheelDuke]

Thanks, guys. I feel like I have so much invested in trailer parts that I should've just looked at a new trailer by now. I have some new bunk boards on the way, and new hub assembles cost just a little more than new bearings will. Next up will be getting the hull squared away and painted. After that will be the furniture. Wood isn't completely out of the question. Especially since I haven't found a price on the full sheet of KING Starboard. It's looking like KING Starboard flexes more than wood, and would need a pillar in the middle of the benches. I'm not sure what the freight would cost on top of $700 worth of wood. But the KING Starboard isn't exactly going to be cheap, and the wood kit would save a bunch of fabricating. I'll have to decide once I have things closer to going together.

[brill]

I agree that you will have to support the KING Starboard for the thwart seats to prevent sagging. Another factor is the additional weight. Example: a thwart seat measures 53.75" X 11" X 1" which would weigh 210lbs if fabricated out of KING Starboard. A comparable seat made of mahogany should weigh about 14 lbs. That's a 50% increase in weight which may or may not be a factor to you in your restoration. If you do go with the KING Starboard, consider having the pieces cut to size and shipped from a source such as Boat Outfitters. Another option to avoid (or reduce) shipping charges is to look for a local plastics distributor who can order the material. I had a large project where I needed to order five full sheets. I did not pay any shipping charges.

Good luck. This looks like a project worthy of your time.

[Barnacle]

When the time comes, a pretty good supplier for Starboard and marine lumber in Ft Lauderdale is Wood-Chip Marine Lumber & Supplies, 3301 South Andrews. Their number is (954) 522-1481. I think you'll find a 4x8 sheet of 3/4" Starboard will run somewhere around $350-$375 a sheet.

Shipping charges on the Specialty Marine replacement wood kit to Ft Lauderdale should be around $70, UPS ground.

[jimh]

I don't have any pictures of my dog on my Boston Whaler. She was only aboard for about ten seconds before she jumped into the lake. In the process she scratched the bow hatch cover. I did not invite her back.

[Mikeymeg]

Not all Home Depot stores stock it, but they will special order it for you.

[2wheelDuke]

I knew KING Starboard was heavy, but I didn't know it was that heavy. The weight is a deal breaker. The reproduction mahogany is looking more and more appealing. That's a lot of weight that could otherwise go towards a trolling motor and battery, cooler, or other gear.

Just having to piece the pre-cut and finished pieces sure would be nice. And the classic wood look helps with the nostalgia.

I did refinish the wood once in the time I had it. The previous owner had re-finished it when the boat was painted.

The price will hurt a bit. Time to look for some overtime.

[2wheelDuke]

Finally got a day off and made some progress again yesterday. The trailer is sitting on new hub assemblies with new wheels and tires bolted up. I also started to pressure clean 13 yeas worth of grime from the hull.

[2wheelDuke]

It's been a while, but things are moving at last.

I have replaced almost everything on the trailer. I should've just bought a new trailer.

Thanks to the advice I got here, I realized that my original plan of a star board interior wasn't going to work. It's too heavy and not rigid enough.

I spent a fortune at Specialty Marine for a new rub rail, new interior and new stainless nav lights.

I dragged the boat 800 miles to my brother's shop so I could get him to help me paint it.

She's all stripped down and getting a guide coat of primer right now. There was far more damage to the hull than I thought. Looks like it took a good bit of damage before the last paint job. If only this little boat could talk.

I still have to decide on a color for the interior. I always loved the classic blue inside, but the desert tan I'd the correct color for a 1983. I'm kinda torn there and have to decide soon.

[2wheelDuke]

Here's some pictures.

This is when I left for my trip to GA. The kayaks came along to explore some of the N. Georgia lakes. You can see that I started to pull the rub rail. I decided to leave the rest on until I got to my brother's shop.


Once I got settled in, I picked up where I left off in Florida. Here's my dad helping me drill rivets.


When I got to stripping and sanding, the hull was in far worse shape than I thought it was. There's places where old repairs had deteriorated all over the place. It looks like whoever did it before used mostly auto grade Bondo to make repairs before it got the Awlgrip paint job it wore when we bought it.



Time for fiberglass repair.


Everything has to be stripped for the patchwork and new paint.


There was also a bad spot on the keel. Looks like it was done with Marine Tex or something similar, and it had started to crack and fall out over the years. Fortunately, the hull didn't get waterlogged.



The damaged area was ground out and filled with fiberglass.

The hull has been primed with a high build primer and is getting ready for a color coat.



More pics will be coming soon.