| It all started innocently enough. I went to work on Saturday morning, August the 23rd, came home a bit after noon, and worked in my garden for a bit. After awhile, I got a little tired, so I decided to poke around on the net for a bit. Not sure why, but somehow I ended up looking on Ebay at boats, and found a bunch of really cheap ones that need a lot of work. They were almost all in Wisconsin or Illinois, but it was fun day-dreaming about starting up a hobby rebuilding boats and selling them. Then I came across this one. It showed to be in good shape, and the current bid was only at like 850 bucks. The best part is that it was just one state over, in Arizona. I wasn't planning on bidding on it, but it sure was fodder for the day dreams. Just for fun I called Stormy over, just to tease her, and watch her drool over it. Well, I guess I underestimated the power of love at first sight. She wanted to know why I wasn't bidding on it. So just for fun, I bid a thousand clams on it, just so I could say that I tried. The message said that I was now the highest bidder, but the reserve was not met, so even if I won the bid, the owner would not have to sell it to me at that price. So I upped the bid to twelve hundred, then 13. The reserve was still not met, and I was kinda relieved. Stormy wanted me to keep going, but I reasoned with her that we just bought a boat, and we should wait a year or two before adding to our collection. She argued that it would be tough to find another deal this good, not to mention this close to home. We went back and forth for a bit, and to prove to her that we couldn't afford it. I punched in a bid of 15 hundred, to show her that the reserve would still not be met, and since there was no sense in us going any higher, we could close this chapter on boat dreaming until we were good and ready. Except for one little thing. The reserve was now met, and I was still the highest bidder. And there was only like an hour and a half to go. I still wasn't too worried, I was sure to be out-bid, so I thought i would go take a nap until the last few minutes, and see what happens. Stormy was more of the opinion that we should sit there and stare at the monitor and by shear will, make the deal ours. Or at the very least, be ready to outbid anyone else that jumps in. But I assured her that we were not going any higher, and if it didn't happen with what we already bid, then it just wasn't meant to be. Before we knew it, we were staring at each other, saying, "We just bought us a boat". Time was up, and there were no other bids. As it turns out I was the only bidder, except for the first bid of 850. And the best part was that, even though my bid was 1,500, the reserve was 1,400, so that's all we had to pay. So I got in contact with the boat's owner, and after a nap, we set out around midnight to retrieve our new boat. The trip was a little under 400 miles one way, and by 6:00 pm that evening, we were home, tired, and telling each other, " I can't believe we just bought us another boat." |
| Before the first trip, I knew I had to do something about the fuel system. The Electric fuel pump was losing its prime due to the old fuel lines, and the gas tank breather line was cracked and bound to leak if the tank was overfilled a bit. So i took the opportunity, and tidied the whole thing up. I moved the fuel tank all the way to the back corner, and put a rubber mat with holes under it, to help keep the bottom of the tank from scuffing, and keep it dry. I was able to shorten the fill hose, taking out the PVC elbow that someone had added, and also the breather tube, eliminating the cracks. I also put on new, shorter fuel lines, and moved the fuel pump a little, on a new piece of wood. That wood is what the plywood hood rests on. The last thing I did is remount the vent tube that is closest to the engine, as it was mounted in such a way that the opening was almost flat against the floor, and not able to properly evacuate any fumes that may exist. Now she is ready for a test run on a lake! |
| THE SPECS Year...........................................1972 Make.......................................Larson Model.................................Runabout Hull.........................................Tri-Hull Length..........................................18' Beam (width)..................................7' Engine................Mercury Mercruiser Horsepower................................165 Drive..........Stern (inboard/outboard) |
| The bow is long enough to sleep two adults on the benches, or keep a couple kids occupied who tend to get bored easily. |
| We tend to be a bit partial to the tri-hull design, even though a lot of people will tell you a deep vee cuts through the water better. But we aren't out to break any speed records. We rather like the fact that the boat doesn't rock as much with the kids bouncing around it. |
| The rear is rather devoid of sitting area, besides the two swivel seats, but I intend to redesign the whole area with long benches down the sides, a moulded fiberglass engine compartment, and a passage onto the ski platform that will be on the back. |
Tuesday, October 2, 2007