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CDC Member Crappie Chaser Upgrades
Well this is how the boat was dropped off.
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This is a very nice Bumble Bee all Coosa built boat. Being a single console there is a nice and wide area is on the Port side to lay down your jig poles.
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After being in the shop for a hour we were well into the job. I wish I took a before & after picture of his carpet right under the hydraulic steering helm as it was a mess. The owner wanted to cut the carpet out writing it off as forever ruined but a 30 second wipe with the paint prep cleaner I use and the carpet looked like new. His Hot Foot was really nasty too so while I had it out I showed my bud the fish cleaning station and handed him a can of Gunk Foamy and a small stainless wire brush.
The boat is here for re-wiring and updating the plumbing. Some cosmetics may be addressed after the work is done. The Bunks need new carpet too. The Cowl on the engine had the decals on the back peeling off so I removed the balance of the decal & remaining glue then used my Rupes Polisher to return the Cowl to a factory new shine.
Some electronics wiring upgrading is happening too as well as relocating the GLS-10 box to a higher airflow area.
This is a type of Bass Boat that you must remove the Fuel Tank to access some of the plumbing connections. So the tank is out. Also Oil Tank relocation, Battery reconfiguration, and a new Tongue Jack too. The bow raised Dual Electronics mount is one of my creations I made about 4 years ago. It gave great strength and spanned the Recessed Foot Control Pan. More later.
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Plumbing, Plumbing, Plumbing
We tore out all the plumbing hoses and I removed most everything else today. Every fitting I removed was installed with Bath & Shower Silicone. That Silicone is not intended to be used outdoors much less in a boat below the waterline. Since the replacement fitting arrived today for the most part I got the 5200 and went to work.
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The old fittings were made of the cheapest plastic I have ever seen, not a quality nylon but CHEAP. They had to go. Most of the fittings used in this job are T-H Marine Nylon fittings except the Stainless hardware I had in my stash. My Bud gave me the nice Lowrance in my Champion pictures, the Lowrance displaying the Mercury ProXS 175 Live Engine data so I am wanting better for him where I think he needs it. I like to set the Bilge drains so all the water is removed when opened but both new fittings I installed was larger than the original plastic hardware. The retaining nut had a flange I had to grind down as the diameter of the retaining nut prevented it from pulling up flush to the Transom. It hit the bottom of the Hull first cocking the fitting for a for sure leak down the road. With a mounting hole remaining in a location I had no way of correcting and also needing both mounting screws to remain above the bottom of the boat cocking the Drain on a angle like I did took care of two issues at one time.
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You have to pull the fuel tank for access to do most of this work so I am as Slab says "working 110%" for my Bud. He had a recirculation system which was leaking water into the bilge. We Crappie fish and I'm wiring his Livewell with a Timer so his well remains full of water and there is a turnover of freshwater. I never have dead Crappie in my Livewell and it is smaller than this one. A new Pro grade Livewell pump is going back in.
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It's hard to see but I have the Remove Livewell Drain Valve already attached to the Hull fitting.
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We relocated the Bilge discharge from the Stbd side below the Cap seam to the ramped Splashwell (this boat has no actual Splashwell) on the Stbd side of the engine as high as possible. This does two things, one it prevents the Bilge from filling if the discharge fitting is below the waterline and the check fails and what I like is if and when the Bilge Pump is on it is remarkable easy to see the discharge as it's shooting up in the air behind the boat. We are short 1-1/8 Bilge Hose so the important thing is the 5200 installed fittings will have a few days to cure before we terminate hoses onto them.
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Recessed TM Control Pan Delete
The newer Ulterra Foot Control is very difficult to use within the TM Control Pan so I deleted it. I used the old pan and Layout Punches to mark all the mounting holes. Also the edges were deburred and sanded smooth. The welded pipe you see is the custom Dual Electronics mount I made for this boat a few years ago. It's Stout!
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Here I'm Freehanding the bevel into the SeaDek covering for the new panel.
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A Leather Punch was used to punch holes into the SeaDek to recess the screw heads.
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Nice and Tidy delete.
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Wiring and Finishing for now Here
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I made a all new wiring harness for the vessel. First pulling everything in and securing the wire bundles well for days the wind will not stop blowing. Roughing in first is how I like to do it.
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After spotting the batteries new trolling motor breaker and battery switch was mounted. The Fuel tank was installed and hoses reconnected. The fill hose for the livewell and bilge discharge were connected, wires secured, and a final check of the boat's wiring was tested.
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These is still work to be done. Some of the switches bought were wrong, the electronics supply lines were run but not connected, the GLS10 box in the Livescope system was not mounted but all wires were pulled. After over a week of work my Bud pulled his boat home to finish up what was left. I had high hopes of picking it up off the trailer to recarpet the bunks but time didn't allow for that. Hopefully we can get that done soon.
