1973 19-6 restoration project

[Tampa Bay Mike]

 It looks great. Congrats on getting it wet!

[Capt. Bob]

Just the right size for the Keys.

Congrats!

[Ulysses485]

That’s awesome!! I have fond memories of camping at Bahia Honda as a kid each summer with the family. Haven’t been there in over a decade. Do they still have the marina area by the waterfront spots where you can keep your boat while you camp and stand overnight?

[McAllgeyver]

Yes! About 6 boats slips maybe.  It’s a cool protected area. Will be making more memories down there for sure!

[Dribs]

I know this project has been going on for a while but in the first pictures of the thread the front of the front fish box had a hole cut into it.  Do you remember if this hole gave easy direct access to the back of the bow eye? My 1972 196 bow eye recently snapped on one leg of the eye and needs to be replaced. I saw a thread about someone putting cutting a hole in that same spot and installing a pie plate to access the back of the eye but this thread is more active and shows a similar setup.

[Fish Head]

It sure does,go for it. Center your hole too if you want on that front vertical wall of the fish box and the bow eye is right there. Sorry I do not have a pic. My 72 19’6 is all wrapped up for winter. It!s colder than a witches (you know what) up North today! Cheers T

[McAllgeyver]

Thanks Fish Head. Yep. Like he said, it has a square hole with no cover to access the bow eye. I would have cut a circular hole out that would of course fit a pie plate access if I had done that.
Also, when redoing my bow eye, I had to chisel/cut /grind out the old wood “v” backing plate if you will, as it was totally rotted. That might have been a reason the eye broke if water soaked wood rusted out the legs of the eye.
I added quite a few layers of glass in the area to strengthen it and did not replace the wood.

[Dribs]

Thanks for the replies. Hopefully that backing wood is not rotten; my bow eye actually broke on the outside of the boat right at the beginning of the threads where there is an external nut and plate. Once hunting season is over and the boat is out of the water I will start on some repair and changes.  Repair the bow eye and install a smaller center console. McAllgeyver I saw that your build had an open hatch for the bilge.  I am thinking about installing a pie plate in the rear to gain access to the bilge area as well.

[McAllgeyver]

Yep. Bilge access never hurts! 

[McAllgeyver]

So I made a transducer spray deflector this holiday weekend. Of course I forgot to take pictures as I went going but I’ll give you guys the gist.

Used This that I got from Lowe’s. Got my grinder and cut to shape. Filed the sharp edges. Cut a small 1/4” slice down the back of it for the transducer cable to slide through. Found a grommet that was thick and fit the transducer cable.

Forgot to mention I added a DIY transom saver. I did screw it into the transom with 5200. After that was dry I screwed in the transducer with the spray shield behind it.



It worked pretty good. I do need to move my transducer down just a little bit so it reads the bottom better at speed. Worked great. We’ll see how long the stainless lasts!

[Dribs]

Hey all. I know this is an older thread but seems like the best thread to post on for this issue. I have a 1972 196 that has a small soft area where the deck meets the transom. I tried posting pictures but they were all too large. . My question is since there is nothing permanently supporting it underneath in the bilge area. If I cut that section out and replace it what is the best way to support the new section. I plan on glassing it into the section of deck that is solid and the transom, which is solid. Will that be enough support once the glass is set up and how should I support in in the mean time while the glass is setting up?  I’ve checked all the usual places, google and YouTube, but can only find full deck replacements or areas supported from below. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[McAllgeyver]

Thinking about your soft spot. One suggestion I thought you could do would be maybe remove the top layer of glass. Grind out the core material, which might be three-quarter inch plywood. Try to leave the inside layer of glass. That will be your “table” where you’d add some new glass. Then fit in some foam core and glue down.  After dry, sand down flush with surrounding area and glass a few layers on top. 
The key will be to try and not grind through the bottom layer of glass when grinding out the wood.
Hope it helps and you’ve got a great boat i our hands.