Finally added more pics to my album

[RickK]

Jim - the closeups you asked for of the latching mechanism on my trailer.
Kash - some ideas on covers and supports.
Miquel - you're not the only one with so much room in the back  
For all 170/5 owners - the layout up front on a 71. (sorry about the bimini in the way - you get the idea though)

[Miguel]

Nice work............

[Fishhead]

Nice work Rickk,a classic nice lines.Work is never done on a boat,We will always find ways to keep working on them.Whats next in store for it?

[RickK]

Nice work Rickk,a classic nice lines.Work is never done on a boat,We will always find ways to keep working on them.Whats next in store for it?

Thanks guys,
I spent the last couple half days installing a new Garmin GPSMAP 188C GPS / Sonar (fishfinder) on her.  There was nothing wrong with my old Hummingbird TCR4ID except that it was old and no gps.  I think I bought it 14 years ago.  This new one has the new generation fish/depthfinder and I also bought the bluecharts card for my area so when I turn to gps mode it is like looking at a chart with channel markings, marker numbers, depths and such.  Great for venturing into new areas around here.  Boaters World has them on the discontinued list and for $400 off reg price, now was the time.  There will be a little learning curve though. Gonna take her out today and play around with it.
Don't know what will be next.  Maybe find an alternate material to replace the board(s) for the front of the storage and at the very front/line locker.  There has to be some composite that won't warp and will look nice.

Miquel and JimCT - I also wanted to point out the differences in rod storage between our years.  JimCT, ours are only a year apart but they drastically changed the storage areas.  Mine, as you can see by the pics are enclosed "things" that are screwed into the sides of the inner liner, with rod holders attached and no holes for longer poles.  That's why I have 4 rocket launchers on each side of the console.  Yours and Miquel's  look like they cut away the inner liner, wrapped teak around it and attached rod holders right to the hull - correct?
JimCT I see that you keep your battery in the back, Miquel, where are yours?  Under the console? (My fuel tank is there if I ever rip the floor out again....) Sure frees up some space back there.  The hydraulic lines on mine take up some room back there too.
Miquel, did you finish the thwart seat?

[JimCt]

Rick,  Thanks for the pictures.  Looks like AS made up an entirely new inner liner mold what with the differences between the rod holder compartments & the aft cleat placement.  Likely other mods. too.

Concerning battery placement, there's absolutely no room under my console for the bat.  Standing at my console if you kick your foot forward your toe will hit the after end of the fuel tank.  Would like to relocate battery to a less vulnerable area but that doesn't seem possible.  From a maintenance standpoint the on-deck tank is great but it sure eats up valuable real-estate.

You'll wonder how you ever got along without GPS.  Picked up an older Si-Tex unit on eBay last year.  Plots in B & W only and has limited features by today's standards.  Takes the Navionics chip & zooms to about 1/8 mi. which is fine for my apps.  Also provides a second opinion on boat speed.  One thing I notice about my behavior when the thing is on is that I tend to look too much at the screen for piloting rather than actually looking for marks & picking out land features for myself.

That definately is a neat trailer.

[Miguel]

RickK:
My rod compartment is a cutout of the inner liner with rod holders attached to the hull, just as you state.
My battery is located under the console, which frees up valuable space in the cockpit.
I never got to build the seat.  In the end I decided it was going to leave little space in the back, whihc is a disadvantege rather than an advantage.  I guess it could be made removable, to only use it for cruising and not for fishing trips.  The other problem is that as is, this boats are sten heavy.  I´m thinking about adding trim tabs.  If you sit two people in the back, the boat may ride bow up.

[JimCt]

Rick,

Been again pouring over the new pictures you posted.

Any idea if the console's original with yout boat?  Reason I'm asking is that in one of your pictures showing the fwd. cooler, the console does not have a forward moulded-in seat as part of the console.  Mine does have the seat but I'm wondering now if my fuel tank extends forward into the cavity inder the seat. If my tank is configured like your tank, it doesn't.  As a point of reference, my tank holds 25g.

That got me to thinking...

Wonder if there's some way for me to find out if the cavity under my console seat is vacant without unfastening & lifting the console.  On newer 170's there's a cooler in there under a trap door lid.  No trap door on mine.  Would love to put a locker in there if the space is free.

Any thoughts?

[RickK]

Based on other pics I've seen of consoles, I doubt mine is original - but who knows? Look a the changes in one model year. My tank's (24gal.) front top edge is almost, if not right against the CC angled front.  Yours is probably the same, a rectangle in a not rectangle area.
I'm thinking about building a standoff on the front of the console, out of some composite, with the male part of snaps on the underside so I can snap a cushion on it. I need something for a backrest for whomever is sitting on the cooler, normally my wife (until I hit a wave and she gets sprayed/soaked or just slammed - I know, I know, it's not supposed to be funny but.. ..... our dog doesn't even venture forward of the CC when we're really pushing it, she's glued to the back of my legs as I stand behind the CC, her on the seat).
Miquel, there is a new house being built across the street from mine and one of the carpenters saw me working on my boat yesterday.  He asked what year she was..... ends up he recently bought an '88 22'2".  I told him about this home we have here.
Looking at the available space aft on our boats compared to the big boys, it's easy to get 5ft envy....
(We just won't tell them that  :) )

[JimCt]

Thanks for the info.  Now I'm almost positive mine's the same tank.  Next thing is to figure out how to prove it without unhooking everything and lifting it.  If it is the same, then I've added another spring project to the list.

[JimCt]

Maybe add seatbelt to the cooler for the Mrs?  And an unbrella?  

[RickK]

Frank1861 posted a link to this boat on boattrader in another thread: http://adcache.boattraderonline.com/6/2/9/81321729.htm
 and some of the design features on this model (changes from our year 170s) caught my eye. (thanks frank)
1. Seems they've gone back to an enclosure for the rod storage but cut some holes for the rods to fit in.  Looks a lot cleaner now and is something I could incorporate into mine.
2. I see a toe-stubber on the starboard side where the floor meets the liner wall - what is that?  the fuel filler tube?  Seems they didn't think that one through very well.  Anyone have this in their model?  Is it a toe-stubber?
3. I like the storage, livewell, whatever they are in the aft corners.  Seem huge and high but could be just the way the pic was taken.  Seems they raised the transom height a bit? The sides don't seem any higher - maybe a little shorter in the front on the casting platform.
4. They put a means to slide a board, or something, in front of the motor to enclose the transom. I like the added height and this to complete the enclosure.  More peice of mind in a following sea.
5. I like the color.  Wonder if it is that color all the way through the gelcoat or if you sctratch it does it show white?
Just my $.02.