96 Skeeter 180ZX Restoration

[Dh0ckey11]

Greetings BBCers!

I am new to the forum, and am undertaking a restore project inspired by all of the awesome projects on here. I was initially planing to do a cumulative post when I got somewhere cool, but I have hit a snag, and need the ideas to "soak" for a while. So, in the mean time I have taken photos of my concerns and would love y'alls advice/comments/concerns.

The goal of this restoration is to turn this boat back into a fishing machine, so some of the cosmetic things are going to stay off the menu until next winter. I am currently planning to: patch/repair hull bottom, rewire entirely, install new livewell pumps (maybe with pumpout and all the goodies), new bilge pump, new battery/fuel compartment organization, all new bow/dash/console panels, patch/sand/compound top cap, complete trailer restore. I might also recarpet it, and reupholster the seats. Not sure.

This boat has been used and abused horribly, but by my novice estimation, is still structurally sound and will hopefully have many years ahead of it. The previous owner liked to drill holes, add gizmos, and run into rocks, so there is a lot of work to do.

The before pictures are terrible, but I'll post many more below.

Here's to a fun project!!

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[Dh0ckey11]

This is the absolute worst part of the boat, so I will get it out the way first. The pictures show one approx. 1/4" deep gouge, a three foot long, 3/4" wide scrape at least down to the fiberglass on the very keel, the severe pad damage (approx 8" wide, 3" long, 3/8" deep at worst spot), and the myriad of horrible looking scratches that are cosmetic.

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Now that that's outta the way, what do you think? Is it repairable? Is Marine-Tex a solution? I was originally hoping that marine-tex with black pigment would be good enough, but the pad concerns me some. Hopefully the experts will chime in.

[Dh0ckey11]

Here are a few pics of the transom I can get with the motor on. I did the knock and jump on motor tests prior to buying the boat, and it passed. One pic has a screwdriver inserted about a half inch through the cracked sealant and against the transom. It is solid there, but might be a bit moist. Was not sealed very well.
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The floors and the rest of the boat are pretty good, just needs a lot of patching and TLC. The trailer is a disaster, but a couple presidents and some weld-rod should fix her up.
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[95202DCX]

I would say you need a transom. Looks like a money pit...unless you can do ALL that work yourself.

[Dh0ckey11]

Here is a shot of some gel coat damage with a close up. What exactly am I looking at? Is this ship still in the gelcoat, or has it gone down to the glass? Will work on getting a better camera if its needed for the closeup, the pic sucks.

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Really there are two important questions, because there are literally hundreds of these:
1. Can it be patched, or should the gelcoat be resprayed (also considering the amount of patching needed)?
2. Can I leave it as is for a season without increasing the risk of further damage?

And here is my current problem. The Gas tank won't come out!!!
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[OkieLure]

Looks like fun times right there! Yes, its gonna require quiet a bit of TLC, but you can do most of that yourself if you've got some experience doing it in the past. Your right, those hull shots are bad. That's gonna take some significant time to repair. Other than the hull, your gelcoat appears to be in fair shape; those pics reflect a job you can do. Just do your research before diving in to any of that; ask questions and have fun with the process!

[Dh0ckey11]

I would say you need a transom. Looks like a money pit...unless you can do ALL that work yourself.

I plan on doing everything myself, so far at least. I'm not yet convinced the transom is done because everything seems solid so far. I will be taking off the motor to reseal the transom/jackplate at a minimum. Once the motor is off, I will reevaluate the transom (maybe drill some test holes too) and go from there. Hopefully there will not be any surprises.

If the transom is rotted....ugh. Not sure if I'll fix it or sell the hull and all the goodies to recoup my money.

Thanks for the words of encouragement OkieLure! Any advice on how to repair the pad/hull gouge. Marine tex should be able to fill the rest of the holes just fine, maybe all of them. idunno

[OkieLure]

Although some will say Marine Text is your biggest asset, I can't attest to it. I've only used polyester resin, vinyl ester resin and glass to fix projects on mine. I know how strong the resin is with the glass, I can't bring myself to using something else, yet. Maybe one day. As far as the hull, I think I'd get some opinions from a trusted local shop, do as much research as I could, then weigh my options of what to do. The hull will be your biggest time and money consuming part of the project. Totalbeverage has done some work on his hull issues, you might research his project and ask plenty of questions.

[tnmotoguy101]

Before I did any more work I would drill one or two small holes on the bilge side of the transom. If it is rotten or wet this will let you know for sure.

[Dh0ckey11]

Nice tip there Okie, I found a thread where TotalBeverage fixed this, and it looks pretty similar. I didn't find anything that said how he did it, so I sent a pm.

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I found another thread that suggested using Tiger Hair or something like that, a long strand fiberglass resin mixture. I think I will used that to fill the gauges and severely damaged portions, then marine tex over top once its cured to finish the bottom of the hull.

I will drill some test holes in the transom soon, just to be sure. Spent most of today removing things from the boat, and its almost ready to begin the repair work. I'm going to have a million screwholes to patch.

[basscat dad]

man dhokey11 you really bit off a chunk for your first project. i hope you didn't pay much. you've got so much bottom damage you're probably going to want to flip the hull once you get the motor off. it will make your life much easier. the most critical part of the bottom work is the pad. obviously a solid transom is huge. don't hesitate to do that repair if there's any indication at all that it's not solid. i'd focus on the hull for now and not worry about anything else until you get that squared away.
well you've got your work cut out for you but it's all doable. i agree that you're going to have to do it yourself to keep the cost from becoming prohibitive. ask lots of questions and use the talent and experience on this forum to help you. totalbeverage is the man when it comes to total restorations.
good luck on your project. keep us updated with pics as you go.

[Dh0ckey11]

Yeah, it is a big project. The test holes in the transom look good, so the hull is the current focus. I am going to try and flip it, but haven't got around to how yet. That will probably be easier with the top cap off...

I think I got a good price on the boat, but it really depends on if the motor is in as good of condition as I think it is. Low hours on a 200HP powerhead that is less than a year old. The reciept for the motor repair was more than I paid for the whole thing! The lower unit is beat up, but it ran fine when I looked at it. That and the $3K worth of electronics, I thought it was worth the risk. Plus, when something goes wrong on the water, I will hopefully know what to do. :) And since I am rewiring it, I'll know who screwed it up.

[Dh0ckey11]

Brief update: I have pulled all of the wiring and disconnected the motor. I will be getting that off tomorrow, after a visit to the dealer to pick up the lifting eye. All of the gauges worked when bench testing, so those are reusable. I have ordered all of the components for the new wiring harness I am making, and started to get some of those today :). The gas tank is still stuck, but I am going to try and work it out while I have access to an engine hoist tomorrow. Carpet is still in the boat, waiting to see how much the restore costs to determine if that will fit in the budget/schedule. New livewell/bilge pumps are here, and I have settled on the Flow-rite V4 system with the pumpout aerator valve.

In the mean time, I need to get some gelcoat repair kits on the way and talk to Iguana about some panel ideas I have. Also need to start patching all of the topcap holes. Still a lot of work left!!

[OkieLure]

Awesome, good luck.

[Dh0ckey11]

Another update!

I finally removed the gas tank by cutting a 1/4" off of the lip of the topcap. It will be easy to fix once the tank goes back in. I then removed all of the bilge equipment, and powerwashed and scrubbed the bilge for what seemed like an eternity. Pulled the motor and lifted the boat off the trailer with the hoist and a jack, set both the motor and boat on some wooden cribs I made.

Once the trailer was removed, I realized how bad it was. The frame is bent, bow support is bent, fenders are both goners, and some of the bunk supports are broken/bent. All of the bunks were completely rotted out, and a few caused some damage to the gel coat. Ugh. Just another thing to add to the list of crap to fix... I'll call a few frame shops in the area to see how much it will cost to fix the trailer.

Next step is to begin work on the hull. The fun is about to start, but I have to wait a week thanks to work.
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[OkieLure]

Well dadgum, you just thought the boat was being repaired. Sorry to hear that about the trailer!

[hurky509]

looks like that boat fell off the trailer at the ramp at some point with all that damage, hats off to you for re-commissioning a poorly cared for boat

[Dh0ckey11]

Big update today. I have made solid progress on the bottom of the boat. Marine-Tex'd all of the gouges and the pad. It took two coats with sanding between to build up the pad. Pics show the result after the second coat application, but before sanding it back down with 150 grit. After sanding, I cleaned up the bottom with wax and grease remover, then acetone, and then began applying black tinted Evercoat Polyester Gel-Paste to the scratches and the bunk damage spots that are pictured. I have applyed the Gel-Paste to about 1/2 of the bottom, so I have some more work to do there.
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On the trailer front, I was able to find an old Ranger 327 trailer at my awesome local-ish dealer for a good price and brought it home. The bunks need some re-positioning, but everything about this trailer is better and more robust then the original skeeter one. I have it completely disassembled right now, but it should go back together fairly easily. Got most of the lumber and steel tonight. Still have to find some 2"x1" channel somewhere for the new bunk supports, and I need to make a material decision for the trailer steps. Cedar, marine plywood, or steel. Not sure yet.
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I feel like I'm about halfway through the project now and the end is in sight. It has to be ready in a month, so the next couple of weeks will be busy.

[Dh0ckey11]

Weekend update. I replaced the fenders on new trailer, and got all of the bunk supports cut out and welded on to the frame. Painted 'em, cut and pilot drilled boards to fit, and purchased all new SS hardware for mounting the bunks. Just waiting on the carpet to get here on Wednesday to finish up the trailer. I decided to go with plywood for the trailer steps since it is so much easier to work with and much cheaper. Will replace with steel if I decide to keep it forever. I robbed all of the goodies from the old trailer to make a fully functioning set of lights and have some spares to boot. Replaced the jack too, with a shiny new Fulton. Old trailer is cut up and loaded to go to the scrap yard. Last, but not least, I finished the gel-paste application to the bottom of the boat. I need to finish up a few scratches on the topcap, but the next week or so will be full of sanding and polishing.

[Everydayangler]

not meaning to rain on your parade but I thought the transom in my boat was ok cause it was just a little wet up top, let me tell you I am very glad I took the time and dig it out and re poured a new transom cause there were spots in it that were rotton around the bolts that I couldn't see, it wasn't was solid as I thought. just a little advice if you see wet wood up top chances are its wet and starting to rot throughout. again not trying to derail your efforts just don't want to see you get the boat done and find out that the transom is infact bad and something bad happen.it felt really solid when I jumped on the motor which makes me even more glad I did it cause I didn't think it was as bad as it was.