Nitro 901 Restore Project (please add input)

[jakarpinsk1]

I think i am just going to make this one post to follow and ask questions through in regard to my boat.

This fall/winter i am looking to start the restoration of my boat. I boat it used, and well it wasnt that well taken care of. There a a number of things that i want to do to including:

Address the Gel Coat
Seats (redo or replace)
Carpet
Wiring
Other..

The gel coat looks great from far away, the nice blue shines in the sun and i love everytime i see it like that. But when you get closer you can see some of the inperfections. The top "gunnel" is very hazy and oxidized. It almost looks as if the previous owner put an additional gel coat ontop to redo. I am thinking about wetsanding and getting down to the orignal and making it look nice. Let me know if you have any input on this.

The seats are torn, and really if i just replaced the seats in the boat it would probably make the boat look 10000x nicer. Nothing worse than driving loving your boat and someone looks over and sees the seats all torn with foam coming out the holes in the top. This is a must replace. The biggest decision i need to make is whether to re-cover at a local shop (Still need to get an estimate) or purchase new seats. I really want to have a 3rd seat in there because i like bringing a bunch of my friends and the extra seating does help.

The carpet is another project i want to take on, it is really worn out and looks pretty bad. I am hoping to be able to do this myself and have already started looking at different carpeting i could put in the boat. Currently the color is tan, but i kinda think a grey-ish color might make the boat look a lot nicer!... only worry is with the heat from the sun.

The wiring in the boat is just plane terrible... there is so much wiring that the previous owner did that is just a mess, wires that are connected to nothing and all sagging down. It really is a mess, and hard to troubleshoot wires or electric problems when there are soo many wirings that shouldnt even be in place. Going along with that... i THINK each of the compartments have lighting in them?? but none of them work, that would be pretty sweet to get working again.

So this is going to be my big project that i look to take on, I know there has already been one Nitro 901 restore on there (Blinged Nitro 901) and that looks amazing.

Hopefully i can count on the support and guidance from everyone on here!! Its been a great season of fishing and i hope to have another month or so of fishing, but once its done i am really gonna start focusing on this project!

[STRETCH1]

SOunds like the start of a great project. Be careful not to spend too much money.

I restored an old Ranger boat a few years ago. I did basically everything. Based on my experience here are some of my comments:

Gel Coat- I would definately wet sand and buff what you got. Spraying a new gel coat is a pain when you got other things to work on.

Seats -> Find a local upholstery shop to recover them. I did mine for about $350 and the quality was awesome. If you want to change the style of your seats then you might be able to find them online or just buy new.

Carpet -> I redid mine on both my boats once. The big boat is going to get a new front carpet with pad this winter. Easy to do and we can definately give you some advice when the time comes. One word of caution, the 20+ oz carpet might look great but you will have issues with your boxes not closing/opening unless you shave the lids (I di not recommend that). I think the Nitros use 14oz carpet.

Wiring -> If it is a mess I would just pull everything out except the engine harness and start over. You could troubleshoot your existing wiring and fix all of the issues but you never know when other issues with re-appear, nothing worse than turning on your light switch, bildge pump, livewells etc... and having nothing happen. The campartment lighting is cool, I plan to put that in when I get a chance. I like the magnetic switches like BassCat uses to light their compartments so you never get a stuck switch.

[jakarpinsk1]

Here is what the wiring looks like.... I gotta wonder how anything even works.. well thats right most of it doesnt....


Lighting does work correctly, never really goes off? I think the dashboard is supposed to be lit, but that doesnt work. Theres a dimmer switch but it doesnt dim anything. its just a mess haha.

[sandbarDan]

somebody probably tried to "fix" a bad switch and bypassed it to another circuit. You should call nitro see if you could get a wiring diagram. Big mess have fun..

[DanBosmanFishing]

I feel your pain. I restored my 901 this last winter. Sounds like it was in the same condistion as yours. I have pictures on my website of some of the restoration. Feel free to check it out. I would be glad to help in any way that i can.

[mofomike]

DanBosman....
I think your tractors sexy!!

Oh ya. nice job on the resto too.

[jakarpinsk1]

Has anyone done Calking? Where where the boat connects on the outside?Majority of mine has fallen out and im thinking that is allowing water into the boat.

Any ideas?

Havent really started any Restore on the boat yet, i am running into electrical problems so this will be a winter/spring project depending on where i store my boat

[laps19]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by jakarpinsk1 &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Here is what the wiring looks like.... I gotta wonder how anything even works.. well thats right most of it doesnt....


Lighting does work correctly, never really goes off? I think the dashboard is supposed to be lit, but that doesnt work. Theres a dimmer switch but it doesnt dim anything. its just a mess haha.</td></tr></table>

That dimmer switch is most likely a timer for your livewell

Good luck with your project!

Mike

[guisertj]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by jakarpinsk1 &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Has anyone done Calking? Where where the boat connects on the outside?Majority of mine has fallen out and im thinking that is allowing water into the boat.

Any ideas?

Havent really started any Restore on the boat yet, i am running into electrical problems so this will be a winter/spring project depending on where i store my boat</td></tr></table>

Get out whatever loose silicone is still in there, and I would use some 3m 5200 marine sealant and seal again.

[jakarpinsk1]

So one of the most noticeable problems with the boat is the seats. They look terrible. So i went on the boat seat store and purchased some new seats.


The problem is they don't fit right so i am going to have to do some modding with the boat so they fit properly. I can't return them because one already has screw holes in it.

This is going to be a lot more work than i would of liked but you gotta do what you gotta do. These seats aren't mounted yet but hopefully they will be soon... because its going to be snowing here in NY soon!

[BigBait Intervention]

Man the new seat color is the bomb! Way nicer look for that boat for sure.

Dig in and get r done it's looking 100% better already.

BBI

[keefus]

Good choice on the seats you got. Colors look great.

[dchance]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by jakarpinsk1 &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Here is what the wiring looks like.... I gotta wonder how anything even works.. well thats right most of it doesnt....


Lighting does work correctly, never really goes off? I think the dashboard is supposed to be lit, but that doesnt work. Theres a dimmer switch but it doesnt dim anything. its just a mess haha.</td></tr></table>

"Little knot, you work on that Russ"

- Clark W. Griswald, Christmas Vacation

[DundeeMike221]

Wiring messes can be a pain in the butt, especially if you don't have a wiring diagram. It is very time consuming, and frustrating. When I got my project boat, the wiring was a mess, and of course no wiring diagram. I started where the hot wire comes out of the fuse box, to the switches. Then I took one section at a time, traced the wires, thru the wire colors, and traced them to switches, pumps, etc. After awhile things came together, and I knew the wiring scheme pretty well. Point is, take your time and work one section at a time, you will be ok...
As far as the carpet, I have done a few nitros, and used 24 oz carpet from Bass Cat, and had no problems with the compartments at all. .....

[bassassn]

seats look great!

[jakarpinsk1]

Alright well the boat is still in storage but I'm getting excited to get it out and start working on it because we have had like NO snow this year! I recently bought a Lowrance Elite 5 fishfinder, so I'm ready to mount that on the dash, and move the old lowrance to the bow.

I still need to figure out how to mount the seats, they are bigger than the old ones so I'm going to have to custom mount them somehow.. the angle makes the seats block the compartments behind the seats.... so thats my bug challenge. If I get the boat out this month I'll going to go at it with everything, gel coat restore...wish I had pics of it.. and carpet replacement.

Can't wait for 2012 season to start!!!!

[bwizard]

Good luck with the wiring.... If you dont allready know, there is an industry standard for wire colors. That may help you figure out where things are going. Clip all the cable ties and start tracing.... . Ive found the more you crawl up under that mess and stare at it, the easier it gets to figure out. Dont be affraid to clip out the stuff thats been spliced in. Also, get a little 12v test light. http://www.rvpartscenter.com/P...D=192
This link could be helpful.... http://easyacdc.com/boat-wiring-colors/

[jakarpinsk1]

Thanks that'll be very helpful!! Any good articles about fuse box, mine looks like a mess not sure what each fuse is related to.

[tundra mike]

im starting a resto project myself on a 1991 predator, when i started looking at the wiring it was a mess, however because im replacing the guages and all the switches to update everything i just cut all the wiring out and figure i would start over, yes its alot of work however taking this route eliminates the tracing everything down. im replacing all the lights, redoing the trolling motor plug and everything else so ill know all the wiring that needs to go into the boat!

[jakarpinsk1]

Great thanks!! Do you have a post that is following your restore project. I'm interested in following it and looking at pictures.