My boat renovation.

Very cool table. A perfect blend between our two countries. Thanks for the post.
 
Hello Michael,

I introduced myself on your other thread. I have the identical boat (year/layout/engines) located in Goderich. Bought her four years ago and had major repairs to the hull's exterior that needed to be ground down, reglassed and refinished by O'Rourke Boat Repair in Penetang. Also have completed some interior, cockpit and operational upgrades. Made changes to improve performance and function with additional trim tabs, fuel flowmeters and installed 4 solar panels on cockpit canvas to support house batteries while on the hook.

I am overwhelmed by the project you have taken on and would like to stay in touch. I now had quite a bit of experience with the engines and boat performance. Let me know if you would like to share information.

You will find additional posts from 460 Express owners in
Forums - Sea Ray Boats - Classic Sea Rays - 460 Express Cruiser (1985-1989) Discussion Area

Regards,

Jeff Evans
 
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Hi Jeff
Thank you for getting in touch with me. I would definitely like to talk about your experiences with this boat. It's funny that you mentioned solar panels. I was just looking at them and will be investigating them at the boat show in Toronto. If you are ever in the St Jacobs area feel free to contact me and come see our Becky. I can't remember if I put this in the blog but that is the informal name my wife gave our boat. Enjoy your time away and maybe we can talk when you get back.
Michael
 
Hello everyone. This past summer I, along with one of my brothers, purchased a 1987 460 Express Cruiser with the intention a doing a bit of work on it to turn it into a floating cottage. As with any project like this it took on a life of it's own. My two other brothers have joined us to work on it as well. We are having the best time on this project.
I have a blog now that I post regular updates on.

My1987searay.com

Click on "follow" at the bottom of the screen if you are interested. We are learning as we go along and would appreciate any advice.


Hi Michael, Love the Job your doing And all the updates. In one of your early Blogs you mention the finished wall board name and now i can't seem to find it. Can you tell me the name of it, is it 3/4" and where i might be able to find some in Long Island NY

Thanks Les
 
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Hi Les
Thanks for following along. I always enjoyed watching others do renos (always loved This Old House) and am glad that there others out there that enjoy watching our project.
I think the product you are referring to is Starboard. Here is a link to where you can get it. It would be too expensive for me to get it in Canada .

https://www.kingplastic.com/products/king-starboard/

I hope this helps
Michael
 
Hi Les
Thanks for following along. I always enjoyed watching others do renos (always loved This Old House) and am glad that there others out there that enjoy watching our project.
I think the product you are referring to is Starboard. Here is a link to where you can get it. It would be too expensive for me to get it in Canada .

https://www.kingplastic.com/products/king-starboard/

I hope this helps
Michael

Hi again Michael What I'm Referring to are the wood sheets brown looking in color at least i think its wood on the walls. Im helping a Friend redo a 46' foot Post and we like the look of that product. Thank you for the Quick response.

Les
 
I understand now. It is a plastic laminate and it is exact match to Tafisa Winter Cherry.

http://www.tafisa.ca/our-colours/winter-cherry

Tafisa is a melamine product with a particle board core. This wouldn't be suitable for a marine application. When I get to work tomorrow I will find out the supplier of the plastic laminate match and the colour number. The core we used was Baltic Birch. It is a very stable plywood that is excellent for laminate.
 
I understand now. It is a plastic laminate and it is exact match to Tafisa Winter Cherry.

http://www.tafisa.ca/our-colours/winter-cherry

Tafisa is a melamine product with a particle board core. This wouldn't be suitable for a marine application. When I get to work tomorrow I will find out the supplier of the plastic laminate match and the colour number. The core we used was Baltic Birch. It is a very stable plywood that is excellent for laminate.
Thank you for your Time and information !
Les
 
Good Morning Les,
The two suppliers that I found on Long Island are listed below. The colour number is T541-AT Winter Cherry and I used the Alto finish. This has a raised grain embedded in the laminate which looks and feels great but it means that you have to be careful when you file the edges. Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.
Michael

Rugby Architectural Bulding Products

Address: 20 Evergreen Place Deer Park, 11729 NY US
Contacts: 1-631-242-4369



Atlantic Plywood

Address: 220 Smith St Farmingdale, 11735 NY US
Contacts: 1-800-818-0434
 
We are just over 2 months away from sending our boat to it's forever home and the paint will probably still be wet on the hull as it's leaving.
It has been a marathon getting to this point.
Check out our blog to watch our progress.
My1987searay.com
 
Been following along. Excellent work!
 
On the email chain as well. You've asked a couple times what you call the 'dash'? The technical term is 'helm' or 'helm station'.

Looking great!
 
What about the area beyond the helm? The flat part just under the windshield? Just wondering if there was a name for it?
 
Been following this all since you started.

What a amazing job you and your team has done so far and as all have said you all have talent.
I think more boats would get refurbished like this if there was a cost effective way to do it and to get replacement parts.

Kinda like old houses or old cars all the ready made replacement parts are so easy to get now it makes for very easy the average joe to do it.

What you have taken on is amazing.

What are your plans for the engine room. Me being me I would want to pull everything out and repaint and replace all that you could in the best cost effective way.

Im sure someone is keeping a spread sheet of the cost to do the project. It will be interesting to see what your total is at the end material and labor. I know for a project like this that is not what it is about however it would be interesting to see.

Years ago we rehab a 75ft house boat. Pretty much like you have done leveled it down to just the deck and then rebuilt the whole boat including engines, drives and gen.
Our budget was 100k knowing we would go over and in the end we spent 180k our big cost being the engines, drives, gen. As the project developed things where added that drove the cost up too. Just like you it was done with friends and it was kinda a labor of love so to speak. We did the project in 10 months.

In the end we had replace 100% of the boat other than the hull.
 
I appreciate the comments. I think a boat renovation is something that can never be economical. Once the word "marine" is added to it the price triples. The engine room will be a 2021 project for sure. We might start cleaning it up later this year but it is a large job in itself. Engines scare me so I am happy to put it off.
I have been keeping a spreadsheet but it might have disappear after we are done. Ignorance is bliss.
We probably could have done this in half the time and cost using cheaper materials and not trying to be so precise but there is no way Donald would have be happy with that.
It will be 10 months on June 15th... which is the day she is being picked up and delivered to the marina on Georgian Bay.
 
I just ran across this thread. Don't know how I've missed it for so long. First of all great job and amazing work. Wish I had your and especially Donald's talents and patience. I read your entire blog this morning and was so into it I didn't realize it was already 1:30 in the afternoon. Thanks for all the postings and pictures. Looking forward to the rest of your renovation. Stay safe and good luck on the rest.
 
So glad you were able to find us. My brother and I feed off each other's energy and patience. We keep each other accountable. Two to three more weeks and should be able to mainly focus on the exterior. Another post will be coming out today. Thanks for the comments and I hope you are able to enjoy as much of the boating season as possible.
 

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