1973 SRV 240 Repower/Restoration. Moving Forward Again.

jitts3

jitts3

Well-Known Member
Dec 16, 2008
1,374
Freedom, WI
Boat Info
1989 Sea Ray 268 Sundancer
Engines
454 Bravo 2
Back in January 2009 I started this thread.

http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/14559-73-SRV-240-Repower-in-progress

I figure it belongs under Classic Sea Rays instead of Pictures. Finally after a long time holding onto dreams we are going to start this project again. This time with help, love and support from my girlfriend Charlene. First let me introduce her to you all.
Charlene and I met back in 1995 when I was in the Air Force and stationed in North Carolina. We were just friend back then. Her and her now Ex were friends of mine. I fact back then their house was like my second home. After I left there and went back home we stayed in distant contact. I got married and had my Sons. Charlene struggled with her husband with his now crippling narcotics addiction. I got divorced and got involved in another disastrous 5 year relationship. In this time I bought the old 73. Charlene did the same. Left the drug addict and got involved with another looser.
In 2010 Charlene and I got together as a couple finally. We were good friends so long, and have so many similar likes and hobbies. It was perfect.

A few days ago I showed her the CSR Forum. I showed her a thread or two. Before that we took the Motor home down to the Florida Keys and rented a boat. Now they all want me to get one of the two stalled projects done. Now with the Peterbilt and Semi Trailer paid off finally, I can spend a little more time at home and a little more money on projects.

Yesterday we were delivering in Charlevoix Michigan. We had a CNC machine to be delivered. We were looking at the marinas we past. We went over the Mackinac Bridge and took some cool pics. I showed her a thread of the demise of rronds beloved Lil Krissy in Hurricane Sandy, and the new Day Tripper. We talked and decided. The 240 (Stugots) needs tons of smaller things to be operational and for longer road trips a new trailer. The old one will do for now locally. The engine and drive are operational and holding down my shop floor. Ready to go in. The 200 (Moxie) needs me to build the engine. The machine shop work is done. But the go faster parts need to be bought. And since I am a "go big or go home" guy, I wouldn't enjoy my runabout with a stock engine and exhaust you can't hear. Charlene made the decision. Get Stugots going. Then when we are done there build Moxie the way you want. Stugots is more versatile too.
In the end of last summer I had to make room in our shop and they went outside. In the snow the blue tarps collapsed and fell in. So now there they are stuck in snow. Deep snow drifts were I front of them almost as tall as the bow rails. Time to get them out. So we plowed the lot in front of them. Huge drifts were moved with my old F250. Here are the pics of that. For you southern boaters. Now you will know why you live where you do.

The piles in front of the Ford and that whole area were drifted over. It took me 2 hours to plow that heavy crap.



Charlene tried to dig out Moxie after the owner of an Ice Shanty took it away from next to it. We need to finish digging her out and get a real cover on her. I hitched to her with the Ford. Even in 4x4 she didn't budge. More shoveling is requied.



Here is Stugots after I plowed.





We shoveled and shoveled. This crap was like a glacier. Thick and heavy. You can see the layers in the snow.





And shoveled





Check out the layers of snow cover.



Keep Shoveling!





And more...



Getting there....



DONE! Well with shoveling anyway...





The trailer tires are junk. They will hold air for a good while but are flat. Next we will air them up and try to get her out.
 
WOW! Nice bit of snow you have there! My wife and I moved to Washington State 2 1/2 years ago from Northeast Ohio. We miss the snow, but with all things, there are some nagging bits we don't miss. Nice boat you have going. As you move along with your project, the folks here on the forum will give some invaluable advice from their experiences. When you and Charlene are finished and have her in the water and getting admiring waves and looks, you'll have the good feeling inside knowing the work you both accomplished to bring her back to life. Keep us posted!
 
Yea, at first here back when I was contemplating buying this boat I had lots of questions. Many people gave me answers and recommendations. I hate that I stalled out the way I did on this job. But I explain it at the end of the first thread. I just got so sidetracked with everything. After a while even forgot about the projects.
But now we are kinda like "under new mgt". Charlene and my sons are solid with getting the boat done since Florida. So now it's time to get her out, covered up and back in the shop so we can finish what I started alone many years ago.
 
Well we got done with working on the semi trailer today and figured we would try to rescue the 240 Stugots from the Frozen Tundra here in Wisconsin. First thing was to plow away the crap we shoveled yesterday.

My 75 Ford plowing snow. Yea yea she's old. But man can that thing move snow. She's a beast. I've had her for many years now and she has done me well all there years. And still at it.





You really got to give Charlene credit for helping out. All that snow I am plowing, she helped shovel it out yesterday:wow:



Now instead of going back and forth between the boats and the shop we used a rather convenient "portable air compressor" so we can air the tires up on the dead trailer.



Simply hook an air hose to the Peterbilt's trailer air supply (red air line) and press in the trailer air supply valve in the cab and instant 120 PSI of pressure at my disposal.:grin:



So now I air up the tires. Hopefully they will get thinner than the hole they are sitting in. We will see.







Now the plan is to use the motorhome to tug the Sea Ray out. I figured the Ford truck even in 4x4 would just spin her wheels. The motorhome unlike the truck has an automatic transmission. And I would have an easier time nursing her out if that's what it took. But in the end the bet was the motorhome even though 2wd would have better traction. She's heavier and is a duallie. A total of 4 tires with the heavy motorhome plus the heavy boat. I did have the Peterbilt as backup to assist if needed.:huh:



IT WORKED! IT ACTUALLY &%/÷ING WORKED! With a little rocking and wheel spinning she clawed right out.:smt038





I was very happy. Can you tell?



Here are the holes the tires were in on the ground. It was soft at one point.



You can see where the motorhome was spinning struggling to get the old 73 out.



a few quick passes to clean her spot. Once covered up and when it's time to go trucking she goes back to the same place. Just not in the holes.:grin:




Now time to get Moxie out and covered back up. Come on Charlene... Grab them shoveles....:smt014
 
So after we got the old 73 out of the frozen ground, I had to go make a parts run for the semi trailer. When I got back we ate and headed to Menards (Lowes/Home Depot without the NASCAR Sponsorship markup). We got some much needed material to properly cover the boat and still be able to work inside her while being covered.



I figured I would take the pic and let Charlene get the spotlight. Nobody wants to see me anyway....




The tarp is the heavy duty thick stuff. Silver on one side and black on the other. The wood is for a frame to be constructed in the boat making a house shape frame for the tarp to drape over. It will be tied to the trailer with rope or bungee cords like I use for Tarping loads to my flatbed for work. The black side will face out. The silver side will face in. This way when it is outside the black outside will help heat the inside. Also the silver on the inside will help for lighting while working inside. This will help reguardless if the boat is inside my shop or not. My shop is very big but is a pole barn with no insulation. The heater ia a diesel fired torpedo heater and will not work or help in the boat. So we got 2 electric heaters for inside. A smaller one for Charlene in the cabin and a larger one for the deck.
This plan is so once covered I will not need to uncover until she is done or the weather gets warm. The only bad part is when it is time to swing her engine back in place I will need to take it apart some. That is why I am gonna use wood screws so it can be taken apart and re assembled with ease. As long as the frame isn't taller than 14' she will clear my shop door and can be in or out depending on if I need the shop for other things. I will start the build tomorrow. But the Peterbilt pays the bills and she needs me in the shop tomorrow. Got 2 tires to swap and an oil change due. Then the Sea Ray comes in.:grin:
 
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Very nice to see someone else restoring a SRV 240! There are so few of these boats left that are water worthy. Most of the ones you see around the net are in boat salvage yards. :smt009 I am almost done restoring mine. I posted a couple of threads on it here at CSR in classic sea rays as well. You are gonna love when you finally get it in the water for the first time. It really gives you sence of accomplishment once you get them going. Cant wait to see what you do with your boat! Will be watching this thread.

Robert
 
Its good to see you back on the forum and getting things going again, both personal and boat related. Man I'm glad I didn't have to shovel all that snow! You've got your work cut out for you, but you've also got a good plan and that is very important. Best of luck with the rebuild, and as always, keep us posted.

BTW I use that same tarp to cover my boat, I also put the black side out. It gets warmer in the sun and helps it clear the snow faster. I like that since the boat is 3hours from home and I can't run down and clear it after every little snow fall.
 
Thanks SCORPIO. I remember you were very helpful for me with that steering cable issue I had and finding the power steering system I will be running.
 
Awesome update and pictures, thanx loads. You're lucky to have an Admiral who's not scared of work. And that's a nice lookin' tractor, probably pulls a set for a living eh? (cool exhaust system too, probably sounds awesome) Don't envy you one bit on those icy highways though. We're lucky out here to only have to deal with the crap for a month or so each year. I've been in the service end of the industry for over 20 years and have only had to hang chains once, and that was on a service call in the bush. Keep up the good work, can't wait 'till the boat's finished an' floatin'.
 
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Yea the Pete sure does sound cool. 600hp C16 Caterpillar under the hood sure moves down the road. And the Jakes do wake the dead. Especially in tunnels. Turn her to stage one (2 cylinders) and she sounds like a .50 Cal machine gun!
 
Today didn't go as planned and brought some not completely unexpected bad news. I didn't get to get much done on the boat today as the Peterbilt took up all the shop time today as well as an unexpected visit from a good friend. While I worked in the shop, Charlene worked hard to clean out what was left of the old tarp that fell in and the snow on top of that. When she got done and came to get me I looked at the transom hole. Bare in mind this is a boat that came with the big hole for the OMC Stringer drive. The layers of plywood where the hole is cut out has started to separate. This was not the case when I bought it. I went inside and got a mallet and tried to determine how bad it was. It seems to get solid a few inches from the edge of the hole. The good news is the hole must be cut bigger for the updated power steering Intermediate housing. 77'-87' transom holes were bigger. But not big enough. This will need to be repaired.

I have seen posts on transom repairs on here and I will search for more. But for now if anybody has done this job in the past I would like to hear from you. Or send a link to a thread that I may not have found that would be helpfull. Also another issue now is the cold. This job may have to wait until warmer weather.

For now she is outside waiting for me to build a cover frame and cover her up. That will be done tomorrow after work.
 
Jake brakes are cool! I drove for a Kenworth T2000 for awhile and always enjoyed the sound of the jake brake while you're going down a mountain on the interstate-really helps save the brakes on the long hills in TN and GA. The West Virginia Turnpike was the worst-really steep and long in places before that turn at the bottom. I wound up doing a transom repair on my 79 SV195-not a really hard job, just a bit time consuming sorting out the best way to tackle it and get it completed. I, like you was working outside in my driveway at the house we are renting. The garage was not large enough to put the boat/trailer in and an outdoor temp enclosure wasn't an option. (the landlord wasn't real happy about the boat in the driveway to begin with, so I figured best to not push my luck), so the repairs were done outside as weather permitted. I am pasting the link to my thread, don't know if I did it right, as I'm not thr most computer literate person-should have one of my kids do it for me, so I know its correct, but here it is:
http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/52902-Another-Classic-Sea-Ray-almost-ready-to-float-again. I am just one person of many that have done this type of repair on the board. Hopefully it will give you some ideas and help you on your repair journey. I would guess there are quite a few ways to do the repair(s), and each one will be a bit different. I like you, searched the board here for info and ideas and watched some You Tube video's before tackling the job. I laid out a plan on paper and finally dug into it. After I started my thread when I originally bought the boat, I would have titled it differently if I had realized how much more work I was going to get into- something like my resto/trials/tribulations of a slightly used/abused/neglected Sea Ray LOL. After its all said and done, you'll have a great boat for you and Charlene to enjoy and build may good memories together. Keep us to date on your progress.
 
I will check that one out. I found a good You Tube video for transom and Stringer replacement along with the fiberglass work on post 23 on this thread

http://clubsearay.com/showthread.ph...ll-when-plug-removed?highlight=frisco+transom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kopF4muvF0c&list=PL02C318B574CD948D

This guy winds up having less boat than I do and he spent some cash on it. He needed all new stringers from bow to stern and a new transom. But he does make a intimidating job look easier. Well within my skillset. It is a bit intimidating be a use I have never done anything like that.
 
Well last night about 9:30 or at night Charlene and I backed the boat up into my shop and worked on building the tarp frame. By the time we got done we were tired, sore and very cold. -5 when we got done. This is what she looks like now. I took these this morning. We are gonna be gone for another week on another run. This will prevent any more snow from getting in. And allow us to work inside out of the elements. It looks very dumb. But it will work.:smt043





 
:smt024 OK, update time once again.

Last night Charlene and I went to Menards again to get halogen lights, and a bunch of extention cords. Some of them 12 guage heavy duty ones. One extention cord will power both electric heaters. One on the deck, the other smaller one in the cabin. The other cord is to run all the halogen lights inside. For now, a single small 300 watt in the cabin and 2 500 watt lights on the peak of the tarp frame.
But first we had to clean out the cabin. And to be honest this was the first time since I bought her that I took EVERYTHING out. And I was quite surprised at a few things. I thought the center cushion in the v birth was missing. Nope. Found it. Also found a mooring cover in one of the compartments. I have no idea if it fits. Sure wish I found that some time ago:smt021. I found out that that funny looking bow cleat is reinforced to the keel. Emptied the anchor locker. It looks so much better in there and gives Charlene and I a better boost of confidence. We didn't know how nice she is and will be.

First I drained the old gasoline out of the tank. The tank will be removed, cleaned and tested. I got about 8 gallons out. Then I lost siphon. So she is as empty as I can get her.



The inside.




With the center cushion.



The steel rod that is in the anchor locker that reinforces the funny bow cleat



Where it attaches to the keel.



Looking up thru the top.



The funny looking g bow cleat it attaches to. I am told it is also called a bollard. (Picture taken last week)




I have no idea what kind of bugs nest that is. But it will be gone VERY SOON. I have never opened that hatch before. Who knows ow how long that was there.



The cover we found.:wow:



Charlene sitting under the bow hatch. She's happy.



Charlene going thru the bow hatch. Yes it is snowing. I was wondering how the he knows you get up there. I never noticed it is right over the bed. Duh.



And the lights. I know not the best pictures. Maybe it I turned them off and let the fash get them. But this way you see how I have them and how bright it is. Also with lights on opposite ends it help eliminate any shadows.





The other thing I did and didn't get pictures oof is I made a temporary cover over the transom hole with waferboard. I just sandwiched the transom with the waferboard and a piece of 2x4. I sent screws thru the middle of the transom hole and "clamped" the board on.

That's it for now. Now I go and plow the lot.
 
Now I see where all that wood went. When you guys originally brought it home it looked to me like you were planning on building another shop. Good job. I may use that framing idea myself for next year's winter. Can't believe the amount of frickin' snow you guys have out there. We're still slightly below freezing on some mornings, but the birds are starting to nest and the buds are out on some of the early shrubs. Hope to be launching in a couple of weeks. Hope ya get 'er in the water this year.

Edit; could that nest be mud wasp?
 
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jitts3 said:
I have seen posts on transom repairs on here and I will search for more. But for now if anybody has done this job in the past I would like to hear from you. Or send a link to a thread that I may not have found that would be helpfull. Also another issue now is the cold. This job may have to wait until warmer weather.
Click to expand...

Looking at your progress it has me wishing I could get my brother back into working the 240 he inherited, at least it's under good cover for now.
Here is another transom replacement link - one I worked through in similar winter conditions: http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/23289-1985-SRV270DA-Restoration
 
KC_Sundancer said:
Looking at your progress it has me wishing I could get my brother back into working the 240 he inherited, at least it's under good cover for now.
Here is another transom replacement link - one I worked through in similar winter conditions: http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/23289-1985-SRV270DA-Restoration
Click to expand...

Believe me. It hurts thinking about the fact I stalled out on this project. But now things are so much better and everybody is involved and excited. I grew attached to this boat. It's more than just a boat now. She represents dreams of mine. Goals. And one day another family activity beyond fixing and repairing.

Today is a 40 degree day here in Wisconsin. I have pushed myself a bit too hard the past few times and got us both pretty sick. We pushed on a -5 degree night to get the tarp frame built and the tarp over her. But that's good since if I did not there would be another 7 inches of snow in the boat. But that job got us both sick. Once again we pushed on and I got the lights and heaters in her. Then I plowed. I felt like dog crap and Must take it easy as now being sick effects my work. But she is thawing out nicely so far. The bilge is full of water but has an Ice Dam at the transom and won't let it drain. We will wet vac the water out and reposition the heater to focus more rearward.
 
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Hey no need to rush your work this winter - the way it's going up here the ice probably won't be gone until june. :grin:
 
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