13ft fletcher speedboat build

[clarkson22]

hi, always wanted to do a boat, so here it is! ive built crossers, cars, we built a r6 quad bike and lots of other things, time to move onto the sea my friend has this before us, the back where the engine sits, was rotton the marine ply was far gone, the fiberglass was ruined, the floor was knackered, few bits and bobs but shouldnt be to much trouble......anyway pics


the floor finished. no before pics


the back, doubled up marine ply and 3 layers of fibreglass - plenty strong



new drain hole drilled


seats..being retrimmed black and white by my good old mother



old side panels - new pieces cut out





sorted the trailer and rust out







[URL=http://s948.photobucket.com/user/Clarkson22/media/null-23.jpg.html]

picked up a mariner 60 - but had problesm with the tilt - so new engine gettin picked up tommorw a yamaha 60 , ill sort other one out and sell it


interior nearly done






boats in primer



ill update this tommorow, ive done plenty more but cant upload the pics at mo, this has all happened in 3 weeks, the boats been sprayed and carpet in, will get pics soon

thanks for reading

Edited by clarkson22 on Thursday 4th June 21:43

Edited by clarkson22 on Thursday 4th June 21:44

[schuey]

Good work,there are loads of half sunk,unloved speedboats on the river near me. Dying to save one in a similar fashion.

[Jazzer77]

Keen to see how this finishes, please keep us updated.

[clarkson22]

thanks lads, it was just sitting away in my mates garden , we offered him 150 and took it, bought another engine today from Birmingham , a yamaha 60 , that was 1000 , in total with paint and everything else it stands me and my friend £1698 which isn't to bad anyway sprayed boat last week , and got some stuff done today.
been wet sanded mate came round and buffed it all up






marine carpet in got lucky and got 7m squared for 18.50 new!!



my mums made up some covers with her magical sowing machine


well the inside was just waiting for the seats, so we borrowed my mates dads 4hp outboard and set sail with 4 of us in for and hour and half....it sank, JOKING it was fine let in a small amount of water, from a few screw holes from the trim that were not completely sealed, bilge pump sorted that , got it back and sealed it again next day



anyway picked this up today it runs mint and selects gears perfect manual gas assisted tilt but its easy enough , will update to power trim come winter




steering sorted , gonna go get some bolts monday and clamp screws, a metal plate to mount it on, and all plugged in



battery secured



bilge pump fiber glassed down, going to have that on a flip switch and route the hose tomorrow, and buy another one as a back up just incase ha!


fuel tank secured


going to re-spray this at some point white and get new stickers


and 2 seats complete




anyway ill update this soon and hopefully get a video Monday or Tuesday of it in action thanks for reading

[Ayahuasca]

Good work.

Did you gel coat the hull or just paint it?

[mph1977]

you've got a kill cord FFS use it !

[clarkson22]

Cheers mate ,yes we did what a messy job, were going to re-spray it agin come winter, and as for th kill cord , yes I know I have one, I intend to use it but seen as the engine isn't mounted and the boat is in the garden I see no need to use it yet? I presume , you think ill leave it attached to the key? I'm not retarded....

[Fishtigua]

clarkson22 said:

Cheers mate, yes I'm not retarded....

Yet you bought a clapped-out Fletcher.......?

I'll leave that there.

[clarkson22]

Lol ok makes sense?? It's far from clapped out, I guess that goes for all the car restorers out there who buy old rust buckets and turn them into something nice.

Anyway wired a switch in for bilge pump and tucked all the wires away neatly will get some pics up later for anyway who cares

[clarkson22]

got the bilge pump on a l.e.d switch



installed a net to keep the spare lifejackets and oars


engine mounted




bilge pump, routed, going to get a clip to secure hose along the side


bottom now black







well its finished apart from one lot of seats which mother clarkson is sorting now
maiden voyage with the 60 is sat , either videos of it going or sinking!! haha
thanks for reading

[rowey200]

Should go well with a 60hp, look forward to the next report

[clarkson22]

cheers bud, ill report back saturday night

[Fishtigua]

I reckon she'll go like stink with the 60 on the back. For a bit more control, maybe a set of dolphins could be useful.



http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Outboard-motor-Hydro...

[clarkson22]

hi mate i actually have a set of them, but ive been reading mixed reviews, some say for underpowered boats to get on the plane easier and some say for over powered boats, im going to do a few runs with them on and a few without see what the difference is, have you tried these yourself mate?

[Seight_Returns]

Looking great.

Consider getting a manual bilge pump as well - even though you have the redundancy of 2x electric ones.

[clarkson22]

hi mate thank you, weird you say just been speaking to my mate about one, found one for 10 so cant go wrong , infact im going to order one now

[Ari]

Impressive job!

But are you sure it's a Fletcher? Looks more like a Simms Super V to me.

[mildmannered]

Hahaha! Thanks Ari!

Look, I'd say sorting the wheels and hubs out over a period of a decade is quite good progress!!!

But yes, this thread has inspired me to crack on and do more )

Good effort OP, hope the sea trials go well!

[Seight_Returns]

clarkson22 said:

hi mate thank you, weird you say just been speaking to my mate about one, found one for 10 so cant go wrong , infact im going to order one now

Nothing shifts water out of a boat faster than a frightened man with a bucket

Think you've done very well. Have had a yacht on the south coast for 10 years or so but growing family and commitments in London making it increasingly impractical. A small motor boat on the river may be where I end up going.

Watching with interest. Keep the updates coming.

Would an outboard bracket on the transom and a 2hp outboard be practical to give you some security if you're intending to do coastal/estuary boating ? My 2hp dinghy tender lashed to my boat's transom boarding ladder has saved the day more than once.

Edited by Seight_Returns on Wednesday 7th August 22:29

[MOTORVATOR]

clarkson22 said:

hi mate i actually have a set of them, but ive been reading mixed reviews, some say for underpowered boats to get on the plane easier and some say for over powered boats, im going to do a few runs with them on and a few without see what the difference is, have you tried these yourself mate?

Throw them straight in the bin or sell to some unsuspecting sucker on E-Bay. Absolute snake oil. I still can't believe people fall for these things without considering why Mercury / Yamaha / Suzuki / Johhnyrude didn't think to make the cavitation plate larger on their outboards in the first place.