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I would like to thank everyone that has responded to this thread VERY much. I have considered every input and researched each idea and suggestion thoroughly, and I am still thinking, but I am probably going to go with the Yamaha option for the controls and network compatibility and proven performance and durability. I have not actually placed the order yet as the Outrage is still disassembled and it will be a while before it is ready for the motors. When I place the order for the engines, I'll post the final decision.
This thread truly exemplifies the value of this site , and again, thank you all very much!
Joe, my boat guy doesn't think the motor and kicker will both mount on the transom without interfering with my trim tabs, but thanks to the pictures from your project and others, I think I can convince him, and I really thank you for the illustration of that project. I don't think I have ever posted this before, but your Outrage 18 has got to be one of the best set up on the site and has been a real inspiration in my project. Thanks for this site, and thanks for your personal work illustrations.
Well, the 1986 Outrage 18 refit and repower continue. I have decided to go with a Yamaha F-115 four stroke, and a Yamaha 9.9 HT, (electric start and power tilt) as a gasoline fueled trolling motor/kicker. I am going to mount the F-115 3 holes up and use the Yamaha 13" X 17P black stainless steel prop, at least for a start, that I got in the mail yesterday. I have purchased both motors and have them at Palacios TX ready to be installed and rigged right now.
We have decided to completely remove the Lenco trimtabs from the boat and mount the 2 motors on the transom as recommended by Boston Whaler.
The bottom of the hull and the transom have been completely restored to new condition, and the results are truly awesome. It is currently covered with protective plastic with the boat flipped over on a work trailer in the boat yard. I have added a couple of pictures of this to my Flickr site set for the Outrage here : http://www.flickr.com/photos/99787852...428438304/
We have been waiting for the complete package of new wood for the hull and console to get made and delivered to start the work on the inside of the boat. I talked with Mike at Nautical Lumber last week by phone, and he has it all fabricated and finished, and shipped the gunnel lumber, both new and old rails, to us last week. We expect delivery at Palacios early this week. The console doors and wood needed 1 more day's work on the finish, and we expect them to be at Palacios next week. This woodwork has taken a LONG time! This wood should look awesome, and with Mike's reputation for craftsmanship, I don't expect to be disappointed.
We are going to completely restore the super console to brand new condition. All wiring on the boat will be replaced to new and modernized. I am installing spreader lights on the T-Top, both front and rear, and under gunnel interior floor lighting as well as helm lighting for night fishing use. There will be underwater green lights for fishing at night as well. The electronics will consist of a Garmin 741xs combination GPS chartplotter and CHIRP sounder with a Chirp transom mount transducer, and a Garmin VHF-200 radio. There will now be four batteries under the console, 1 marine start battery for each motor and 2 deep cycle marine Group 31's for the electric trolling motor and night fishing lighting.
The dealer installed original custom leaning post with 30 gallon baitwell and tackle center is also going to be completely refurbished. Instead of the glaring white it will be Whaler desert tan from now on. The plumbing and aeration system in the baitwell will also be completely new, with new pumps.
We are taking this refit opportunity to get that Minn Kota Riptide SP - 70 lb Thrust, 54" Shaft, 24V, i-Pilot - Wireless trolling motor situated permanently on the bow of the boat. Right now, I am using a Riptide Saltwater Quick-Release Trolling Motor Bracket, RTA - 19, to mount the motor straight off the end of the bow of the boat. This works very well for stability of the motor, due to it's location directly over the original bowbit mounting plate, but the motors position when not in use gets in our way in the inside front of the boat. We are going to build a new stable mounting plate for the trolling motor to allow it to be positioned and supported more conventionally at a diagonal along the bow curvature. The power supply wiring for this motor will also be completely hidden and out of the way on the deck. It will still be removable using the Quick-Release mounting bracket, but the mount's block will have it's own custom glassed in platform to be attached to.
I don't have the original bowbit that came with this boat, it was missing when I bought the boat. We will install a cleat or bit in the original location to facilitate anchoring at the bow. Even with the old lightweight Johnson 2 stroke that was on the boat originally, it was uncomfortable to be anchored in 1-3 ft chop from the stern. The boat would take on water, then drain, in the transom drain area every time a wave hit the transom.
The original fuel tank has been completely drained and cleaned out in preparation for the new 4 stroke engines as well. All new fuel system hoses, tubing, and supply lines will be installed. The tank itself appears to be in great condition. The deck on the boat is sound, and other than having considerable amounts of dirt buildup on it from underneath the console and leaning post, has no damage in need of repair or replacement. There is some spider-cracking on the interior outside of the non-slip checkering of the deck that will be repaired.
It appears that the whole project just might be completed before the end of this year after all, but it doesn't look like we will have it for the fall redfish run. My wife and I really love to use this boat back in the shallow water cuts with oyster-shell bottoms and large reefs that hold a lot of fish this time of year on the coast. I sure hope I don't grow too old before the project is completed to be able to get there again in this boat! Man, this project is sure taking a LOT more time than I expected :(
Well, SURELY we'll be able to hit the fish hard NEXT year!
Well, I finally got some more pictures of the continuing, (seems like it is taking forever), project on my 1986 Boston Whaler Outrage 18. I visited the shop Saturday and took some more pictures of the progress to date.
There are a lot of headaches to come. I found that the 9.9 I spec'd for this project was not what I have received, it's a tiller handle, 25" shaft model, and we have got to have it remote controlled from the helm. The F-115 has been installed with the wrong guage and a single motor control. Tommy made some adjustments to the transom, in fiberglass, to accommodate the wrong 9.9, I am now looking for a kit to convert the tiller handle to remote and getting the guage and controls issue addressed.
The wood I have gotten for the console looks great! Only problem, Stennett has failed to include the swing down drawer to fill that smaller hole on the starboard side and the 2 teak floor trim strips. The fire extinguisher box was not a box at all, at least in Mike's world, so he just sent some trim to go around that hole. He still has my original gunnel caps, and he has never sent me the teak screw hole plugs for the unfinished gunnels he has sent.
I still have all my original console wood piled up there in the boat, looks like I may have to try my hand at restoring a few pieces to complete my console, at least until I can find new parts.
Tommy forgot to build a platform on the starboard side of the bow for my I-Pilot trolling motor, still on the punch list. LED lighting is ordered, but has not arrived yet. We still don't have the decals.
The bottom drain hole in the transom and all the new through hull brass has yet to be installed. The new rub rail track and the rubrail are there, still need to get installed.
The leaning post and baitwell still has to be completed and installed.
Lot's of headaches I have probably left out...but there has been progress!
Finnegan,
I wasn't there when the motor was received, I was away on business. I am sure you can understand that situation. I was not informed about the modifications being made...sort of.
The confusion began because I did want them to fabricate a modification on the bow of the boat for my electric trolling motor. When I was gone and checked in by telephone during the fabrication process, I was told all about the progress of the fabrication of the trolling motor mount on the boat. I assumed that he trolling motor mount being fabricated was the mount on the bow. I also assumed that the 9.9 would have been delivered to me as it was specified. I never opened the box/crate when I delivered this motor to Tommy, I just dropped it off with the also unopened crate with the correct 115.
I made a lot of assumptions in retrospect, and that led to the shop making a lot of assumptions...that has lead to me probably having to purchase another motor now. I do have that mint one to sell or trade to reduce my loss, but it is painful.
I made a serious mistake. I will have to deal with the consequences of this mistake. I am a big boy, I will handle it.
As far as the wood goes...I also made a serious mistake when I ordered and paid for in good faith something that had not been created yet from a person who, at that time, had been recently discredited in the classic whaler community. I had not heard of the problems everyone was having with him, and he certainly is a smooth operator on the phone. I didn't even know he had been dropped here as a sponsor until a few months later. By that time, it was too late.
I have to thank Sue at TWIN CITIES MARINE for assisting me in getting what I have now. She was the only person, and he has quite a few folks trying to make contact with him, that could get him to call back and send what I finally got. This wood was ordered well over a year ago, I got it at the end of last month. The whole episode with the wood was very trying, and I have realized that I made a mistake in dealing with a dishonest person for quite a while now.
I am a big boy, I can handle this problem as well.
This is my first big Boston Whaler custom refit project, and I have made mistakes. I have learned a lot already, and I expect to learn more as this continues. I can't blame anyone but myself.
Also, that 9.9 is not a kicker motor. I intend to use it for a specific type of trolling that requires that horsepower. I have access to a couple of freshwater lakes here in our area that have been stocked with Red Drum by the TPWD. The trolling method that I have been most successful with involves powering up speed rapidly and then powering down speed rapidly over schools of these fish in 40-50 feet of water while downrigging up to six rods at a time at about 25-35 feet depth. This method of trolling requires more power than simple slow trolling. If I ever get this project finished, I would certainly be very honored to demonstrate this technique to you if you get out this way, it is a LOT of fun to do :) My wife, kids, and grandkids love this!
Nautical Lumber, or more specifically, Mike Stennet, has photos of my console. I can assure you, he was, and is, aware of the need for my 1986 model fire extinguisher box to have been made out of wood. I have never seen any super console with an open hole in the starboard side with a frame built around it instead of the drop down door covering it...perhaps you have, I have not. Please note, the frame for this door was supplied, just the door was missing! I guess that somehow Mike's apparent theft of my original gunnel caps that he said he had to have in order to make the new ones is somehow acceptable? Have you ever seen a super console circa 1986 that did not have teak strips at the base as trim? I have not. There is no excuse for Mike, I am sorry. It is still my fault that I dealt with him. I will have to accept my responsibility in this matter and I will, no matter how bitter a pill this is. My Whaler will not suffer though.
I am building a custom Boston Whaler Outrage 18 boat here. I am using as much of the original design as possible, and using as much of the original boat components as possible, but this boat will be used for a lot of different specific needs for me personally. This boat was not ordered with anything other than the super console from the factory, and was dealer equipped to the original buyers spec in FL. It will still be similar to the original buyers spec when I am done with this project, with my own personal needs accommodated. I don't think I have ever seen some of the features I am incorporating in this rebuild applied to any Boston Whaler before.
The transom modification that has already been done to accommodate a 25" shaft 9.9 does not bother me at all, I need to be clear. This is a very nicely crafted modification. The problem with the motor at this point is it is tiller operated, not remote. This will be addressed and corrected, even if it requires me to purchase another engine. The bow mount for an I-Pilot electric trolling motor will also be addressed, and I am certain that the fiberglass work will be crafted at the highest standard for this mod as well. No rails have ever been on this boat, and there will never be any rails on it, at least, certainly, until after I am dead and gone. I have to have an open bow in order to use a cast net off the bow, just like the original owner.
The 30 gallon live well that is integrated into the custom leaning post with a tackle center will also be on this boat till after I am dead and gone. I intend to have it BW desert tan in color, as opposed to the original white, however. I need this baitwell to keep the bait I catch from the bow alive and healthy, just like that original owner did. I can, and will, transfer this bait to the big Whaler just before my grandkids and I head offshore. I will use this baitwell as a livewell when we toss crappie into it when we go night fishing in the TX lakes.
My point here is that this boat has always been, and will continue to be, a custom model, and a very personal boat. I intend to will it to my grandchildren. By the time this last transfer takes place, they will know intimately why every custom feature was incorporated, and most of all, how to use these features to have successful fishing trips in many different settings.
For this reason, the money and time I spend on this project is not an object of concern. I will gladly pay for my mistakes, while grumbling mostly to myself, for the return of passing on the sport I love. I know what it has meant to me to be able to enjoy this sport throughout my life, and I intend for this to be available to my progeny.
I guess there was bound to be mistakes made in this project by me when I think about it now, the project is me. I have made them all my life. :)
Sorry about the rambling explanation to the questions in your post above in my response, but I want you, and anyone else that reads this, to understand my passion.
You are always welcome onboard any of my boats. Please consider this as my personal invitation.
Joe, and Finnegan,
I have already studied the examples illustrated exhaustively. I have emailed ALL the pictures of these examples to Tommy in the past to illustrate what I was looking for. Joe, feel free to completely delete that link if you want, it was unnecessary.
I ordered, and paid for, a 20" shaft 9.9 with electric tilt and trim and remote control. Of course. I have the purchase order right here, right now. This was not the problem here.
My mistake, in this matter, was negligence. I was too busy making money to watch over this project as it evolved. It's too late to do anything now but pick up the pieces and move forward. I have a business that is very intense during certain months of the year, but it is also very lucrative. To complicate matters, the schedule on this project had 3 major setbacks.
1st schedule delay was the wood. Trust me, there are many more details here that I have not, and do not plan to, discuss publically. The project progress was held up a year just as a result of the Stennet factor. A lot of communication was lost during this time within the project. It happens when things drag on.
2nd problem was of a personal nature for Tommy at the shop. I refuse to accept that I should have pressured him for the sake of my project, given his situation.
3rd problem was that I was trying to do too many Boston Whaler projects at once. I purchased and retrieved a beautiful Whaler 27 FC WD from Wisconsin, repowered it, and completely upgraded the fuel and electrical systems, and the electronics as well. I am the 3rd owner of this boat.
Everything will be fine, it is just going to take some more time and effort to complete the project.
I had no problem understanding what needed to be done here, I just wasn't there enough to supervise the progress, when it suddenly occurred after the wood started arriving. Neither Tommy or myself were available for this function through no fault of our own, and the shop hands may have been forced to start making some decisions above their pay grade due to our absence. I should have shut the project down and did not. My mistake.
..I had a Mercury one time back in 1990's...I am sure they are much more reliable now...let's just say me and a Mercury in my past could absolutely NOT get along. I was towed 2 times with only 56 hrs on the one I had, the last time was from 6 miles offshore into Freeport. I got a great trade in value for that one the next day...exactly 62% of what I had to pay for it new on the boat. It appears you have had much better luck than I have, or for that matter, anyone I know personally with Mercury.
I had almost the same experience (but worse) with a brand new Mercury, NEVER again. After three years of misery I sold the boat. My Yamaha's haven't given me any problems at all.
Thanks for the comment and the refreshment of my memory :)
I don't think I have made a mistake with the engine brand choice, that's for sure :) Those new motors sure look good on that transom, don't you think? :)
Yesterday, I made another visit to the shop. We think we can use that 9.9 as a remote controlled troller. The Yamaha rigging supplier is working on a solution.
While there standing around just looking, we noticed that the T-top accessory box was still white. Tommy is going to remove this and gelcoat it BW desert tan when we add the new audio components.
Overall, it appears, even though we are still not out of the woods completely, that everything will be fine. I know I feel much better now :)
