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My whaler is unidentified at the time, but I believe its a 1976 16'7, not much more than that. I'm in the process of restoring it and just wanted to share my plans in case anyone had any feedback or more info on what boat I have. My plan is to fish the boat out of San Diego to local banks and the Coronado Islands.
A summary of its condition, I was trying to attach multiple pictures but I believe I can only add one.
Overall pretty solid, some fiberglass needed repairs on the inwale, about a 3-4 inch section. The transom is in good condition, although it'll need repairs on some split fiberglass as well. The engine needs to be replaced, it's an 1985 johnson that doesn't run. Center Console is a homemade console with rotten wood inside. It's a wide console 37 inches wide and 32 inches high, and the gas tank is inside the console and the console cut around it. The helm seat has a bait tank and looks to be aftermarket, needs to be rebuilt with new upholstery. Overall just a boat that has been sitting outside for a long time and has spider cracks everywhere on the Gelcoat but generally sound.
A summary of my plans.
Currently stripped the boat down and am repairing fiberglass, sanding and repairing spidercracks with epoxy as well as filling in all of the holes from screws (at a fiberglass shop) and going to repaint it with a layer of primer and 2 layers of TotalBoat topside paint. After that, I plan on getting a new center console instead of repairing the existing once since it's all cut up and rotten. I was thinking of going with 37 inches tall and 31 inches wide from marine fiberglass direct.
I'll need to put the gas tank somewhere else with the new console so I plan on either moving it all the way to the rear and building a bench seat on top of it all the way in the back, or replacing the current helm seat with a lean post and the gas tank under that. i am leaning more on the route of a nice aluminum leaning post.
For the engine I plan on repowering with a newer 90 HP outboard, or potentially a 70, just keeping my eyes open for whatever comes up locally. I'd like to get a Yamaha 90 4 stroke.
Happy to hear anyones feedback as everything is still up in the air, but I'm excited to fish this boat hard! Hoping to get it out on the water within the next 2 months.
One suggestion: if you haven't already weighed the hull, do it before you get to far into the project. The boat is probably fine but as you said 'it's been sitting outside for a long time' taking the weather.
Just three of the items mentioned for replacement - a newer outboard, new console and new leaning post - will likely cost several thousand dollars (or more depending on what you have in mind for the outboard, controls and prop). A reliable outboard is always important, more so in the areas you plan to fish.
After going through the Boston Whaler restoration process twice (a late 1970s Sport 15 and a 1987 Montauk 17), I was happy with both projects. Just make sure the hull is going to be worth the time and expense.
