new/old 69sn

Brought home a 69 sn last night. I'm going to
get some parts from her for my 70 sn. Then
not sure what Im going to do??? If the need
is great enough I'll part it out. If not mabey
I'll start a restore. Anyway here are some
pictures.
She's in rough shape, but enjoy. Any comments
on the glass are welcome.

I agree with Tim. Shame to waste.
However, if you decide to part out, I need some stuff for my 68 project.

todd johnson wrote:

I'm curious what you guys would do to restore this type of decay? Are you talking grind down and regel the whole hull or possibly the deck to?

I've never done any gelcoat work before, but
I would think you would need to grind or sand
the top layer of gel off. the glass would be
ok. I think? And to answer your 2nd ques. I
would say the amount of dust that would be
created from this undertaking, you would want
to be outside. Luckly its only on the bottom
1/4 of the boat and the whole underside. The
deck is in fairly good condition. Only one
spot there in the rear. I'm doing some repair
of the gelcoat on my 70 sn, so I'm hoping to
get a crash corse. I have a good friend that
dose boat glass and gel repair for a living,
so I will know what it will take vary soon.

Todd,
You're correct that the boat would need a gel job - hull and deck. I wouldn't take a chance on doing a partial removal. The deck of theses older Nautiques have another issue too. The raised section from the stem to the windshield may have a wood filler in it! These are known to have rot problems. Is the raised part firm or can does it flex when you push down on it?

Getting the old gel off will be dusty if you grind. There are devices made to remove it that are similar to paint strippers with carbide cutters but are pricy. Gary (farmer) made his own out of a grider by making a head with carbide inserts and a means of depth control. He posted a tread on it but the last time I checked the pictures had been removed. "Machining" it off isn't as dusty.

If you do decide on doing this, do plan on flipping the hull.

Personally, Id probably leave the gel as-is unless I was going for a showroom restore. Its really amazing how much less visible the cracking becomes after you smooth the surface by wetsanding and buffing. I doubt many people noticed the large section on the bow of my '90 that has gel damage.

Before pic:



I still hate to see the boat parted out, but as long as the feeding frenzy has begun, Id likely be interested in the motorbox, rope clearance bar, steering wheel and sight glass. The sight glass doesnt have to be pretty- Id take your old one if you have it, Mike.

I know of someone who could use the motor, too. Todd, shoot me an email if you decide to part out: TRBenj@gmail.com

Ha, thanks Bruce but its far from perfect- Ive got it shined up half way decent, but its a workhorse!

A little road trip to Maryland to grab some parts for us northeast guys wouldnt be out of the question if Todd decides not to restore the boat.

Sebastian, I dont have any great "after" pics- its tough to capture the difference with a camera. This is the best Ive got:



The damage is still visible, but you have to be up close to notice. When I bought the boat, the damage was obvious enough that I was getting quotes to have it repaired. After buffing the deck out, it became much less noticeable- so I currently have no plans to fix it. Its just not worth the time or effort since you can barely see it.

I used the same sand and buff procedure on it that I used on the rest of the deck (and several other boats since). Check out the buffing gelcoat thread in the Common Questions forum.

nice post there... a task for the winter along with a carb resto and new exhaust and riser gaskets...

aren´t those cracks sign of weak stringers? or is just the gelcote damage due to leaving the boat at open air..sun rain...snow..etc...

Looks like a nice bar to me...

8122pbrainard wrote: todd johnson wrote: I wish it would be as easy as some light sanding, and buffing. But the gelcoat on this boat is badly cracked!! Todd, I feel what Tim is saying is the deck may be salvageable and it could be wet sanded and buffed out. However, as mentioned, do check for soft spots in the raised sections of the bow deck that would indicate possible rot. Defiantly the hull gel is gone!!

I was actually commenting on the whole thing- but after seeing those pics of the hull with the gel flaking off, youre probably right Pete- hull gel is toast.

Unless youre up for a lot of labor hours, Mojo might be right- that hull might be best used as a bar.

I might be up for a trip to MD and could bring back everything minus what you strip off for your Inca Gold SN. Bruce can have his misc parts, Ill take the few I want, I can ship Mike what he needs for his '68 and Steve can pick up the trailer at LG09. Shoot me an email.

Alright. This is ridiculous. I have not even been done with the Mustang for a week yet, and I am outside tromping through the snow to look at the Nautique. Sick, sick, sick.
My gauge panel is different, same as the Mustang which makes sense as both are 68's. So I am good on that.
My motor box is junk, so if that is available that would be a huge improvement over what I have. As mentioned above I would really love to get a dash logo as I definitely do not have that. That is, of course, if you are not using it.
The gel is not nearly as bad as I recall as a whole but a couple spots are pretty bad.

I have a few questions about the motor. It is the 318. What in the heck is a 318 Poly? I seem to have two different exhaust manifolds. The port is more egg shaped and says Chrysler on the side, and the starboard appears to be just like Todd's above. I cannot see the port in the photo but it also looks different. Is this correct?
With respect to the sight glass, the Nautique actually does not have one. Nor a spot for it.
The Mustang has a spot for one, but the hole is capped from the bottom. and gelled. They would not have drilled the hole and not installed one, I would hope. I have one spotted for that boat so i guess I would not need that, afterall.

My wife may kill me soon.

Mike

PS: Todd, look what you started. that thing is parted down and getting bolted to your wall already.

TRBenj wrote: ...and Steve can receive the trailer at GL09.

Wow Tim, very generous of you to bring the trailer to GL. You are a hell of a guy...

WakeSlayer wrote: I have a few questions about the motor. It is the 318. What in the heck is a 318 Poly?

Mike,
The "Poly" "A" block 318 was made til around 1966 and is the predecessor to the "LA" (light A) 318 that most everyone knew of in the late 60's. Im not a Mopar guy, but I think the LA was made well into the 90's

They do share some common parts, but I dont think the exhaust manifolds are interchangeable. The heads are completely different...even to the point of intake/exhaust valve configuration. The poly is most noted for the "saw-tooth" bottom shape of the valve covers.

Hope this helps?