Finally getting started on my GF-16

[timoub007]

Well, a lot has happened in my life since my last post on this thread. Between all that has been going on I was not able to get the boat put back together to use at all during this duck season. Heck, I only made about 8 duck hunts all season long as it was.

I have finally been able to make a few minutes here and there to get a little done though.

The graphite was a bear for me, simply because I had a roller (actually two) come apart on me. I got two nice coats on the bottom, but when putting on the third, what I thought was going to be the final, the cheap little roller that I was using left pieces behind. It looked like one inch curley hairs left in the nice shiney black finish. Way too many to pick out. I waivered back and forth on whether or not to sand after hearing about Larry's experience. I just couldn't take it and had to fix it. I used a razor blade to scrape/cut out the raised spots and then hand sanded the bottom with 50 grit to minimize the mess and dust. It took a few sessions and I rubbed off some of my fingerprints, but I got it done.

To eliminate the risk of ruining the finish again, I stopped by West Marine and bought a roller that they had labeled as "best" for epoxy compatibility. Low and behold if it didn't do the same thing as the cheapie I was using before. So here I was with 4 coats of epoxy on the bottom, and back in the same boat; weighing my options again. I decided to live with it knowing that I'm going to scratch it up right quick like.

I will sand the transom and recoat it though. That is mainly cosmetic since it is so visible.

After making the decision I had a couple of neighbors help me flip it back over on the trailer this afternoon.

Here you can see the finished bottom, tunnel, and baffle covering the vent.



Here is a shot showing the transom detail.



Here is a pic from the inside showing the finish work I need to complete on the top of the new tunnel.



And lastly, here is where I patched the bottom that also shows how much shorter my new tunnel is than the original. Vent is a 1 1/4 inch through hull.



More to come...

[B.Lee]

Any news on the updated tunnel design? Have you test run it yet?

I'm researching tunnel designs and shapes now, I'm very interested in how the new shape improved the tunnel.

[timoub007]

I have tested it and am happy with the redo. As I alluded to in my last post, life has gotten in the way of boat building. The last 13 months has brought me twins, the deaths of two very close family members, another hurricane direct hit, and all the normal responsibilities of life.

Okay, off my soap box. Back to the boat and tunnel.

I didn't do a very good job of recording numbers after getting the boat back in the water. I've had a couple of coils go out on my motor and truthfully haven't been on the water enough to dial everything back in perfectly.

From memory, I am now running about 26 or so when alone in the boat. With a passenger and a fishing load we were racing along at 24-25 at WOT. So the new design appears to be slightly more efficient than the original design. If you want to see this design in person (or at least very, very similar) find a G3 aluminum boat dealer that stocks tunnel hulls. I was at the Houston boat show a couple of weeks ago and it looks like they copied my tunnel exactly. I don't recall if it had a vent, but don't think it did. (I'm almost 100% certain it was a G3, if not the only other boat brand popping in my head is Lowe.)

Oh, and I haven't had the boat in the water since about June. When I get it wet again I'll confirm the numbers and post back here. Incidentally, I didn't get to hunt ducks one time this season.

Hope this helps,
Tim

[Cracker Larry]

Tim, good to hear from you. It sounds like you had a year similar to mine. Hoping things get better.

[robbiro]

Hey Tim,
I hope that you are doing better after all of the LIFE that has jumped on you this year. I have thought about you several times, but just too lazy to post and when I don't have anything to say but junk, had just rather not say it.
That said: I hope that the family is doing well and that watching the twins grow up is as interesting as watching my two, mine are not twins, but watching them interact, is just totally interesting most days. My daughter is 11 going on about 19 and my son is 8 and just a laid back kid that likes sports, etc. They do enjoy each other, but it can get interesting.
I lost my last blood Uncle this year, I have no other Aunts or Uncles living now. He was just a week short of 93. He had gone to work as a house painter every day until he was about 83. Heat gentleman who loved the outdoors and hunted and fished every time he got the chance. He took me to Toledo Bend not long after they impounded it and we had a great time catching bluegills on crickets, them were the days.
I know, I am rattling on and on, Do well my friend and keep on posting

Keep on Buildin'

Robbie

[TomW]

Tim I apologize for missing your post earlier. I hope things have settled down for you and yours and that your family is getting through the greiving that comes with the loss of there loved ones. It is hard and takes time. God bless.

Enjoy getting back to the boat and look forward to seening here in action.

Tom

[timoub007]

I realized I don't have any of the final performance numbers in my thread, and for that I apologize. Since the last update, wow over two years ago, I've made a couple of other tweaks.

I had a couple of 3 cylinder 25 hp JohnnyRudes that were getting older (1996 & 2000) and starting to have miscellaneous electrical gremlins. So I went all in last summer and bought a brand new 25 hp ETEC. Awesome little engine and the smoothest 2 cylinder I've ever run. I wanted to get an electric start with tilt and trim, but to do this only came in a 20 inch shaft. I hemmed and hawed about about the longer shaft length, but went ahead with the fully optioned model around July 1st 2010. The midsection is like that of the 40-75 hp 2 cylinders and the bolt mounting pattern of this model is the same as all of the full sized motors so I couldn't even put it on my CMC t/n/t unit to bring it home from the dealership.

To make a long story short, I added 5-6 inches to my transom and filled all of the old mounting holes.

I found a brand new Panther Marine electric (fully enclosed) jackplate for a great price on eBay, less than $600 if I recall correctly. This is a full sized unit too designed for up to 300 hp motors. A little heavy, but a nice piece.

I mounted everything up in time for duck season last year and couldn't be more pleased.

This 2 cylinder 25 ETEC is stronger than either of the 3 cylinder JohnnyRudes I was running before. It has the same lower unit so I just put my 4 blade PowerTech prop on and hit the water. The hole shot is the same or better. With the Smart Tabs there is little to no bow rise and I can get up in less than 6 inches. Usually if the boat is floating I can get up. If I have a really heavy load, like 4 guys and my dog plus all of our duck hunting gear, it is a bit of a struggle but that's a lot of load for a 16 footer and a 25. Even loaded down heavy like that though I can reach about 18 mph if memory serves. I don't think I broke 20, but had no problem staying on plane and running the narrow ditches.

Top end while running solo and light is still not attainable. With the heavier engine and 50 pound jackplate I've got too much weight on the transom and not enough forward. Once I break 26 or 27 mph the boat starts to porpoise a little. I can't trim it out very much either kind of defeating the extra expense of the tilt and trim. When loaded it is usable though and is a joy to have when wanting to raise the motor to pull over a levee or pole out of a shallow flat. As is the jackplate.

I can easily make a turning start if need be, even with the jackplate up 6 inches. Most times though I don't have to spin up.

I built a 40 x 60 shop to house my toys too, so I don't have the boat at the house any more. I'll try to get some pictures of my final modifications and post them up.

Thanks for those following this saga, but I think I'm done with this build finally.

Now what next.....

[bernd1]

Hi Tim,

a nice report - I'm interested how the ETEC 25 works and how much weight it has. What about the fuel consumption? Like a 4 stroke engine or more? If you have time just create a little movie to see how the GF with the ETEC runs - you would do me a wish.

Enjoy the boat!

Bye
Bernd

[Cracker Larry]

Great report Tim Love those GF16s.

[Uncle D]

Now what next.....

The POC builders meet. And bring that boat.