first outing

[smokediver]

well , i managed to bring back the finish on my new to me boat and headed out for a little spin . had to introduce her to salt water:eek!: . boat ran great ! i am really pleased with the 350 mag in the 18 . it seems like the 18 doesn't need near the horsepower the 16 does for similiar speeds . i don't have the blistering acceleration of the 16 but it is smooth and pulls nicely up to 4600 rpm with me and a full tank .. the prop is a mirage plus , 25 and i knew it was going to be a little big for the boat ... speeds were in the 65-67 range on the gaffrig speedo ... i am thinking a turbo 25 will run about 4800 rpm and that should be just fine with me ... i love my new to me boat !!!! The boat had sat out for a while and the topsides were dead ... i took care of that , looks like new again and changed the black pinstriping to silver metallic ... it looks sweet against the white and the blue ! I ordered white diamond 1/4 inch striping for the water line to replace the black , it looks like a pearl white ... navy blue hullsides ... the boat rides so much better than the 16 .. i am really impressed ... did i mention that i love my new to me boat !

[need for speed]

coool! so when do i get to see this !!! you going out this weekend??

sounds very nice!!!

Pics come on !!!

[Mr X]

Congrats John!
You will LOVE the 18, it is my favorite of all the classics.
Post a couple pics when you get a chance.

[BigGrizzly]

A picture and what you did ti bring it back to life. BTW I think you love your new boat.

[DonziFreak]

congrats on getting your 18 wet!!! you will grow to love that boat, im sure of it :wink:

[smokediver]

cheyenne and i are heading out sat. charles ... hope to see you ! the boat had been stored outside and was described to me as being "mint" . mechanically it is but the top deck was badly chalked , stained , and faded ... i was worried that the staining in the ble gel was all the way through ... I sanded with 400 and was able to get a nice uniform color , then went to 600 , 1000 , and then 1500 . I used 3m perfect 3 compound and a white waffle pad and got a nice shine . on the blue stripe i used 3m perfect it 2 machine glaze for dark colors to get out the fine swirls ... i then waxed with 3m scotch marine wax and it looks like new :yes: here are a few pics .. the deck pic shows the staining ... i will post after pics when i take them ..

[need for speed]

Looks really good!!!..... that trailer is not going to like the salt :wink:

[BUIZILLA]

I wish there were people over here that did detail polish work like that, i'd stroke a check in a second....

[The Hedgehog]

That is beautiful. I really love the 18.

You going to do any goodies in the engine compartment?

[smokediver]

thanks guys ... i don't really have any engine plans as of yet ... probably switch over to a stainless exhuast set up this "winter" ... heck , it's only got 8 hours on it !

[need for speed]

wow!!! its new!

[DonziFreak]

hey smoke, atleast we can still boat over "winter" right? :)

[smokediver]

hey smoke, atleast we can still boat over "winter" right? :)
well ... there are a few crappy weeks ... like in the 50's ... even 40's ... but not very often in the 40's :boat:

[DonziFreak]

haha, as long as the water does'nt freeze on us, its easy sailing, haha

[smokediver]

here are a couple of after pics ...

[need for speed]

Better then new:yes:

[ITTLFLI]

Very nice looking!

Excllent choice in color!:wink: