13' Gheenoe Rebuild

[Badbagger]

Looks GREAT and you'll be a PRO by Gheenoe # two.

[Rhettley]

What brand of gel coat did you use? How much does it take to cover the inside of a Gheenoe? My redneck camo spray paint job is in need of a do over.

[caseycook]

What brand of gel coat did you use? How much does it take to cover the inside of a Gheenoe? My redneck camo spray paint job is in need of a do over.

To be honest, I have no clue what brand it is. I bought the gel coat (as well as most of my supplies) from Angie's Marine Supply in Medart and it came in an unlabeled paint can. In Sharpie is written, "Dead grass."

I bought a gallon and would say that that's probably good enough for two thick coats on the inside. The gel coating process only took us about 20 minutes using the rollers...fairly pain free.

FYI - I can't say enough about the folks at AMS, their prices are generally 1/2 that of West Marine and their folks are knowledgeable and extremely helpful.

[lizbeth]

Casey, I have a 13' that I'm rebuilding. What did you use for your false floor ?

[caseycook]

Casey, I have a 13' that I'm rebuilding. What did you use for your false floor ?

Skip found an old center console on the side of the road at Alligator Point. He cut it up into flat, rectangular pieces the width of the main channel running down the center of the boat. We laid those end to end, epoxied them down, and then ground them so that everything was level. Add some fiberglass and voila.

In hindsight, I would've liked the false floor / ankle-break cover to be wider, maybe closer to 3' wide. As it stands now, the pieces that we put in were about 1' in width.

Another option is to use the pieces from the front bench seat you cut out and the old livewell. This was what we were planning on using, but the fiberglass from the console was a little thicker and provided more support.

[lizbeth]

Thanks, good idea. Your project is looking good.

[charlie tuna]

Had a good fishing buddy decide to rebuild a 15 foot gheenoe about ten years ago. He lived down South and snook fished a lot in Everglades National Park. Now the boat was overpowered with a brand new 25HP merc. But the rule is, the smaller the boat, the more weight and balance is going to effect it's operation. When you pick up a gallon of resin, it isn't light!! Add enough weight and it will change the total design of the boat. First time out, he and his father were running along and hit an oncoming boat's wake, the remodeled gheenoe didn't ride over the wake--- the wake came right over the bow and flooded the gheenoe. Luckily, they were close enough to an island to run the boat up on the beach before it sunk. I think a five gallon container of resin weighs 46 pounds.......

[lizbeth]

From what I have seen a lot of guys on that forum, put 25hp's on 15 footers. I would think 15hp would be good for a 13' with the added weight from a rebuild.
This is all new to me and I'm doing it by myself...so I guess I will learn as I go. BAD, GOOD or INDIFFERENT...LOL

[Atticus]

Awesome!

[Rhettley]

I've got a Mercury 9.9 on my 15 footer. The Merc. is from the 90's but I don't remember what year. It is a tiller model. If I'm by myself I put the battery up front for the weight. The boat hasn't been modified. It will run between 20 and 22 mph on the gps depending on weight distribution. I haven't clocked it with two but I don't see much difference. I don't think I'd really want it to run any faster than that.

[caseycook]

Second coat of gel coat is on. She's looking good.

[blindhog6]

We have learned 4 things during this Gheenoe project that I would like to share with anyone thinking of starting a similar project.
1. Fiberglass work is easy to do.
2. Good fiberglass work is not simple work.
3. A 4.5 inch grinder from Harbor Frieght is a mandatory tool for the project.
4. Angie's Marine Supply (AMS) in Panacea is a tremendous resourch for supplies and coaching.

[bman]

Looking great, I really like the layout!

[Squirm88]

We have learned 4 things during this Gheenoe project that I would like to share with anyone thinking of starting a similar project.
1. Fiberglass work is easy to do.
2. Good fiberglass work is not simple work.
3. A 4.5 inch grinder from Harbor Frieght is a mandatory tool for the project.
4. Angie's Marine Supply (AMS) in Panacea is a tremendous resourch for supplies and coaching.

5. Fiberglass makes you really itchy.
6. Sanding is the worst part.
7. A cold beer tastes really good while working on the boat.

[caseycook]

The Gheenoe is just about finished. Lots has been done in the last month.
Stainless drain installed in the false floor behind the front deck.


Front view



Shot of the trolling motor mount, cup holder, TM plug


Close up


Shot of the back deck - note the switch box that's flush mounted, and the teak trim. Also flush mounted a cup holder in the back deck. Bilge pump is installed as is the stern nav light.


Close up


Shot of the cup holder


A little flare added to the back hatch


Battery box mounted behind the front deck


Shot from the stern


All that's left to do is add a coat of paint to the hull. I'm also contemplating adding seadek to the front and back deck. Bought a Nissan 9.8 2 stroke off Craigslist and will pick it up in Tampa soon. The Suzuki 6 hp 4 stroke just didn't push the boat like I wanted it to.