I finally got a chance to break ground on my 20' Grady White a couple months ago.
I was in the middle of a engine transplant and had put the boat back in storage for a week while I purchased the things I needed. While it was in storage, some tweeker took notice of the missing i/o and wanted to capitalize and siphon my tank. They tried to pull off the fuel hose from the fuel fill and snapped the 90 degree aluminum fill right off! Bastards. They didn't get a drop of fuel either.
Anyway, I took it to a couple different shops and all agreed it would be more cost effective to purchase a new tank vs. repairing mine. RDS Aluminum which is the company that made/makes fuel tanks for Grady Whites fortunately is still in business and had the exact one on the shelf. $650 (shipped) later, I have one en route in the mail.
This was somewhat of a blessing, tank had some pitting and maybe a year or three left in it anyway. Under the tank sits the stringers. Boy was I kind of freaked out. Grady white back in 1984 apparently did not give a crap about bubbles in their glass laying work.
Expecting the worst and hoping for the best, I gave my fiberglass guy Leo a call to come over and grind the glass down and inspect the stringers. Whew. The stringers are dry, strong and solid, just bubbles.
Now that i've received the fuel tank, I'm getting ready to install it. When I removed the old one, there were rubber strips sitting on top of the stringers between the fuel tank and the stringers. Should I reinstall those or just let the tank sit on top of the stringers?
I also asked Leo to detail the boat for me. It also helps leaps and bounds in terms of resale value. Damn thing shines better than new.
I was in the middle of a engine transplant and had put the boat back in storage for a week while I purchased the things I needed. While it was in storage, some tweeker took notice of the missing i/o and wanted to capitalize and siphon my tank. They tried to pull off the fuel hose from the fuel fill and snapped the 90 degree aluminum fill right off! Bastards. They didn't get a drop of fuel either.
Anyway, I took it to a couple different shops and all agreed it would be more cost effective to purchase a new tank vs. repairing mine. RDS Aluminum which is the company that made/makes fuel tanks for Grady Whites fortunately is still in business and had the exact one on the shelf. $650 (shipped) later, I have one en route in the mail.
This was somewhat of a blessing, tank had some pitting and maybe a year or three left in it anyway. Under the tank sits the stringers. Boy was I kind of freaked out. Grady white back in 1984 apparently did not give a crap about bubbles in their glass laying work.
Expecting the worst and hoping for the best, I gave my fiberglass guy Leo a call to come over and grind the glass down and inspect the stringers. Whew. The stringers are dry, strong and solid, just bubbles.
Now that i've received the fuel tank, I'm getting ready to install it. When I removed the old one, there were rubber strips sitting on top of the stringers between the fuel tank and the stringers. Should I reinstall those or just let the tank sit on top of the stringers?
I also asked Leo to detail the boat for me. It also helps leaps and bounds in terms of resale value. Damn thing shines better than new.