New boater/angler in DFW

Just joining the boating/fishing club and am super excited to have as much fun as y'all!

Picked up my first boat - a classic '78 15ft Ray Craft tri-hull with '78 Evinrude 85hp - a couple years ago for a few hundred bucks and have been slowly working to restore it. Finally got to a point a few weeks ago where I feel it's ready for normal use. Overhauled just about everything in/on the boat and motor, save for the gel coat. Runs absolutely great and from what I read the hull is built like a tank. She's a rough ride but, hey, she's all mine! Don't mind the bimini top (it's for the wife & kids).

There is one thing I've experienced with the motor both time I've had it on the water that I'm curious about. Twice, when approaching full throttle (I always slowly increase, never slam it down), the engine RPMs have suddenly shot up as it the prop were out of the water (which isn't the case). Thankfully my hand was on the control and immediately backed off. Up to about 75% throttle I haven't noticed any issues. First time it happened I thought I'd trimmed up to far but 2nd time I hadn't trimmed up much. I'm thinking a spun prop but not sure (I marked the prop and hub the other day and will check it after the next outing). Any ideas as to what this could be?

Always loved fishing ponds as a kid but never had the opportunity to do serious angling. No longer! I primarily want to fish for eaters, not trophies. Love me some whole fried crappie and striper!

First outing a couple weeks ago was on Ray Hubbard (never liked that lake). Drove by Lake Lavon this past weekend in think I'll go there on a regular basis. May go to Grapevine lake next weekend to check out the fishing scene with a coworker.

I'll likely be a common presence here as I love to learn and connect with like-minded people.

That’s a sweet boat.

Welcome to the board! You will make some friends here.

Welcome !

Welcome!

Welcome

Welcome aboard. The boat restoration looks nice.

Thanks all for the warm welcome and also for the compliments on the boat.

Though I'm an accomplish garage mechanic I knew nothing about boats when I bought it (my only previous watercraft was a canoe - heavily modified, of course). When I got the boat it wouldn't run, tilt/trim was inop., wiring was a mess, interior was ratty, and the trailer was in shambles. But, I wanted a boat, had a young child (meaning little disposable income), and love tinkering. Since I've owned the boat I've done the following:

Motor:

• Rebuilt carbs
• Replaced fuel pump and hoses
• Replaced starter solenoid
• Replaced spark plugs
• Replaced head gaskets
• Replaced head cover gaskets
• Replaced thermostats and gaskets
• Replaced fuel tanks and feed hose/primer bulb
• Replaced water pump assembly
• Replaced shift shaft seal

Boat mechanical:

• Rebuilt remote control
• Installed new shift & throttle cables
• Made new live well aerator with new hose
• Made new bilge pump hose
• Installed new speedometer pickup
• New tachometer on order (will replace original speedometer if it doesn't work)

Boat electrical:

• Made new battery-starter wires
• Replaced tilt/trim motor
• Replaced ignition switch
• Installed operator safety kill switch/lanyard
• Installed new navigation lights & bases with new wiring/fuses
• Replaced bilge & live well pumps with new wiring/fuses
• Installed deep-cycle battery to run all electronics
• Redid all wiring using distribution blocks
• Replaced trolling motor wiring and installed foot switch at the bow

Boat interior:

• Removed all carpet & (most) adhesive
• Removed hatch doors, sanded and applied KiwiGrip
• Made new hinges for all hatches & seats
• Replaced all seats
• Installed new (temporary) carpet on main floor
• Made new bow access panel

Trailer:

• Replaced wheels & tires
• installed new leaf spring hanger
• Replaced bow winch
• Replaced trailer-vehicle safety chains
• Replaced winch stand-bow eye safety chain
• Made new bow eye-trailer safety (vertical) chain with turnbuckle & safety backup (in case turnbuckle fails)
• Replaced all lights & wiring from tongue back
• Replaced transom straps

Accessories

• Installed fish finder & transducer with new wiring
• Installed cup holders
• Installed rod holders
• Installed bimini top

Even after all that I still have quite a long list of things I'd like to do to the boat (I enjoy working on it as much as I enjoy being on the water):

• Apply KiwiGrip to main floor and bow casting deck
• Install battery disconnect switch
• Redo/hide trolling motor wiring (it's currently on the bow casting deck with a Hubbell 30A receptacle to plug into for power)
• Repair fiberglass chips on hull
• Wet sand & polish gel coat
• and so much more......

Wow! Lots of work. Must be a labor of love .Its possible the hub is marginally going bad and only slips when you goose it.

the rpm jump on a deep v hull can be due to prop cavitation.

It’s definitely not a deep-V hull - it’s a tri-hull (3 shallower points rather than one large point). The bottom is flatter than most modern bass boats.

Welcome

Why you trying to sell your boat already?

Couple reasons - I'm the type of person that always needs a project to work on and I'm close to a finishing point with this boat (much more work I feel wouldn't be worth the time given the value of the boat), and I'd like something larger for the family.

Tri-v pad hull

Welcome.

Trim it down, rev it up, trim it up.....
See if there is cavitation while trimming up.
My 200 merc was bad about it when my trim tab broke off. Replaced trim tab and issue went away.

After marking the prop on my last outing I’ve found that it’s definitely spun. A new prop is sitting in my garage waiting to be installed.

Welcome to the forum

Took her out on Sunday - first time with the new prop. Definitely made a world of difference - hole shot is noticeably better and no odd engine behavior.

Few things I’m still working through:

The boat originally came with one 6gal gas tank and one starting battery. I added a second 6gal tank an 80AH battery for the electronics. First time out after adding them it had trouble getting on plane and would porpoise a fair amount, even trimmed all the way in. Figuring the additional weight in the rear was a main contributing factor to the porpoising I removed the 80AH battery in the stern and installed three 35AH batteries in the bow in parallel (limited height wouldn’t allow a larger single battery). Porpoising was significantly reduced but still present and no more issue getting on plane (new prop helped with this I’m sure).

Can’t remove any more weight from the rear without reducing my fuel capacity by 50% so I’m focused on motor setup/positioning. I can move the trim pin in one hole which may help. It does have a Doel-Fin installed which had been modified by a previous owner so that the trailing edges are bent downward to add lift - I’m not sure if this is helping by actually adding lift or hurting by altering the hydrodynamics of the stabilizer. Motor is installed in hole #2 of 4 (from the top) of the bracket - need to see where the cavitation plate is in relation to the bottom of the transom.

Next issue is a non-functioning tachometer. The original tach wasn’t in useable condition so I replaced it but not seeing any movement on the needles. Have a new rectifier on order - hopefully that the only issue (haven’t tested the one installed due to the lovely weather we’ve been having).

Still working on removing all the old carpet glue in preparation for KiwiGrip on every standing surface. I’d also like to do an acid wash to remove the many stains and try buffing/polishing the chalky gel coat. If I decide the keep the boat longer than this coming spring I’ll fill any fiberglass gouges in the hull and errant holes in the top cap with PB and paint using a hardened enamel (as found on iBoats). Gel coat on the top cap has multiple surface cracks which I may have to sand out.

All in all the old Ray Craft is almost back to her former glory and runs phenomenally. Did have some trouble getting it started last Sunday (was pretty cold and I think I accidentally flooded it) but once started it will start again within half a second every single time.

Does anyone know what the average top speed of this style hull with an 85HP motor should be around? I know there any many factors that will affect the actual number (passenger/gear weight, prop pitch, etc.)? I’ve been able to cruise comfortably at 35MPH (via GPS) with more left.

Nice job on the boat!

Looks like you did well for yourself. Great looking boat!
Shorter boats are harder to get up on plane. Weight distribution to the front helps a lot.

Thanks. I really do feel that I got quite lucky - I had no idea what to look for when I purchased this boat. Most importantly all floors are solid and all wood I've drilled into has been dry. She ain't pretty but she run like a new boat.

I'll have to agree with your last statement - I've noticed with a few passengers getting and staying on plane easily can be the difference of one passenger moving forward a foot. Weight balance is critical on such a short hull.

I had a 16ft Tracker Grizzly side console powered by a 60hp 4cycle Mercury Jet drive that had similar issues.
Guys that had the same motor on 18 ft models got up on plane a lot easier and could run just as fast.
.

Just a quick note that the motor is currently mounted such that the anti-ventilation plate is 0.75”-1” above the bottom of the transom with the motor trimmed all the way in.