New Owner 1982 Fisherman 18

R

rrichar1

New member
Sorry for the lengthy post in advance, questions below though...

Hello, another new member/owner here from Galveston Tx area. Well sort of. My father bought a 1982 18 Fisherman CC for $800 and sort of gave it to me (if I choose to accept it). I have a mid 90's 17 foot Alumacraft Trophy Fish & Ski that I've had for 10 years with a Nissan 90HP that has been rock solid but I've kinda been wanting a CC Fiberglass. I don't know what I'm going to do with it, probably keep it and use as my inshore boat (easy 1 person boat) and use the Wellcraft as my Jetty / rough water boat.

I've been lurking here since he bought the boat and have learned a lot that I've shared with him in his repairs. GREAT WEBSITE! Here's a little about the boat and what he's done and what needs to be done.

- It was owned by an elderly gentleman that could no longer use it and hasn't really been used much in the last 5 years or so. It's been left out in the open uncovered and has that weathered look.
- It has a 1989 Johnson 120 HP V4 J120TLAE motor that my father did a complete ring (?) job himself and had somebody else replace the fuel pump (we didn't know it was bad). It seems to run good now. Compression is good but I don't remember what he said the numbers were. Anybody have any thoughts on this motor and it's general reputation?
- We have only done two sea tests, one short successful one and one disastrous voyage (had to be towed in). We discovered that it had a hole in the gas tank in the V of the aluminum tank so Dad (instead of investing ~$500 on a new one) used JB Weld to patch the very small aluminum hole. He cut two ~ 12 x 12 sections out of the top to gain access to the hole and patch it. He then put the original aluminum section back on (with screws/brackets) and fiberglassed the outside section (metal taped the seams first) and added a screw on gas tank head for fuel level monitoring. Anybody have thoughts on the JB Weld patch and if ya'll think it will hold up long term? It hasn't leaked since he did it last week.
- I haven't found any soft spots and hopped on the motor to see if I could feel any flex in the transom and it felt solid.
- Added a Hydrafoil. I have one on my Nissan and it makes a huge difference. I hope it does on the Johnson.
- None of the gauges seem to work so I have wiring issues that need to be addressed.
- The motor pushes the boat nicely but seems like it's all or nothing, either slow or fast. Maybe we need to adjust the steering / throttle cables?
- I know people like pictures and I'll add some when I can.
 
Unsafe Condition

Welcome aboard Rrichar1, I caught your post just before logging out. Very High on the list of things that are attributed to the cause of boating accidents are faulty fuel (Gasoline) systems. The rule of thumb is : When in doubt. Trow it out. All hoses, connections and tanks must be 110%.
The method of repair as you described it did not allow for adequate inspection of the entire tank. As she sits you run the risk of explosion. The danger is that a small leak might start allowing fumes to lay in the bottom of the bilge. One bad electrical connection can ignite those fumes and turn a day of fishing to a news story. I don't mean to be negative or an alarmist. I just want to help you be safe.
I have a 180 but this pertains to all boats. I gotta go but Ive been all through mine and will be glad to help you any way I can. Plus as you have found the guys around here really got this boat thing down. Me....? I'm just a "Wanna-Vee":hi:
 
Hi And welcome Rrichar1

I've used (sucessfully) JB Weld on a cracked engine block and a ton of other things, but gas tanks are nothing to fool with. It's difficult to call the fire dept when you're 20 miles out to sea. Look and read the instructions on the JB Weld (or better yet, call their customer hotline) and ask them if it's effected by gasoline after it cures. Personally I would not use it, but that's just me. They make a liquid liner that you can use in gas tanks to seal them, but it requires you to slosh that liquid all around... impossible to do if the tank is mounted in the boat. And if you're going to remove the tank to use the liquid then you might as well just replace the tank. Don't buy a fiberglass one, for reasons expressed in other posts here. Alum is ok, but make sure you use a filter before the gas goes into the motor. Stainless is the way to go, but it's expensive.

I use a Hydrofoil on my Johnson 200 and I agree with you that it makes a big difference.
 
Welcome to the site.

I don't know about the JB weld repair on the fuel tank. I am not saying it won't work, I did some JB Weld on a weed eater once and was succesful, I am not sure I could trust that repair on my boat. Getting towed off the water is a PITA and takes the pleasure out of boating. I also don't play with fuel leaks due to the explosive manner in which fuel leaks are typically found.

The 120 hp outboard is a very tough and capable engine. Rings are fresh in yours so make sure the lower unit is serviced and you have a fresh water pump. When changing the gear lube in the lower look for signs of water as lowers are not cheap to repair or replace.

The most important guage IMO is the tachometer. Then water pressure and or temp guage(s) and voltmeter.

When you get the tach sorted out you can test the prop to make sure the boat is propped right. What you will be looking for is a good hole shot and that you will be within the manufacturers recommended RPM at WOT. It may be propped too high which would give you that feel of all or nothing. The throttle and shift cables are normally adjusted correctly if it idles and shifts properly. That is my .02. Congrats:beer:
 
I agree with the concerns about using JBWELD in the fuel tank but on their website: http://jbweld.net/products/uses.php they state plain old JBWELD can be used in fuel tanks. And I agree about being overly cautious with fuel tank leak issues. I just brought it to my house and it's in my driveway and my dad put 4 or 5 gallons in it so as a first test I will fire it up in the driveway and let it run for awhile and observe from a distance.

But we took it out before when we had the leak and didn't know it and it was acting like it got air in the system. We couldn't get a vacuum(?) on the system upon switching to a portable gas tank onboard. I do intend to switch out the tank if I keep the boat just want to make sure the boat is seaworthy and I won't have to immediately repower it.

I guess what I should probably do is empty the internal repaired tank and switch to the external 6 gallon portable tank I have and maybe carry another on board gas can with another 6 gallons (I know there are safety issues doing this) to test it out for the summer when I use it. Unless this is a cardninal sin, you folks tell me if it is.

Thanks for the comments and please keep them coming.

Ron Richardson
Dickinson, Texas
 
No sin there in my opinion. I love the portable tanks. Easy to keep clean and obvious if there is a problem. I used em for years before I stepped up to the V20. I wish I only needed 12 gallons of fuel....I could do away with the 60 gallon belly tank! Therein lies the problem for me. I miss the run-on-12-gallons-all-weekend days.
 
No problem with the portable tanks except deck space. The v-4 can be a bit thirsty so you would need to test your range before any long trips. As Blue Runner has already posted..
 
Use portable Tanks if you have to, Replace the tank ASAP 2 dangerous to mess around with period.
I toss my aluminium tank because of a single hole, I could have easily welded it choose not to because of the risk.
Congratulations and welcome to the site keep us posted.
 
rrichar1 said:
I agree with the concerns about using JBWELD in the fuel tank but on their website: http://jbweld.net/products/uses.php they state plain old JBWELD can be used in fuel tanks. And I agree about being overly cautious with fuel tank leak issues. I just brought it to my house and it's in my driveway and my dad put 4 or 5 gallons in it so as a first test I will fire it up in the driveway and let it run for awhile and observe from a distance.

But we took it out before when we had the leak and didn't know it and it was acting like it got air in the system. We couldn't get a vacuum(?) on the system upon switching to a portable gas tank onboard. I do intend to switch out the tank if I keep the boat just want to make sure the boat is seaworthy and I won't have to immediately repower it.

I guess what I should probably do is empty the internal repaired tank and switch to the external 6 gallon portable tank I have and maybe carry another on board gas can with another 6 gallons (I know there are safety issues doing this) to test it out for the summer when I use it. Unless this is a cardninal sin, you folks tell me if it is.

Thanks for the comments and please keep them coming.

Ron Richardson
Dickinson, Texas
Click to expand...

If you cannot get a vacuum when you switch to the portable tank I'd look at the hose from the tank to just before the squeeze bulb. Also check the tiny "o" ring on the connector end where the hose connects to the tank. If the "o" ring or hose is bad from the squeeze bulb to the engine side you will squirt gas under pressure when you prime the engine, but on the tank side up to the squeeze bulb you're drawing a vacuum and you would not see any gas.
Like the others have said already, there's nothing wrong with portable tanks other than the space they take. They're safe and a great way of increasing your range for a long trip.
 
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