1989 Saltare - My god Spock, what have I done???

[Okie Boarder]

Looking good.

[Blackntan90]

Yeah I like it, I could only wish for that much space in the Mariah.

[sybrmike]

Well, been away for awhile. Job change last Nov/Dec has me working crazy hours. Had a little break & made a little progress. Finished all the seat bases, redesigned rear bench back, ski locker cover, drivers seat, and cup holders. All PT plywood with 2 coats of CPES - I don't want to face wood rot again! Still need to finish the base tops and cover the bases with carpet and make the seat backs before I can take it to the upholsterer.

I wanted the larger s/s cup holders, but couldn't make them fit in the original plastic pods - so fabbed new pods from scratch. A PITA, but think they'll work well. Also thinking I'll run some fiberglass tape around the seams of the driver's seat just to reinforce the PL, s/s screws and staples. I added some backers behind the skirt in a few places so I can through bolt the bases - no screws into my new floor.

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I haven't forgotten about you guys, but will probably be spending what little free time I have these days trying to get her finished up & will get back here when I can. Thanks again to all - your experience & advice have been invaluable.

[TitanTn]

Good looking stuff. I'm very interested to see what it looks like after coming back from the upholsterer.

I'm not sure how to take that last paragraph, it almost sounds like a good-bye, but I hope that's not the case. I've really enjoyed follow your restoration for quite a while, and your input on every topic in this forum has been invaluable. I certainly understand that time is limited and you need to set priorities, but I sincerely hope that you'll have time to stay in contact through this forum.

And I'm really wanting to see the final result of your restoration!

[sybrmike]

Thanks - I really want to see the end result too! Not a goodbye, just won't be around here as often for awhile. After all your collective help, didn't want ya'll to think I had bailed. Wish I could keep up regularly (looks like I've missed some good stuff going on here), but yes priorities must prevail. Hopefully things will settle down to more manageable levels for me soon.

[cadunkle]

I'm excited to see how this turns out with the standard rear bench and ballast. I'd love to do similar on my Saltare and have at least some built in ballast front and rear.

[sybrmike]

Ready to head to the upholsterer - once the better half blesses the colors and design (could be a major delay). Carpeted the seat bases & bolted in. The rear bench is "convertible" like the Outback so it can sit down on the base as a seat (with room for ballast bags half full), or raised up level with the ski locker lid for double the sundeck (full ballast underneath) - hence the funky looking arm rests. The rear bench ended up being too wide to handle & clear the cupholders and engine cover - so, split it in half. Once the interior is done, I'll fab some hinged supports under each half to support the middle cut edges in the "up" position.

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Here's the rear facing chaise. The base is 72" long for ski storage. The backrest is hinged at the top to access a small storage pod. Made new speaker/cup pods so I could use 3-1/2" s/s cup holders (gotta fit coozies to keep the beverages cool...)

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All my original corners were rotten where the seat back bottom met the base, so I went with separate bases and backrests to let things breath (plus I probably couldn't have matched the factory angles). Kept the loveseat design, but put it on slides on a box base with storage underneath.

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[sybrmike]

Kept the backrests high in the bow as well so the bottoms will slide in underneath (another rot spot for my originals).

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Fabbed a new bow storage locker out of black Starboard -hinged and slam latch. Thinking about pulling the trianular teak trim pieces off of the original and putting on the new. Would help keep a little of her heratige bow to stern (pod trim, doghouse hatch, swim platform) and keep the black from burning bare feet as badly. Wadda ya'll think - teak or no?

[TitanTn]

Well, that's a lot of wood! Looking good. I'd definitely vote for moving the teak over, but that's me. I like having a connection to the vintage of the boat.

[lively]

looking damn good sir !! i just might grab that corner seat idea from you for the sunsport .. is that going to be a two piece design ?

[sybrmike]

Yep, it's a lot of wood - but I think I'm still lighter than before with all the saturated foam and rotten wood. Be curious to see how she sits in the water when it's all said & done. Maybe just some additional permanent ballast? I'll see how the bow teak trim cleans up & make a decision then.

By corner seat, do you mean the rear facing observer's seat? It's a separate base, seat bottom, and seat back (like all the rest) so no water is trapped anywhere.

Yeah, I'm a composite junky at heart, but on a timber budget at this stage. Does treated ply with 2 coats of CPES count as composite (should last as long)? - hey, at least there's some epoxy in the matrix... As much as I picked Jim's brain & experience early on in my rebuild, he can have the rear bench idea (the angles were a biatch!)

Maybe this'll help you visualize

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I had to make the rear bench seat back and armrests extra wide to support the edges of the seat bottoms when "up" since the hull tapers out at the top. Once the final height is set with the upholstery, I'll add some hinged panels to the underside of the seat bottoms that fold down to support the inner edges - fronts will remain open. I've got 2 MC X-2 sacs (450# each) that fit underneath - half full with the seat bottoms down, full sacs in the "extended sundeck" mode.

[TitanTn]

Love it. This is one of the best interior redesigns I've seen on one of our old boats. I'm looking forward to seeing the end result. Are all of the interior panels that attach to the inside of the gunwale through-bolted (so they'd install like the original back seats)?

[wspeedin]

I love it!!! Sybrmike, you have done an excellent job redesigning your interior. I really like the rear facing bench. I have thought about doing that on my Salt but could never decided if I woul like not having foot room for walking. I would love to knbow how it works out for you during the summer with all the traffic in an out of the boat. I cant wait to see all this covered in upholstery. Speaking of which, what are the bosses design ideas on upholstery?

So what size ballast bags are you putting in the rear? I was planning on doing something similar to what Vette over on wakeboarder.com did with his. Here is a link to his thread about hidden ballast http://forums.wakeboarder.com/viewtopic.php?p=1086434&highlight=#1086434
I was thinking a 12x12x60 or something similar to that size

[jet]

sybrmike. TRULY the "BEST OF CLASS" and "BEST ENGINEERED" I have seen. Thats how you do it man. Take the old and mix in the new. love your ski locker/rear facing seat idea (does anybody ski anymore? just kidding skiers) Still the rear facing idea is great. be sure and add some steel bracing to your back bench seat. Most boats that have done that have a huge sagging problem. Nice job man, pat yourself on the back. Jet

[cadunkle]

Should be sweet Mike. I'm still not seeing how that folds up and down with the armrests/cupholders in the way.

Will, thanks for the link to that thread! I wanted to hide some ballast and I think that may be the route to go for me. Not sure where I'll store gear if I fill the locker, under seats, and bow.... But I'll figure it out. I wonder about all that room under the dry storage on the port side dry box in the walkthrough. There would be no access to that when bags are full and it's not convenient anyhow. Maybe I'll move my batteries from under the spotter seat to under that compartment... Then I'd have storage for ropes and small stuff under the spotter seat, as well as the cooler if not in use.

[sybrmike]

Thanks guys, weather permitting she's going to the upholsterer tomorrow. Boss didn't put up too much of a fight - decided on mostly light gray, white bolsters wrapping all the edges and some accents, black piping around each piece and color change seams.

TT - Yes, all the side panels are t-nutted on the front and bolted with locks and washers from the back. The two side vanity panels will still have buttons like the original. For the bases, I PL'd backers on the inside of the liner and through bolted w/ t-nuts so I don't have any holes into the new floor. My arms are still bruised and fiberglass scarred from all the reeeaaaccchhhing through the speaker and access holes...

WS - Hopefully the new layout is functional - I wanted lots of seating for family & friends, but still needed storage and room for hidden ballast. In my previous experience with DD's, the space behind the driver usually ended up as just storage anyway. I made all the seat bases 10" tall, so the rear bench base will hold two MC X-2 sacs (450#, 18x20x32 each) half full with the bottom down and full when up. One 400 in the ski locker, one 400 port bow, one 400 starboard bow, and an optional 750 that can go on the floor portside of the engine or on the starboard chaise seat to help her list for surfing. All will be individually valved - two bow 400's and surf 750 on the front reversible pump, ski locker 400 and two rear 450's on the rear reversible pump. Probably swamp if all were filled at once, but I'll have the flexibility to find out...

Jet - hey, I still ski till my bum back gives out & then switch to the boards. The rear bench back/armrest assembly is a 1/2" ply and 2x2 truss, glued & screwed, then through bolted to two 2x4's that span port/starboard and to the sides - hopefully, it won't sag!

Cad - Originally I had planned on a one piece rear bench bottom that lifted up like on the Outback. However once assembled, I couldn't move it up top because the armrests, cupholders, and engine cover had it trapped like you said. I had to split the seat into two pieces, but that left the center unsupported. Once the final elevations are set from the upholstery, my plan is to add some support panels hinged to the bottom side of the seats that fold down from the inner edges to support them off the floor. Adapt, improvise, & overcome (I hope?). I moved my batteries up under the port storage like you mentioned - cut an access panel behind the observer seat base and glassed in a wall to separate the batteries from the remaining bow storage and sac that will be underneath that dry storage area. The backside of my observer seat base is mostly open & could probably reach the batteries for a jump if I needed to, or now that the bases are separate from the seat backs - remove 2 bolts and the base lifts out for full battery access.

[Jetlink]

Can anybody ski anymore? Kids grow up on skateboards, wakeboards, and snowboards. Parents don't teach them, the sport dies.I ski, my whole family skis. Mom, Dad, two brothers and my sister. I have 20 cousins on my mom's side of the family and they all learned how to ski or are learning how to ski. I am personally hoping to really work on my slalom skiing this year as I got back into it with the purchase of our comp a few years ago.

[sybrmike]

I'm sure Jet was just pokin' fun, but I'm with you - slalom's in my blood. Got old 8mm of me skiing on my dad's shoulders at 2, trainers at 3, big skis at 5, and slalom at 8. My grandparents skied into their 70's, my late 60's parents still slalom, so there'll always be skis on board. Buuuuut, my kids are more into knee/wakeboarding & fancy themselves as displaced Cali surf chicks (just cause they can ride the little waist rollers on the Texas coast) - so had to make room for ballast too. The Salt was never a slalom queen (& possibly worse once I'm done turning her into a crossover boat), but sure beats my other options - 17' outboard, bumming from friends, or watching from shore...

I'm sure to be thinking of you & that sweet Comp wake and yearning for my old SN the first time I crash into my yacht-like wake (well, o.k. it's not that bad)...

[Jetlink]

I grew up skiing behind various stern drives and grew tired of skiing because of the wakes. Got the comp and the first time out with my dad, a few cuts in without all the "skipping" over the wake and it was like, "Hey! This is fun again!" And because of that, I will probably hold on to the comp even after we upgrade to a wake boat. Good work on turning the old boat into a "new" cross-over boat though, should be interesting to see how it all turns out.

[Okie Boarder]

Looking great! Some really good ideas and very well implemented...can't wait to see the finished product.

[Salty87]

fantastic project. a beast of a job...how many pieces to the upholsterer?

you're def setting the bar higher.

[sybrmike]

Too many to count, but at least if I look at the price per piece, it doesn't seem too bad. While they're working on the interior, I'm finishing up some remaining details - refinish remaining teak, complete the new glove box, etc., and doing some prework on the stereo.

Finished carpeting the amp rack last night - 1/2" treated ply coated with poly resin (I ran out of CPES), painted back, & carpeted front. The amp rack will go on the starboard side of the driver foot well and fasten to a flange I built into the new throttle panel and to the new bracing under the bow. Cut out the backs to aid cooling the cheap A/B amps. I hope to mount & prewire the amps, fuses, dist block, PAC LC-1, etc. this weekend.

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[jet]

Yes, Im poking the old bears, lol

signed: The Ex Skier

[Jetlink]

Yes, Im poking the old bears, lol

signed: The Ex SkierOld bears? I bet I am younger than you and I am still glad to ski. :p

[Okie Boarder]

Cool idea with the amp rack.

[sybrmike]

Finished loading up & prewiring the amp rack. All that's left is connect the pos, neg, and speakers. Well, and mount the radio, build the sub box, mount the speakers, run the tower wires, etc, etc, etc. - but gave me something to do while they work on the interior foam & vinyl.

My eBay special Tsunami kit had a voltmeter, so figured why not mount it - kinda cool I guess. I made an angled mount for the PAC LC-1 (that will control the towers on the top amp) to point the knob towards the driver for easier adjustment. The bottom amp is a 6 channel - 1,2,3,&4 for the cabin speakers and 5&6 bridged for the sub. Yeah, they're cheap Pyle (pile of s%$#) amps, but for 100 bucks at a close out sale - what the hell... Have no idea how good it'll sound, but at least the kids will dig the little power level led's and think dad is cool. Since the speaker/power connections are down by the driver's feet, I'll probably make a bolt on plexiglass cover for that end so nothing unexpectedly exciting happens :)

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[wspeedin]

Nice sybr, very clean look. Keep at it, we want to see more pictures of this beast! What tower are you puttin on her?

[Sdc77]

Amazing interior upgrade ! Can't wait to see the final result :o

[sybrmike]

Thanks, Will. I've had a Titan II leaning up against the garage wall for a over a year just waiting to go on (soon??). Still too much in-and-out of the boat for a folded tower to be in the way.

Sdc- if only my interior had looked like yours... Hopefully the upholsterer can make it work like I envisioned - although they're already having to redo parts of the seat bottoms since they put the wrong color on the front edge :(

I finished plumbing the ballast vent hoses and fresh air ducts (single 4") last night. Now on to refinishing teak, new glovebox, and some more stereo and courtesy light wiring...

[Sdc77]

sybrmike, I was the first one surpised when the old owner uncover the boat, when I visited him the first time. We have no very hot summers here, so boats keeps in good condition if well covered.

What I really like is your seat behind the pilot, and the convertible back seat. A big sun bed is what is missing on direct drive boats.
I keep watching with big interrest ;)

[sybrmike]

Finished the first LED wiring harness for the speaker/cupholder pods - only three more to go... They're all waterproof RGB. The larger 4 light pod will be down facing in the original courtesy light location. I'm modifying some stock incandescent housings with a lens and s/s trim ring to house this courtesy light. The two ribbon cable single lights will go in the s/s cupholders. These were a pain - first, they arrrived from Ozonium with a long stiff section of heat shrink that seals the built in resistors so I'll have to double back on the wires to fit them into the pod. Second, the common annode is easy to identify with the red sheath, but there's no way to identify the remaining R, G, or B wires other than powering them up. I'm putting them all in 4 pin connectors so I can remove the pods without cutting wires if the need ever arises.

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[TitanTn]

This all "sounds" good, but we'll just have to see the end results.

[sybrmike]

I agree, TT. I have a clear vision in my head, but getting anxious & nervous to see if/how it all actually works out - but heck, that's half the fun in all this... Don't worry, good/bad or pass/fail, I'll post pics regardless.

[Okie Boarder]

Very nice work so far.

[sybrmike]

The boat's still at the upholsterer - they didn't order enough white vinyl. Hope to have it back by end of the week. Really getting anxious/nervous to see how it turns out...

In the meantime, working on what I can. Refinished the teak storage locker trim, doghouse hatch, & 5 small pieces from the original bow locker. Per Titan's confirmation, I'm gonna put the triangular trim pieces back on the new black Starboard bow hatch I made (cooler to step on & keep the hint of teak heritage going bow to stern).

Port storage trim is complete - refinished teak, new plexiglass face, s/s hardware, and magnetic latch.

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Just need to finish the hardware on the starboard locker trim

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Had to replace a few missing pieces on the doghouse hatch. Teak's just too expensive, so used some Belizian Mahogany I had. Can't tell the difference once it's oiled up, but will be curious to see if it weathers the same? The PO had put some crappy brass hinges on the front, but at least the new s/s ones hide the old holes.

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Finally, got the sub enclosure built. Didn't want to worry about MDF getting wet, so used 3/4" treated ply, glued & screwed, with a coat of poly resin.

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[Okie Boarder]

I'm getting anxious to see the finished product.

[TitanTn]

Nice progress on these pieces. Sounds like it'll all come together at once when you get it back.

[jet]

Looks great! Man its hard saying NO to your friends when they call and say " going out tomorrow, are you in?" crying..I say no, not yet. : (

[sybrmike]

Upholterer is taking longer than expected (suprise?) & running out of things to do while waiting. Finished the other locker trim, completed the sub, & prewired a tower speaker harness and connector. Pulled out this old yucky yellowsih orangish bimini that came with the boat.

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Good news is that it's a stainless frame and hardware. Bad news is it's dangerous for my mind to have such idle time. Now I've got a crazy idea for reusing the tubing and some of the hardware to make a folding, supportless, bimini that attaches directly to the tower. Gonna strip it down tonight & get clamps and special hinges on the way...

[TitanTn]

Oh yeah. This I wanna see...

[jet]

Thats my idea, except I like the flat floating biminis. Just slide it in and clamp it or slide it out and leave it at home. That will come later.

[haugy]

Upholterer is taking longer than expected (suprise?) & running out of things to do while waiting. Finished the other locker trim, completed the sub, & prewired a tower speaker harness and connector. Pulled out this old yucky yellowsih orangish bimini that came with the boat.
Good news is that it's a stainless frame and hardware. Bad news is it's dangerous for my mind to have such idle time. Now I've got a crazy idea for reusing the tubing and some of the
hardware to make a folding, supportless, bimini that attaches directly to the tower. Gonna strip it down tonight & get clamps and special hinges on the way...

If you're any good with tools, which obviously you are, you should be able to make a pretty sweet bimini. I'll be looking forward to this, even though I hate you because now my boat needs a major overhaul to keep up with the awesomeness.














http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AlvMRt9uCGo/T2gKuzlSjgI/AAAAAAAADPg/D_a8jL2QglQ/s400/challenge-accepted.jpg
:D:D

[sybrmike]

Yeah I like the flat floaters too, but frequently trailer some distances & a fixed top probably wouldn't hold up or store for travel too well. Thought about removing the fabric & leaving the frame on for trailering, but never seen a good looking canvas that wasn't a pita to install/remove. Plus, I've got the wife & two teenage daughters so I can already hear it - "I'm too hot, I want shade. Now I want to tan. Now I'm sunburned, put the top up. No wait now I want..." Like the rest of this project - great ideas are easy, but it's the execution that's the tricky part for me...

Aaahh yes, young Haugy-son. The zen circle is complete when the student becomes the master (I think this is where I snatch the pebbles from your hand) :) . Just kidding, your old Mariah has been a great inspiration for me along the way. Besides, I know better than to challenge the Haugmeister - you'd probably bring a turbine v-drive to a DD fight. Btw - I'm still jealous of how sexy that ND swoop is on your Salt.

[sybrmike]

Stopped by for an update on the interior. Looks like it's gonna drag into next week, but here's a sneak peak.

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I'm happy with the color selection (the gray closely matches the hull) and the design I came up with seems to be flowing well. The materials are great - heavy weight, stain resistant, marine vinyl, 2" high density foam base with 1" medium density foam top (cushy on the tushy, yet firm). The seams are all triple stitched & it should all hold up for a long time. The workmanship is only average in getting all the seams straight and lined up, but for the price I can't complain too much. Plus part of the fault may lie in that I changed the whole layout with all new custom panels, so no patterns. He's an old retired guy & his wife has had 3 surgeries while working on the boat, so it's taking longer than quoted. I'm sure he's taking a bath on the costs (quoted what I figured for materials alone), but still very accomodating when he's had to rework some pieces. Getting to the point where I just want it back!

[TitanTn]

I really like the pattern, and a great choice on colors. I think it's hard to find a great quality upholstery guy. Even professional shops seem to struggle to get seams perfectly straight, or no puckers in places. Although I think most small puckers will flatten out with a decent amount of sun exposure.

[Okie Boarder]

Looking good man! We may redo interior in a few years and I'm liking your lounge seat idea...might incorporate that into the design.

[ruby23m]

Diddo with the lounge seat, I was thinking of doing the exact same thing as its somewhat wasted space behind the captains chair.

[jet]

And I will 3rd that. Details and pictures please?? My nose is being stuffed with so much electronics that Im not going to have any dry storage left so I need that Malibu XTI storage over there for xtra stuff when other people bring there luggage to go out with us for 4-5 hrs. lol. Silly Wally's.

[sybrmike]

I must have caught your cold, jet - my nose is now stuffy too. Had to R&R the grill cover off the sub to get it slid down between the helm and seat base. Not much room left port-to-stbd, but still plenty of leg room. So now the stereo's done except for tower speakers and tuning (haven't mounted the tower yet, but I did run the wires to the thru hull connector). Interior lights are done (more on that later), and teak storage/trim is installed (except for doghouse - last piece getting vinyl).

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[sybrmike]

Interior is almost done! My guy needs to recover one piece, add backing material to the bottom seat cushions and a few tweaks.

Bow shot - added the original teak trim inserts on the new StarBoard bow locker. I need to go back and add locating blocks to the bottom of the seat cushions so they don't shift around and the lines stay straight.

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From the rear - still need to add a pull tab on the ski locker lid, cut the vinyl & mount the doghouse locker trim, and add soundproofing and hinges to the doghouse. Finally got to sit down in the rear chaise with the engine cover in place - gonna be the seat everybody fights for.

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And a few more of the rear layout. I painted myself into a corner with the armrests - made them long enough to cover some existing holes from the old interior, but now the port one captures the chaise seat bottom so the chaise backrest has to be lifted up in order to remove the chaise bottom. Otherwise, I'm real happy with how it turned out.

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I should have it back tomorrow, so hope to wrap it all up this weekend - tower, tower speakers, & make the hinged supports for the rear seat bottoms for when they're up in "sundeck/full rear ballast" mode. Oh yeah, and finish the ballast - just need to add valves and quick connects to the ends of all the hoses. Once the tower's up, I'll get to work on my folding/floating bimini idea...

[TitanTn]

Looks great Mike. I love the color of the interior, but personally I'd miss all the moving around space. I guess people can just walk on the upholstery until there's someone sitting there.

I'm interested to hear more about your bimini idea (which I know will be cool), but I hope it's not that cool. I just got through with mine and I'm currently very happy with it!

[Salty87]

looks like some thick, comfy foam. love the 2 tone with piping designs. i also like the bigger seats instead of all of the little ones....bench for captains loveseat, 2 piece rear seats. even the new teak design on the bow looks sharp.

looks like your armrests would be perfectly placed for supporting extra wide sundeck. i don't suppose the chaise seat bottom also doubles for that?...j/k i can't imagine the chaise is nearly 8' long.

well done!

[jet]

Man, that xtra seat looks awesome!! But I meant better closer and a lot of pictures!! Whats underneath more storage??

[sybrmike]

Thanks, guys - it's getting close...

TT - I designed the pattern/layout so that the gray only touches the hull in a few places since I knew I wouldn't find a vinyl that matched the hull exactly. I think the white accent & black piping trick the eyes into thinking they're the same color gray. Only time will tell how functional the new layout is for moving about. The pictures are deceiving - I've got ~18" between the rear bench seats and back of the doghouse.

I received the special hinges needed for the bimini, but have to wait until the tower's up to figure my angles & measurements. The angled wishbone front half of my TitanII is gonna make things interesting... Cool is the idea, but it's just an idea - I only hope my execution is as good as yours.

Thanks Salty, but no need to kid - the armrests and top ledge of the rear bench were designed just for that purpose. The whole seatback/armrest assembly is a sandwiched construction of 2x2 and 1/2" ply with minimal foam on the top face to support a sundeck. However, once I built it - the armrests, cupholders, and doghouse had the rear seat bottom trapped (again, best laid plans & all that). So I split it into two pieces, but still plan on having the rear bench(s) convertible to a sundeck and to allow the two MC X-2 450# sacs underneath to fill to their full 20" of height for surfing. I'm gonna add some hinged braces to the underside of the seats that fold down to support the middle edges when in the "up" position. We'll soon find out how/if it all works out.

Jet - I'll get some better pics for you once I've got it back for the last time. The seat base is rectangular with 72" clear length inside for ski storage. The backrest piece has angled 2x2 uprights with a 2x4 top and skinned in 1/2" ply all mounted on a 1/2" ply base that is bolted to the base. It's hollow inside with storage access through the top hinged backrest. The seat bottom lifts out to access the base storage (although I made the blasted rear armrests too long trying to cover existing holes & have to lift the backrest cushion up to lift the bottom out).

[sybrmike]

Got it back from the upholsterer one last time (or so I thought) - found a small tear in the ski locker lid, but I can just take that one piece off to have him repair it.

Got the doghouse hatch trim installed - easy. The doghouse hinges - not so easy. They don't have a lot of "reach" between the two halves so the the thru bolts are at the edge of solid wood & glass, so I fabbbed aluminim backing plates - hope they hold. They've got a removable hinge pin, so the cover can be lifted off without the base.

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Salty- here's the rear bench seat bottoms in the "sundeck" position". I made vertical supports out of carpeted 3/4" ply, hinged on the inner edge (still need to align & screw to the seat bottoms). I'll figure a way to hold them up flush with the underside of the seat bottom when not used & gotta figure the best routing for the ballast hoses with them in place. For now, a simple bungee cord secures them to the center crosspiece in the seat base & locks things together pretty good.

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[Moose]

sybrmike If you find yourself getting tired of your boat I would be willing to trade you straight up boat for boat. Yes it would be tough dealing with the loss but I think I will be ok with it after enough time goes by. That's one sweet lookin ride.

[jet]

OK..now we are going to need pictures of that diy bimini TOO!! I started on mine but back burnered it to do the boat so I have the fram made but had to stop there. I also need for it to be removable so I can lower my tower each time I bring it home. I am a lil worried that my roswell bar is going to make this difficult to design so I have been thinking about one on top of the tower but not sure if that would look wierd or not??

[Okie Boarder]

mike...great work...she looks really good!

[sybrmike]

I went to put the tower on Saturday morning, but the heim joints for the front wishbone wouldn't drop down into the feet - the tolerance was just too tight. Didn't want to waste the little time we had fighting it, so loaded up & hit the lake for a half day shake down cruise without the tower. Forgot the camera, so only a few crappy cell phone pics - but she floats! Once I tweaked the carb a bit, she started & ran great all day. I finished plumbing the ballast late Friday night, & played around with it some on the water. Seemed to work well, but didn't load it up too heavy since it was just me & the girls - no good backup if something were to go awry... Bilge stayed bone dry, stereo rocked (still needs tuned), adjusting the trim tabs actually made a difference while underway, even the ice chest held ice all day in 90 F instead of the orignal ice melter.

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So a little grinding on the front feet this week should get the tower mounted. Unfortunately, looks like the front tower wishbone is gonna have to come off/on each time she goes in the garage. Sucks, but it's only two bolts. Can't wait to finish the few remaining details & start hitting the water in earnest to see what she can really do and finally start enjoying...

Thanks again - couldn't have done it without ya'll!

[TitanTn]

Congrats Mike. It's been a long haul, but very much worth it I'm sure. Looking forward to seeing the finished product with the tower installed. I love seeing the family out on the water. This is what it's all about. And guess what! You're just in time to make the trip to our Supra boat meet in Chattanooga! ;)

If anyone is just now picking up this thread, please start from the beginning and see what has transpired.

[sybrmike]

What long haul? It's only taken 2+ years... Only wish we hadn't lost all those pics with the site upgrade so it might be more helpful to others undertaking such projects. At least there's a batch of new ones (you, lively, ben, grog, etc.) carrying on the rebuild torch complete with pics.

Oh so close to calling it done (although don't think projects like this are ever truly done?). Yep, watching the girls giggle & goof around on the tube all afternoon was exactly the reward I hoped for. We'll get serious on the surfing/boarding once the tower's up & I'll get back on the skiing once somebody else learns to drive (wife almost ran me over after my kneeboard session!). Probably beg off on the Chat meet-up, but gonna try & make the Moomba/Supra Jam closer to home in August.

[lively]

Great job bro! Im looking forward to my day when I'm pulling the fam around

[sybrmike]

Haven't been able to get out lately - tweaked my old back injury while on family vacation. However, I was able to finish one more project - the RGB LED interior lights are up and running.

I pre-wired harnesses for each of the speaker pods. Each harness has two surface mount, waterproof, RGB's from Oznium for under each cupholder and one 4 light, waterproof, RGB module from EcoLights mounted facing down in the original courtesy light location. I wired each harness with a 4 pin connector so that I can easily unbolt and unplug the speaker/cupholder pods if needed.

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I cut the backs out of some standard trunion bulb stern lights to replace the original courtesy lights, so I have a nice clear lens and s/s trim ring to finish it off. I also added one of the EcoLight modules and trim lens/ring to the panel below the walk-thru by the ice chest. I did not put one in the helm cupholder since I thought the glare/reflection off of the tinted window would be too distracting.

I wired all the lights to an RGB controller mounted up under the helm with a remote that controls the 13 different modes (solid colors, fades with adjustable speed/brightness, and 2 audio modes). I took two of the speaker level outputs from the head unit through a Stinger line level converter as the audio inputs to the controller.

The effect is pretty cool - I can change the color to suit the mood, or the kids love the full on disco. A neat feature of the audio modes is that the brightness is varied with the volume in addition to changing colors with the beat. The reflection in the new s/s cupholders is more subdued than the RGB rings, but looks really cool with a bottled beverage of choice installed.

All I have is this crappy cell phone video, but you get the idea... http://youtu.be/FqjKbk3D6HU

[sybrmike]

Oh yeah, just to keep my pics in a common thread - here's with the tower installed. Getting better - takes me, wife, & 1 kid 5 minutes to get the front wishbone installed (sadly everytime in/out of garage - no header clearance. :(
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Not sure the RGB LED link worked in previous post, but think this works?? http://youtu.be/FqjKbk3D6HU

[TitanTn]

Your Youtube link worked in both posts.

Awesome looking LEDs Mike. It's the most impractical thing I can do to my boat, but I still want to do it. I've have my Saltare now for two years and I haven't been out at night yet. I spent a little time during my restoration to make all the courtesy lights works (just because I have having stuff not work) but I've yet to use them. Still, your LEDs are way cool. I like the tower too. I know it's been a haul, but it's all coming together.

[Moose]

Looks great. Love the way saltares look with a nice tower.

[dusty2221]

We got to see Mike Saltare at the Texas Jam, it look incredible. Amazing restoration job.

[haugy]

Well crap. All the pictures from your work are gone.

As I contemplate another major project I was going back and seeing what all you went through. But alas, I really can't without the pictures.

[Sdc77]

Simply amazing boat ! i love the new interior with extra seats, the way you manage the rear bed, your RGB lighting, dash, etc.
Very impressive boat man ;)

[sybrmike]

Yeah, bummer with the pics. Besides personal therapy, I was hoping to share so that others could benefit. Let me know if there's any specifics you want, or maybe I can find the time to post to Photobucket or similar account if it'd help?

Thanks SDC- that's nice to hear coming from the owner of another beautiful Salt.

[haugy]

I know I'd like to see the gutting of the floor and stringer rebuild pics all the way to putting the interior back in. The engine and the rest don't matter as much to me. But seeing your boat gutted allows me to look at mine, without gutting it yet, and plan things.

[skiman_61]

I would love to see the restoration pics. Awesome lights in the video.

[jasun]

ill send you some pics.....

[sybrmike]

Just found this one from last year on the Moomba/Supra Texas Jam facebook page. Good motivation to get me going on the winter projects since winter is over & I haven't done squat.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h5FOIGBADaA/UUjTgTm-83I/AAAAAAAAABA/QERS08tVf5I/s740/540135_325771624190156_1195096927_n.jpg

[TitanTn]

The reflection off the side is looking nice.

[sybrmike]

Thanks, still need to tackle my folding floating bimini idea, repair a rear seat brace, add a 2nd 12V outlet in the storage pod, redo the insulation inside the doghouse, etc. - I don't think it ever ends.

Finally figured out the big pic stuff - you know, old dogs & new tricks...

[txnight]

mike, where did you get the surf rack on the top? I'm looking for something like that right now

[sybrmike]

A machine shop marketed them under the Endless Wave name, but ceased production a few years back. I picked mine up during a group buy a year or so ago when they ran a limited production run to get rid of remaining parts inventory, but don't think they're available any longer.

[jasun]

What kind of tower is that?

[sybrmike]

It's a Titan II. Admittedly, the styling's not for everyone but I like it & went for function over looks - stainless tubing, wishbone front end, heim joints, collapsible with one bolt, etc. It's strong as heck (no movement even under hard cuts on the slalom - glad I heavily reinforced the mounts) and rattle free. Unfortunately, it's designed to collapse with the rear hoop laid down to the rear & the front hoop leaned back against the windshield & for me that leaves the peak of the front hoop to high to fit under the garage header so have to R&R each outing. But overall, I really like it.