85 Supra SunSport Skier - PINK!

[chrisk]

After watching my neighbor use this boat for years I just picked it up about a year and a half ago now and I absolutely love it. I'm a guy that likes to do everything - I do wakeboarding, 3-event skiing, barefooting, surfing, and just plain boating and I really think the SS works great for everything. I couldn't be happier to be a boat owner finally and I'm constantly excited about the work I get to do to it.

The boat had the original stripes taken off and the blue and pink stripes were added, which I kinda dig ; )
It has a little over 900 hours but it runs amazing - starts right up every time I go out.
I added a tower first thing to the boat, an Aerial Airborne tower with a couple of speakers and racks. Love the way it compliments the colors and lines of my boat.
Also added a simple sub and amp setup.
Recently installed a completely automatic, hidden ballast system that works like a charm. I'm so happy to have all of the clutter of bags and pumps out of the way.

I just decided I would start this thread like all you guys, I should have done this a while ago, we all like showing off our babies right?!

I have a new Acme 543 on the way, and other projects I'm thinking about are LED accent and swim platform lighting, new stereo equipment, PA system, tinted side windows, etc etc etc... Thanks for all the help everyone has given me and enjoy!

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_3132.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_3131.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_3681.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/photo9.jpg

[chrisk]

ballast bags

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4521.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4517.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4516.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4494.jpg

[wotan2525]

I like the blue/pink! If you're going to be old-school..... go all the way!

[chrisk]

haha Yeah I've learned to embrace it, definitely turns heads! And it's okay because of the mean sound these things have rumbling down the river!

[Okie Boarder]

Looking good man. The pink is definitely eye catching. Teak looks good!

[sybrmike]

Talk about old dogs & new tricks. Old school - beautiful teak, "pretty in pink" stripes, sexy sweeping bow rails. Plus tower, stereo, & integrated ballast. Nice blend.

[chrisk]

Thanks for the comments on the teak guys! I was seriously VERY close to taking all of it off, sanding it down, and re-staining it with a kind of black teak stain so that it would match everything a little better. I couldn't bring myself to do it though, the teak is so classic.

[doc 1]

Thing screams Miami Vice!

[chrisk]

Here's one in the water last summer

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_3428.jpg

[TitanTn]

Chris, so how did you get the teak looking so new?

[chrisk]

Titan, I used Sikkens brand teak finish, you can buy it at Overton's. It's held up really well for how much I use my boat (100 hours or more last season and quite a bit this season).

[TitanTn]

Titan, I used Sikkens brand teak finish, you can buy it at Overton's. It's held up really well for how much I use my boat (100 hours or more last season and quite a bit this season).

I have used Interlux and Starbrite. Right now I'm re-oiling the swim platform after every use. And even when I re-did the platform (lightly sand, teak cleaner, teal oil) it was never as shiny as yours. Is there really that much difference in the brand of oil, or did you do something specific in the preparation of the platform before you oiled it?

[wotan2525]

I have used Interlux and Starbrite. Right now I'm re-oiling the swim platform after every use. And even when I re-did the platform (lightly sand, teak cleaner, teal oil) it was never as shiny as yours. Is there really that much difference in the brand of oil, or did you do something specific in the preparation of the platform before you oiled it?

The sikkens is a teak finish, not a teak oil. I believe that it's poly based stain. It drives/cures instead of just soaking in like oil would.

The stuff works great but the downside is that I've been on some REALLY slippery swim decks that people put it on. Also, once it starts to break down it goes pretty quickly and you cant easily remove it. The two people I know that have used it eventually regretted it.

[Newbie girl]

Nice boat! Even though I am not big on the towers for the older boats, I have to admit, I do like yours! I think the fact that the black matches with the black on your boat and it seems to follow the shape of your windshield makes it look more like it was made for it.

Hope to do an internal ballast system as well this winter. How much does your internal ballast system hold and are you able to surf with it without adding any "outside" bags?

[chrisk]

Thanks for the compliments! My system will probably only hold about 800 lbs when completely full. But, when I'm consistently riding with 5-7 other people, it produces a great wake. As far as surfing, when I do it, I do throw an extra 300 lb-er on the floor surf-side to improve the wake. However, that was with only 4 people in the boat. I think it all depends on how many people you're out with and how cooperative they are in positioning their weight for surfing. Placing that ball valve on the front right bag was a real easy way of shifting weight to the left and then if you have people sit in that back left corner it works out pretty well. Also, if you don't slalom, I would recommend placing another sac in the ski locker like wakemikey and others have done. I do slalom so I wanted to keep that for storage but it would be a nice addition.

Titan, as for the teak, I've never had any problems with it being slippery. All I did to apply it was sand down the platform before application just so it would take the stuff better and then apply a couple coats. It's lasted real well too, I'll try to remember to take a picture of it for you as it sits, well over a year later.

[chrisk]

Titan, here is a picture of the teak as it is now, about a year and 2 months after I put that Sikkens on. There are a couple of spots where it is starting to wear off, but for the most part has remained solid. Sorry this picture isn't great, it was raining and dark.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/9068577f.jpg

[chrisk]

So I got my new prop in, brand new Acme 543 13x11.5. This one replaced a very old 13x12 that I had on the boat.

I'm not going to lie, I wasn't as impressed with the Acme as I was prepared to be. I expected noticeable gains on both ends with it.

I didn't gain any top end speed whatsoever, which is pretty disappointing because I love to slalom and I barefoot every once in a while. I'm still sitting right at about 35-37 mph, depending on weight and other variables.

I did notice some more bottom-end power out of the hole, which is nice. Also, I noticed a little more efficiency at slower wakeboarding/cruising speeds.

I don't know, maybe my expectations were just a little too high. It does look awfully pretty on the boat though! haha I included a pretty crappy picture taken from my phone from the dock. Thoughts on the 543?

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/e736f72c.jpg

[chrisk]

Here's my surf wake with just two people in the boat, kind of a bad picture but I took it with my phone and just uploaded it with my phone from the river!

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/45a70b95.jpg

[TitanTn]

Chris - That's an awesome angle. Looks huge!

[sandm]

I really like the pink :)
funny, guy at the local shop got to talking while the gf tried on wetsuits. said they can't keep pink boards in stock. guys are buying them up left and right. it's apparently the hot color for boards this year.

[chrisk]

Haha maybe I'll have to be trendy and consider picking up a board to match my boat.

[DAFF]

Have a old set of skis with the blue and pink stripes on black..... Got them new during the Miami Vice era .....

[chrisk]

Haha yeah we've got an old set of pink and green Cut 'n Jumps, good stuff

I also almost went pink with my LED setup, opted for blue instead :)

[chrisk]

Well I got the LED's all wired in just in time for the 4th, and I am so so impressed with the way they turned out. Everything is exactly how I imagined it and the entire install process went very smooth.

I ended up going all Oznium with a superflux in each cupholder and underneath the playpen, silicone strips underneath the rear bench seat, passenger seat, and driver's console, and I put two of the high intensity spotlights mounted on the transom under the waterline. I really wanted to avoid an obnoxious glow, since I do have an older boat after all, and I think the final result is absolutely perfect. Here's a few crappy pictures taken with my phone, enjoy!

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/7535bfb7.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/9c8ac9b4.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/6378ce90.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/cb6448a1.jpg

[sybrmike]

Yup, Sonny & Tubbs would be proud. Corona never looked better. Great job!

[chrisk]

Thanks man! I also wanted to add that this was an under-$100-mod!

[Newbie girl]

Love the lights! Might have to copy you on that move, if I can talk someone into doing it for me this winter! ;)

[dshaff24]

Love the lights! Might have to copy you on that move, if I can talk someone into doing it for me this winter! ;)looks good.. I think I had a total of 70 invested in mine

[chrisk]

Thanks for the compliments on the lights guys. Here's another picture of her in the water and LOADED down.

Also, I spotted another old Supra on the water last night! That's incredibly rare around here on my 10 mile stretch of river so to whoever out there that has the Red 85-87 SunSport with the tribal decal on the side, come find me the next time you're out!

Annnd, I got the Krypt 4200 EQ in and installed and so far I LOVE it! Offers so much more control over your sound system, the blue knobs match my LED's perfect, and the PA feature is soooooo awesome. Also got a second amp to power my system, just one thing after another.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/e55db82c.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/527ddc58.jpg

[chrisk]

Finally touched 1000 hours on my baby, it was a little more bitter than sweet since I'm in a leg cast and had to watch my buddies tear up a gorgeous evening on the water.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/f3103fa5.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/f0661c77.jpg

[chrisk]

Well during the outage I got a few new things done.

LED's:
- Added strips along the length of the vinyl-covered side board on the inside of the gunwale. These really completed the LED look, super easy install because I just wired them directly into the existing accent lights.
- Added Red LED replacement bulbs for my gauges. Love the way they turned out and compliment my blue accents. I also have red lights in the EQ, head unit, and amps so it worked out well.
- Finally, possibly my favorite LED's, four simple strips inside of my cooler.... PINK!

Alternator:
- Added a brand new 110 amp alternator. The old one was definitely the culprit of my battery charge problem and I haven't had an issue since.

Window Tint:
- Had a buddy help me tint the side windows to 20%. LOVE the new look of the boat. All the blacks kind of blend nicely throughout now.

Amp Rack:
- Finally tackled that project. Spent less than $10 and came away with an awesome looking final product.

Here's the pictures, enjoy and thanks for all the help!

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/e042d9aa.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/263b2346.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/d11205fa.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/0dc946cd.jpg

[chrisk]

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/2373ae68.jpg

before rack:
http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/cbc1aae0.jpg

after rack:
http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/6b758fbf.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/9ae7f071.jpg

[chrisk]

It's a sad week this week. I had to spend my last night on the water with my baby Sunday night. I'm going to be spending this entire week cleaning, cleaning, winterizing, and cleaning the boat before I have to put it away for storage for the year... : (

I still have one year of school left and I just can't afford to trailer the boat down to Missouri with me and keep it there. As much as I would love to, I know that it miiiiiight have an adverse effect on my studying. As sad as it is, I do have a cast on my foot so it's not like I'm missing out on riding and skiing, just driving and being on the water. Also, in just my short summer season I've put 150 hours on it - from the middle of May till the middle of August.

So, for the next 5 days I will be thoroughly cleaning out the boat. I'm planning on a full interior detail as well as wet sanding, compounding, polishing, and waxing the hull. I can't wait to post a picture of the current oxidation that is happening on my hull just to hear some reactions. So if anyone has any good tips on doing any of that or winterizing a ballast system or anything else, please feel free to share!

[TitanTn]

It's already looking good Chris, but I'll look forward to seeing your progress over the winter. It's great to see people actually using and enjoying their boats. Sorry the season is cut a little short, but it sounds like your priorities are in the right place. Keep us updated.

[chrisk]

Before and after pics of my wet sanding, rubbing compound, polishing compound, and waxing week.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4690.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4691.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4703.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4704.jpg

[Okie Boarder]

Looks like it was worth it...she's shining good now!

[TitanTn]

Wow! How long did it take for it to get that oxidized? Was that one summer's worth, or has this been building for a while?

[chrisk]

Just one summer's worth, it was that black when I started the season. But I guess that'll happen when you put 150 hours on your boat in under three months. Also, starboard side was a little worse because the way my shorestation is situated that side gets beat by the sun most of the day. Also, the river I'm on is a pretty dirty river, a foot of visibility max.

[chrisk]

So when I bought my Aerial tower 2 years ago they accidentally sent me an Attwood LED anchor light. The light clipped in to some of their other towers bought mine wasn't compatible with mine. I just had it sitting in a box for the last year and half but then I got bored and had an idea.

I modified the light slightly using a lathe so that it would fit down inside a piece of pipe that I had laying around from an old child's basketball hoop. I had a friend's grandpa weld a steel plate inside of the pipe and drill and tap a 1/4" thread through that plate. We used a hole saw and grinder to cut the proper radius into the bottom of the pipe and we epoxied the light to the top of the pipe.

On the tower, we drilled down through the top of the tower all the way through to the bottom. Then using a progressive bit drilled out about a 3/4 - 1" hole in the top so I could use needle nose pliers to grab the existing extra wires I had laying in the tower. Wired the light up, put a piece of rubber on the bottom of the pipe and bolted it to the tower. Cut the rubber around the edges with a razor to make it nice and clean and I was done.

No more messing around with the standard anchor light pole in the back of the boat, just have to pull the existing switch.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/44fb2d7d.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/b2fcc260.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/118455a4.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/308962d0.jpg

[cavilry]

awesome man! Some of this ingenuity is thoroughly inspiring. Once we FINALLY track down a boat worth purchasing, I hope you don't mind if I steal a few ideas :)

[chrisk]

Of course not! That's the purpose behind this whole forum, inspiration and sharing

[csl]

Boat looks great man. I am working on an 87 sunsport and I like your ideas. My questions are on your tower. How do you like the powdercoated airborne tower? I think that is the tower I am installing on mine. Does it seem solid and quiet and do the bottom horizontal pieces obstruct your view while driving? Also how is the black powdercoating holding up? Ihave seen some that fade over time and look dull. Anyway, have a good one and sorry for all the questions. Thanks, Cody

[chrisk]

No problem, love questions about boats!

I've had the Aerial on my boat for two seasons of heavy use now - about 250ish hours. I store my boat on a shorestation so every time I park I have to lower the tower and then put it back up when we go back out, that's just a little background info.

You asked how I like the powdercoating and how it is holding up...

I love the powdercoat! I think it compliments the black trim and gel of my boat very nicely, wouldn't have it any other way. The chrome accents on the tower such as the feet, face plate, and SS bolts do a nice job of complimenting the chrome and SS trim pieces on my boat, as well.
As far as how the paint it holding up... I took it on a bachelor party this past summer.. not only did it survive the bachelor party, it also survived sitting outside in a hailstorm. The storm literally resulted in ZERO damage to the tower or powdercoat, even though the tow vehicle suffered major damage. Here's a picture of one of the stones, you be the judge:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/photo8.jpg

Along those lines, however, the ONE thing you have to be careful of is folding the tower down. If you're someone that will never fold it down then disregard this. When you do fold it down, it folds backwards and then collapses down. When the two forward tower feet collapse down, they will be able to touch the cross members of the tower, resulting in scraped powdercoat. I simply cut a dock bumper in half to alleviate this problem, that way we just slide them on the cross members each time we put it away and it's fine.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4522.jpg

As far as the stability and quietness of the tower...

No universal tower will be as quiet or sturdy as a new, factory tower. However, I think of mine as very sturdy and very quiet. I'm a fairly good rider and at 200 lbs I feel very comfortable pulling on it as hard as I can while wakeboarding. I used pieces of aluminum for support underneath my front legs to help spread out the force:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_4524.jpg

The horizontal pieces don't obstruct your view. People who have or prefer towers with no cross members may argue that this one technically does, and they may be right, but it doesn't obstruct you while you're doing anything important. It hugs the window pretty well and as you can see in this pic it's still easy to see out:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/652f9715.jpg

Let me know if you have other questions!

[csl]

Hey thanks man, that pretty much sells me on it. Before I bought anything I wanted someones personal experience. Now I have more projects for the winter! Sure hate the
thought of drilling into the boat though. Measure twice, cut once! Thanks again.

[chrisk]

Yeah holes for the tower are definitely the most significant/important holes you will put in your boat but the more you do it the less you worry about it. Since purchasing my boat I've drilled 13 holes through the outside of the boat, 6 of which were below the water line.

[87SunSportMikeyD]

Holy crap you have been busy. Great job getting everything completed and the LED's really came together well. I should order some more and finish mine proper... Which underwater lights did you go with? Awesome boat.

[Moose]

So I got my new prop in, brand new Acme 543 13x11.5. This one replaced a very old 13x12 that I had on the boat.

I'm not going to lie, I wasn't as impressed with the Acme as I was prepared to be. I expected noticeable gains on both ends with it.

I didn't gain any top end speed whatsoever, which is pretty disappointing because I love to slalom and I barefoot every once in a while. I'm still sitting right at about 35-37 mph, depending on weight and other variables.

I did notice some more bottom-end power out of the hole, which is nice. Also, I noticed a little more efficiency at slower wakeboarding/cruising speeds.

I don't know, maybe my expectations were just a little too high. It does look awfully pretty on the boat though! haha I included a pretty crappy picture taken from my phone from the dock. Thoughts on the 543?

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/e736f72c.jpg


Well you went from a 12 pitch to a 11.5 pitch. The lower the number on your pitch the less top speed and more bottom end. If your looking for more speed to barefoot or ski you would want a higher number on the pitch like 14 or 15. Put it this way a bass boat that can go about 60mph probably has about a 35 to 37 degree pitch.

[chrisk]

My 13x12 was a really old prop. This new prop from Acme is CNC milled and has different blade shapes than the old props that allow it to pull harder on the bottom end, and give you good top speed. CSuggs is running the exact same set up as me and he's getting low 40's for his top speed at around 4400 rpm's, I think I've determined that there's something fishy going on with my throttle linkage, carb, or something else because I can't come close to touching 4400.

[chrisk]

Holy crap you have been busy. Great job getting everything completed and the LED's really came together well. I should order some more and finish mine proper... Which underwater lights did you go with? Awesome boat.

I did the Oznium high intensity spot lights.. I think they're $20something a piece. I would like to replace them or add to them with some other lights. They were bright enough for the budget I was on last summer but things will be different this summer.

Thanks for the compliments and welcome back!

[Moose]

chrisk I just got in my aerial airborne tower black like yours too. Just wanted to know what your clearance from floor to top of tower is. I'm about 6'5" and need to get some room for my noggin. I need to decide how to mount the tower on my saltare and it looks like most people with old supras mount on the side of the boat but aerial does have a pic of a saltare with the tower mounted on the top rail. Any info would be awesome. Thanks

[chrisk]

I would recommend mounting it just above the rubrail so the tower feet sit flush against the fiberglass. This will also make reinforcing the backs of the tower feet easiest. I think you'll be fine at 6' 5" but it will be close. I have a 6' 3" friend that is regularly on the boat and I don't remember him having any problems with bumping the tower. Where you'll run into problems is if you ordered tower speakers along with it, those will definitely get in your way. I'll be around my boat on Monday so if I remember I'll be able to get an exact measurement for you. I believe the Saltare has more freeboard than my Sunsport so you might have a little extra height than me.

[Moose]

Thanks for the info. Just above the rubrail is the most common spot i've seen. I'm just concerned about putting the mount near or in the recessed trim stripe that most supras have. Wonder if it would be prone to cracking? Guess it could be stronger because of the recess too. It looks like there is way more room on the Sunsports in that area than the Saltare. Anyway thanks again.

[chrisk]

Yeah there might be more room on the Sunsports, I was able to avoid that recessed spot. I went above it on the rear foot and below it on the front foot.

[chrisk]

Hey guys, just looking for your suggestions on new amp rack set ups. I currently have a rack built for my two amps, however I have a third Kicker amp coming that is about 20" long. I'm a little bored right now so I'm just brainstorming ideas.

Here's a picture of the current set up. I would like to leave it as is so I either need to add the third amp against the back wall or right wall of this storage compartment. Only problem is, both of those walls can't be screwed into because the screws will be poking into vinyl or the bow walk-through. I was thinking maybe using some heavy duty velcro on some braces on the back of the new rack? Maybe a second layer to my current rack? Any ideas are welcome.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/6b758fbf.jpg

[Okie Boarder]

Cut little wood squares to the size you want, epoxy them to the surface you want to put the amp, then screw into those.

[chrisk]

That's a good idea, however another reason I was considering the velcro is that if I needed to get behind the amp for any reason it would be easier to just pull the whole rack off rather than having to unscrew it... any disadvantage to this?

[Okie Boarder]

I'm not sure if the velcro would be strong enough to hold it, but you could try it.

[chrisk]

3M makes a velcro that will definitely do the trick. A lot of slalom skiers are holding their bindings on their skis with velcro these days.

[chrisk]

Completed a new audio project this week. I replaced my old tower speakers with the Exile SXT surf speakers. I also added a Kicker 550 amp to power the tower speakers. Now I'm using my old 4 channel to power the in boats as well as an amp designated to the subwoofer. I got rid of my head unit, as I only ever play music through the auxiliary jack on my EQ. Wired in an on/off switch in the dash for the stereo to replace the head unit. Also added in Stinger distribution blocks on my new amp rack. Here's some pics:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/ba6acc34.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/2eb63f93.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/e15886da.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/1d218758.jpg

[chrisk]

Oh, and the velcro on the back of the new amp rack ended up working perfectly!

[Okie Boarder]

Looks good!

[mdb122]

Looks VERY clean - Nice Job ! Bet it Rocks now

[chrisk]

Thanks guys, first night on the water tonight, sounded great

[dusty2221]

Looks great Chris! Amp racks turned out nice. You will enjoy having it move and organized.

Any thoughts of black grills on the Exile's?

[chrisk]

Thanks guys, and Dusty I think I would prefer black grills?...

Is that something I can DIY or do I have to order them?

[dusty2221]

I believe you can purchase them from a dealer, but then again, might just be easier to spray them.

[chrisk]

Installed a dual battery system with perko switch recently, so far so good!

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/795aaeab.jpg

Also, here's a pic of my boat on the water recently:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/106e96f5.jpg

[wiatowski]

you get her all patched up?

[chrisk]

No not yet, still waiting for the insurance process to finish up. I'm really not in too big of a hurry, I'd rather lose the use of it sometime in September rather than the middle of summer.

[chrisk]

Couple of big things happened over the weekend with my baby. First, how many of you have had your boat in a parade?!? I had the opportunity to tow mine through the Mizzou homecoming parade on Saturday morning for my old ski/wakeboard team. It was an awesome time to say the least. Second, I dropped her off at the fiberglass shop to finally have the repairs done from the idiot that hit me Memorial Day weekend, I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_6228.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_6195.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/IMG_6191.jpg

[TitanTn]

Uhh, yep. You've got one up on me there. Never pulled someone in a shopping cart behind my Supra. Two skateboarders, a roller-blader, and a shopping cart has to be some kind of record.

Are you confident in the guy doing the repairs? If so, you should be excited only! I'm sure he'll make it look like it never happened.

[chrisk]

Haha, two years ago we had to pull one of the team members in a wheelchair after he snapped his femur at a tournament in Kansas, so we're always happy when we're pulling people in anything but that.

I am very confident in the guy doing the repairs. So confident, in fact, that I towed her down to Missouri 6 hours from home to have them done. A friend of mine ran his Mastercraft into the corner of a dock and punched a whole right on a section that included three different colors. The guy was able to fix the fiberglass and blend the colors perfectly. Plus, he's told me that he has experience working with vintage Supra's. It was still very strange dropping the boat off because I left it in the parking lot on a Sunday. Just pulled in, unhitched, and drove home 6 hours.

[chrisk]

Also, for the record, a nice tower speaker setup and an equalizer with microphone come in VERY handy in a parade atmosphere... :)

[TitanTn]

I know a little about what you're saying. I drove mine two hours north to Maryville and dropped her off with Donny for some minor fiberglass work, wet sanding and buffing. I trust him, but it'll be strange to not have my boat around for 2 months.

[Jetlink]

Two months? I do 5-6 months every winter without it around or seeing it aside from pictures.

[TitanTn]

Yeah, well. I store mine at home in the basement. It's great for tackling projects without having to be in a rush.

[wotan2525]

Yeah, well. I store mine at home in the basement. It's great for tackling projects without having to be in a rush.

I've got a friend that sits in his 1997 Malibu every morning and reads the paper and drinks his coffee. He does this year round. Boat has only been in the water 3 times in the last 2 years (he's got too many friends that live on lakes that have nicer boats!) He jokingly says that he could never sell it because then he'd have no place to drink his coffee.

[chrisk]

Now that's funny ^^^

I once planned on boating, was sitting on the lift under the canopy waiting for rain to stop, instead my friends and I got a cooler and ordered a pizza to my lift. Supra's really are versatile boats...

[chrisk]

Got some updates from the fiberglass shop, boat will likely be done this week. For those of you that don't know, look back in this thread at pictures from when it was "rear-ended" on Memorial Day last year.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/2013-01-30160656_zps44411e7f.jpg

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/2013-01-28150053_zps43fda51a.jpg

[TitanTn]

Your teak is looking good Chris. What's your process and what products are you using?

[chrisk]

Titan,

The Teak is also being done by Mark Modica, at First Class Fiberglass in St. Peters, MO, so I can't take credit for it. I just required that he used that Sikkens product that's sitting on the bench there because that's what I used on the platform and all the other teak. Not sure what the rest of his process is, all I know is he said he's doing four coats.

Ngavdba,

I don't know what you're talking about? lol

[chrisk]

Lol, still don't get it, sorry man!

[TitanTn]

Lol, still don't get it, sorry man!

He thinks that the photo looks like the table is stuck to the ceiling. Those cabinets in the background could be wall cabinets and not floor cabinets. The low cabinet door pulls threw me for a minute the first time I glanced at the photo too.

[chrisk]

Ahhhh, thanks for the clarification. Those door handles would be pretty high if that was the ceiling lol Seems wrong no matter which way you look at it!

[Jetlink]

It stills shows up looking goofy when I view it on tapatalk.

[chrisk]

I never flipped any images lol, that's weird. Might be a tapatalk thing like Jetlink said or differing browsers.

[TitanTn]

I never flipped any images lol, that's weird. Might be a tapatalk thing like Jetlink said or differing browsers.

It's weird, because I saw it upside down when Ngavdba first posted it, but I looked at it again after you commented that you didn't get it, and it was right side up again. Maybe a moderator did it without understanding the context?

[chrisk]

I finally have my baby back in my own driveway! It's been 7 months since I dropped her off, but it's been well worth the wait. I'll show some before/after pictures of the repair:

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/fab8549b.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/fab8549b.jpg.html)
http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/2F82DB20-1903-43DE-963A-68AC1DB6A1E3-5526-000002FDCF01BE52_zps4bda6085.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/2F82DB20-1903-43DE-963A-68AC1DB6A1E3-5526-000002FDCF01BE52_zps4bda6085.jpg.html)

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/c36465b7.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/c36465b7.jpg.html)
http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/E8796D9B-31F2-4FAF-97A2-236F169DDBC3-5526-000002FDDB1E12A6_zps466ab088.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/E8796D9B-31F2-4FAF-97A2-236F169DDBC3-5526-000002FDDB1E12A6_zps466ab088.jpg.html)

[TitanTn]

Congrats Chris. I know that is a huge relief. The repair looks great.

Now, time to work on that platform... :rolleyes:

[chrisk]

Ha, yeah I do need to work on that. Right now I'm just focused on some other things to get her ready for the weekend.

[chrisk]

He polished the entire hull without me even asking for it.

[villain]

just read through your whole thread. nice boat! makes me get impatient on finding one for me. haha!

[chrisk]

Great to hear Villain! Good luck with the search.

[villain]

thanks. its been hard finding the one that needs the right amount of work that isnt 2k miles away.

[olivier_20]

Of course not! That's the purpose behind this whole forum, inspiration and sharing

chrisk you are absolutely right !! you have a very nice boat and you inspire me a bit on couple thing !! The guy made a really nice repair on your fiberglass , it look new! I know it suck to own a boat and not be able to use it since is in a shop for repair,paint or whatever.

Questions for you:
1-How your cavitation plate is set for wakesurfing ? is it equal,lower or higher than the hull ?
2- What is your ballast setup fo wakesurfing ? (how much weight and where in the boat)

thanks for the answer and keep up your good work man !

[chrisk]

Thanks!

The cavitation plate is stationary, it's sealed to the hull of the boat so you can't move it. I don't believe the early Supra's had an option of a movable plate until they came out with hydraulic ones. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

For weight: 370 lb sac under the rear seat. 250 lb sac in the port side of the bow, basically directly underneath the windshield. Extra 400 lb sac on the port side next to the dog house, only sac that isn't hidden for surfing. The amount of gas you have in the tank completely changes the wake on these boats, and you have to change weight distribution accordingly. Usually when we're surfing we have at least four people along so that means there's two bodies that I can tell to move around. Sometimes I need them to sit in the very back of the boat, sometimes I need one to sit in the observers seat, just depends on the weight we're running that day. If the boat is fully loaded with people (8) I'll just forget the extra sac by the doghouse and save that area for people to stand/lean against the gunwale. If you have a goofy footed surfer, just reverse everything.

[TitanTn]

Thanks!

The cavitation plate is stationary, it's sealed to the hull of the boat so you can't move it. I don't believe the early Supra's had an option of a movable plate until they came out with hydraulic ones. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.


Actually, most of the cavitation plates I've seen are slightly adjustable (I didn't know they had any that weren't adjustable). The part that is attached to the boat is sealed and unmoveable, but the tailing edge has struts that you can adjust to flex the plate up or down. I find it hard to believe that the plate will do enough to affect anything, especially for wakeboarding. I assume it was meant to smooth out the wake when that was the trend back in the day. If you load down the boat with weight for boarding/surfing, I doubt the plate will affect anything. The struts on mine are locked up so I can't adjust anything, and that's fine with me.

[Salty87]

the plate position does make a bit of difference but it's no substitute for ballast. i don't know how much of an effect on surfing wake it would have but you should be able to notice at wakeboard speed. swing by sdc77's led thread in the modification section. he took the wakeplate off his saltare and used the strut mounting holes for the lights.

[olivier_20]

Tanks Guys for the answer & the help ! I do have ballast 1x600lbs + 2x300lbs ! I'll try to put more in the bow And put the plate all the way up and slowly set it down to see if there's a difference. Thanks again

[wotan2525]

the plate position does make a bit of difference but it's no substitute for ballast. i don't know how much of an effect on surfing wake it would have but you should be able to notice at wakeboard speed. swing by sdc77's led thread in the modification section. he took the wakeplate off his saltare and used the strut mounting holes for the lights.

At least on my boat, it makes a lot of difference. With the plate all the way down, I get the longest surf wave (which is how I run it) but I can't make a decent wakeboard wake to save my life.

[olivier_20]

At least on my boat, it makes a lot of difference. With the plate all the way down, I get the longest surf wave (which is how I run it) but I can't make a decent wakeboard wake to save my life.

I'm a bit confuse on what setup to start with ! i definately want the biggest et longest surf wave possible... but i do want a big wake wave to ! i love to make big wave to wave jump (less the injury it may come with :p) so that's why i though to put the plate up and put more ballast in the bow as i usually do, to 'compensate' maybe ?. wich one of the two below you think it make more sens ??

1-plate up (bigger wave) + more weight in the bow (make it longer) and when wakeboarding since the plate is up i may be able to still have a nice wave.

2- plate down (longer wave) + most of the weight in the back (make it bigger) and do some R&D with the ballast to see if i can have a nice wake wave..

[wotan2525]

I'd probably compromise and leave it right in the middle. ;)

Get a baseline for a wakeboard wake and surf wake that works for you and then fiddle one way or the other and see how it effects it.

I can get both a nice surf wave and a nice wakeboard wake with it even with the hull of the boat, but since I don't really wakeboard any more.... I just put it all the way down to stretch that surfing wave out (and then use lots of weight to make it big and steep.)

[olivier_20]

I'd probably compromise and leave it right in the middle. ;)

Haha ! full of common sens ! I launch the boat tomorrow, will try a couple thing and give you feedback !
thanks again

[chrisk]

I never have a use for the lift ring at the back of the boat, so I found someone on the Moomba forum that had some scrap black hydroturf. Unscrew the lift ring, cut the scrap hydroturf to the dimensions you need, and done. Makes a nice little step for people to use when boarding the boat.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/A12CC017-BFEE-49CE-99CF-A6F9C740EF6E-26714-0000124202F04088_zps54c948c6.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/A12CC017-BFEE-49CE-99CF-A6F9C740EF6E-26714-0000124202F04088_zps54c948c6.jpg.html)

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/1AE54F38-9E88-423D-BB34-12A95DE1E5AD-26714-000012420D2F7771_zps137ea3bd.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/1AE54F38-9E88-423D-BB34-12A95DE1E5AD-26714-000012420D2F7771_zps137ea3bd.jpg.html)

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/DCF01215-2280-4F4B-95E6-E2F946473930-26714-0000124218153FBA_zps95084843.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/DCF01215-2280-4F4B-95E6-E2F946473930-26714-0000124218153FBA_zps95084843.jpg.html)

[chrisk]

I literally installed these LAST September and haven't taken a pic until now. I thought I would add them to my Pride & Joy thread. Images of my DIY tower speaker LED's.

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/11F386CA-3CFB-4586-B496-428025E7D61A-5259-00000423C61851AB_zpsd8c11174.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/11F386CA-3CFB-4586-B496-428025E7D61A-5259-00000423C61851AB_zpsd8c11174.jpg.html)

http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz345/chriskuecker/EAD44F3B-431E-466E-BB68-F6FB1C761AF8-5259-00000423BE824113_zpsaa85a580.jpg (http://s842.photobucket.com/user/chriskuecker/media/EAD44F3B-431E-466E-BB68-F6FB1C761AF8-5259-00000423BE824113_zpsaa85a580.jpg.html)

[Okie Boarder]

Looks good.