Another Boat Project That Will Probably Never Be Finished (Update 6/17/2025)

The epic enduring drama of Whisker Seeker will continue.  I just don’t know when.  I had rekindled my drive to get it seaworthy just before Gary passed away.  In fact I called Gary and his daughter answered to see how he was doing and let him know I was working on getting him out in it again just before he died.  I sat with him for a few hours that day, but I think the spirit had already left the body.

Then one of his old friends told me she had his ashes and when I was ready we could spread the ashes on the river from his boat.  I busted my butt, and you guys saw videos of me installing a new sole (main floor), but I got bogged down in life.  By the time I started making progress again she had passed away, and his daughter picked up his ashes.  I do not think she wants to spread them on the river.   After death rituals are for the living.  The dead don’t care, so I will respect that.

Whisker Seeker has been parked out front with a canvas cover on it for a while.  I put a cover on it to keep the dirt out, but the cover is starting to come apart.

One of the things I really need to do, and started on a couple times is rebuild the transom.  It had started to sag, and Gary’s son had cranked it forward with turn buckles.  Its useable if it stays dry, but I don’t want it to sag again.  I’ve got ten gallons of castable transom material I was going to use, but the company who had it screwed up and took forever to get it shipped to me.  I had to contact them and then prove I had already paid them because their system somehow lost my order.  Of course the time I had set aside to work on it had past, and now every time I have some time and think of it its either to hot or to cold for optimum resin casting for the material.  Its been a couple years now.  I don’t even know if its any good anymore.

Then my dad had a brain tumor removed, and then a couple years later he died and my mom moved in with me…  Some months it seems all I have is “Five Minutes On The Water.”

I know.  I know.  A bunch of excuses.

Anyway, I’ve been getting a lot of necessary work done around the shop the last month or so and one of the things I have done is create an area behind the shop that may be more suitable for working on boats.  I hope so anyway.  I’ve got a lot of boats to work on.

I never did get The Tin Can quite right when I welded it back together all those years ago even though I did use it a lot.  I really need to cut out all my old aluminum repairs and do it better.  I might even want to add some float pads to it, but I’m not sure I want it to be any longer.

I’ve got Yumabasser’s old Procraft that needs seats reupholstered, and carpet redone.  Maybe also some changes to the live well controls to something I like better.  I keep going back and forth between leaving the 225 Opti on it or swapping on the 250ProXS that I’ve got setting on a stand.

I’ve got Triton176’s Triton 176 that has been sitting for several years, needs a new control panel (I hve a plan for that) needs seats & carpet, and needs the carbs cleaned.  Maybe also an oil injection delete.

Bar Hopper is still setting out front where I unloaded it off the flatbed when I bought it.  I haven’t even unboxed the surface drive or the motor for the surface drive I bought for it.

… and since my dad’s passing more than a year ago I have to deal with all of his boats.