Pearly Miss - No3 Restoration

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Of the boat religion too.

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Recent jobs involve fitting the new remote control panel. The previous version was a fabricated steel version with M12 bolt and nuts on the outside of the boat. Somehow I needed to fill the huge holes and looked at filling and fairing from the inside and out with puttty, making circular 'blanks' to glue over the holes and using extra size penny washers. In the end used a piece of flat bar with set screws countersunk at the top and set screws using the rivet holes at the bottom. The clearance between the bracket and deck when attaching remotes (securely and without skinning knuckles) is limited, so the whole lot can be unbolted if necessary.

The transom skin was cleaned up in preparation for the wood transom. It needed more paint stripper and a coarse sandpaper sponge with a mutlitool to clean up the inside. Four large engine mounting holes were plugged from the inside and faired with putty...it is these that would have let in the most water as they were all below the waterline. The skin on the inside transom, on this model, is folded over and the little channel between the splashwell and transom was home to rusted bits and sand that had dropped into the gap. This was cleaned out and prepped for a line of sikaflex to fill the channel.

The bow handle was fitted, screwed with no 10 chrome on brass screws and bolted to the deck at the rear of the handle..which means it can be used as a tying off point and to attach to a winch post. I placed it over flashing tape and bolted it with the help of someone more flexible than me inside the boat under the deck. If it's not blocked off water sprays up under the bow piece when it's choppy and makes front passengers wonder if the boat is sinking.

The cubby was also fitted, I'd sprayed it silver and polished up the outer trim awhile back. Typically they are made of coloured GRP, but this one appears different...perhaps the GRP was a cost cutting measure introduced later. The boat came with an Ultraflex steering unit and nasty white modern wheel (why don't they make decent looking retro steering wheels..). The unit was bolted on; taking care not to cut myself on the holes torn in the metal...

Finally I'd been messing around with steering wheels, trying all options...but more of that later...

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A steering wheel was needed, but most of mine were 1970s, or too bling, or not to be used...I found an Aqua Marine (London / Paris / Canada ) version from the mid-60s, but it looked rather nasty cream oxidised plastic...while trying to work out how to fit a homemade wood, and or metal center cap to cover the missing section, I found the remnants of a mazak spoked section buried in a back shelf. This turned out to be a center section for this type of wheel and further investigation of a pile of eBay stuff that no one wants to buy, produced the bling center cap unique to this wheel ..all 3 had been collected over a few years for the 'just in case is useful' scenario.

These were popular steering wheels...most turn up at jumbles, but are the simple plastic capped versions fitted to just about all mid to late 1960s boats, so are generally ignored, however I'd noticed they are few and far between so bought this at a solent boat jumble. This center insert was terribly pox-ridden as most of the Aqua Marine deck / boat hardware is now and as everyone knows is near useless and expensive to try to rechrome. So, cue the wire brush, some metal polish (to remove oxidation and stains on the wheel), etch primer, steel wheel paint (also good for 1930s Johnson outboards) and hours of fun..

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Started on the inner transom on Friday, fitted it for size, masked the edges, added the adhesive and clamped it up - 2 clamps being used to hold the top edge of the transom to the bottom of the boat's hull. This prevented and slippage once the pressure from the clamps was fully applied. Removed the clamps the following morning and drilled the holes for the transom handles. There was some scrubbing from the pads I'd used to help spread the load. These were polished out and the varnish appears to have recovered with the heat we've had.

I then keyed up the outer skin and washed it down, cutting away any sealant that had oozed through various holes, before degreasing the surface with standard thinners. Then pencilled the pattern of the outer transom wood onto the aluminium, in order to mask that. Again we (I have a semi-willing helper..) layered the adhesive and placed the wood in line with the drain holes on the inner. The whole lot was clamped up again and left to dry overnight - with some of the masking removed to produce a 'clean' edge around the water level edges. The clamps were removed on Sunday, along with the rest of the masking tape. Any smears / smudges can then be cleaned up with a toluene based 'brake' cleaner. The transom handle holes were the drilled through the outer wood this time, from the inside, while taking care not to splinter the grain, even if it would be covered by the transom handle base...

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An aluminium engine pad was then mounted. This was screwed on with screws dipped in epoxy, after drilling small pilot holes. These come in various sizes / types, but this one tends to be the right height and width for decent horspower motors and will have greater longevity than plastic, or rubber versions. I also avoid the grey painted version as the paint flakes off after a few months. Generally I don't drill though the transom to mount my motors (on Pearly Miss, at least..), as I use many of differing saddle configurations, instead relying on regular clamp checks, sometimes using a safety chain (do you really want an errant motor thrashing it's way around the back of the boat.. and rely on our trusty kill switches.

The cast corner pieces had been cleaned and prepared awhile back. I dumped the horrible factory plastic inner linings - these appear to create a corrosion problem, for little benefit. In theory one could use a coating of sealant instead. These are fitted over the end of the transom wood and attach to both the transom and gunwales with large screws - these caps 'tie' the transom to the boat gunwales. The gunwales have embedded pieces of wood to bed the screws in the stern and bow of the boat (for the bow cap / handle). They weren't soft, or rotten in any way. Again, I drilled pilot holes in the transom and used the old screws, cleaned up and re-applied with a blob of epoxy, in order to protect the transom wood where drilled. Alternatively it would have been possible where the holes might be too large on the gunwale sides, to fill them and then re-screw them. The only issue I had was that using 18mm ply sandwiched over 1.52mm of aluminium was a bit thicker than the transom would have been originally. So measure the inside of caps (they vary by boat / model) and accommodate the wood by removing some metal, or v.v. I was able to push them down enough and then used a long clamp to draw the screw holes to align with those in the gunwale.

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I'd spent a long time thinking how to mount the seats. The Pearly Miss typically has 2 long drawbolts (per seat) running in a wood frame a that fastens the seat backs to the gunwales, either using a bracket (Super sports) or sliding directly into the folded deck (Deluxe and full aluminium decked models) when unbolted, and lying on the 'chassis' rails that run from from to back seat, allow a flat sleeping area. The other model I own has fixed seats with an ali plate bolted into the bottom edge of the ply that slides into a bracket attached to the ali base of the seat. Is an unsatisfactory arrangement that places all the stress of a seated driver / passenger at the base of the seat and my original has chunks missing out of the ply seat back. This Super Sports was the former, yet had holes drilled into the sides of the gunwales, which may have been a later addition.

For both seats I mounted the lower edge of the ply to the ali seat bases with stainless hinges. I sit on removable and replaceble floating seat cushions rather than rely on bespoke upholstery, as these are utility boats.. The front seat folds back onto the rails and I have yet to receive the brackets that will hold it in place. With the back seat I used 2 12in stainless drawbolts that slide into their brackets under the gunwale - one is slightly angled to stop rattling when under way. The Super Sports has an open section at the rear ..not my cup of tea really (as it means everything in / under there is not hidden and needs to be setup neatly..). The Deluxe and Ali decked versions have a rear seat back that abuts the splashwell / deck edge, with no gap.

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The only remaining job is to fix the windscreen brackets. The Pearly Miss have a variety of windscreen designs / types and deck brackets. It's possible to mould a new screen from a broken version (ca. £350 (without rail / trim), see other posts in the forum about screens..) to me that seems a big expense when Solitaire was able to source a complete one from Germany for around £250, packed and posted.

These split screen brackets are generic and have plenty of bling and look lovely when the screen profile is right..I have ordered the acrylic to remake it.

I had intended originally to keep both rigged with different motors using only one trailer, but during 'lockdown' I decided to keep only one boat. I liked the earlier versions quirky early interior design, so have put this one up for sale on that auction site. Last weekend it all started to come together and here's what Miss Honey looks like this morning.

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One of the last jobs was to mount the seat latch hardware that will allow the front seat to fold down, like the original 'camping' arrangment. No wanting to screw into the edge of the ply (which wouldn't take any load) I made up some small pieces of ali, drilled and countersunk to enable the latches to be bolted through the plywood seats. It's a strong and simple solution, without the need to get additional bespoke hardware made. The 70s Mercury 4.5hp short shaft on the transom is to check the height / level of the anti-cavitation plate relationship to the hull was as I'd planned.