tonynoriega - 10:00 pm on Sep 5, 2012 (gmt 0)

@bluntforce I can see your point, kind of...however this boat is going to be a pure fishing, family fun type of boat... not racing anyone for sure, nor would I get close to the point of putting the nose in the water and pushing her down. My buddy and I do a lot of bow fishing for carp on local lakes and water ways, so I am familiar with standing on a raised platform/deck.

After some further thought, I think I will replace the center bench for mainly functional reasons for my children... figured they would need somewhere to sit!

@AutomanEmpire I agree... I tend to get carried away with my "wish list" and other fun features... I need to take it back a bit and keep on the pace I am at now... replacing the rivets, cleaning her up, sealing the seams and getting some test runs on the water.

The transom was not a huge task as I have already removed the wood that was there...simply some nuts and bolts, removed two braces in the splash well and it came right now... it was rotten so it needed to come out.

The boat is structurally sound and solid... some gouges long the bottom, but other than that she is good to go.

I will take your advice and just throw some plywood on there for the test runs and see how she does.

I acquired this boat knowing what I was up for, and look forward to the restoration project... to me, this is fun.

Not something I want to flip or trade out... something to pass down to the kids... so I do plan to put some hard work and labor into it and make it fun.

Not escaping family matters... hopefully creating family fun and memories in the future.