I just bought a 1986 Sport 15 Center Console.
I'm going to be slowly restoring it over the next year and a half.
I am a woodworker, so I'll be building a custom interior that has nods to the original design, with customizations for my family's needs, and compatibility with modern instruments.
I plan to patch some problem areas before this summer, and will dive into a full hull restoration and re-powering later in 2023. Thanks for all the inevitable future advice.
Plan for Future Slow Renovation of 15-footer
Re: Plan for Future Slow Renovation of 15-footer
Thanks for announcing the plan for the future slow renovation of your newly acquired 15-footer. The Center Console model is generally a highly desired variant of the more common SPORT 15, so I would not go too far away from the present configuration in your custom woodworking replacement elements.
The 15-foot hull is a great boat; it might be the best small boat ever made.
The Yamaha 60-HP engine should be a good fit for the boat. After you run the boat for a while you may find that a re-powering may not be compulsory.
If you need advice on repairs to the hull, start a new thread in the REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS forum for each particular problem you need advice on, or search for prior articles. For example, for advice on hull repairs see the FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS answer on that topic at
Q5: how is damage to a Unibond hull repaired?
https://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/FAQ/#Q5
Reading all the FAQ answers is also a good place to start if you are new to Boston Whaler boats.
Once you have made repairs and modifications, you can start a new thread REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS to show your work as you make progress.
The boat looks quite usable as it sits now, so I recommend to enjoy it on the water. That way you will get a better notion of what may need some refinement to suite your particular needs.
My hint to you is the seating may need improvement. Just about every 15-footer owner does something to improve the seats.
The 15-foot hull is a great boat; it might be the best small boat ever made.
The Yamaha 60-HP engine should be a good fit for the boat. After you run the boat for a while you may find that a re-powering may not be compulsory.
If you need advice on repairs to the hull, start a new thread in the REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS forum for each particular problem you need advice on, or search for prior articles. For example, for advice on hull repairs see the FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS answer on that topic at
Q5: how is damage to a Unibond hull repaired?
https://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/FAQ/#Q5
Reading all the FAQ answers is also a good place to start if you are new to Boston Whaler boats.
Once you have made repairs and modifications, you can start a new thread REPAIRS & MODIFICATIONS to show your work as you make progress.
The boat looks quite usable as it sits now, so I recommend to enjoy it on the water. That way you will get a better notion of what may need some refinement to suite your particular needs.
My hint to you is the seating may need improvement. Just about every 15-footer owner does something to improve the seats.