Bass Nautique

So...I officially entered the world of boating and Correct Craft Boating no less today.
I was given a 1986 Bass Nautique, in a less then favorable condition. I hope i haven't bitten off more than i can chew, I have restored several cars in my day but this will be my first boat restoration.
I will post some pics up as soon as i figure out how to.

Can anyone point me in the right direction for a workshop manual or owners handbook for this vessel. I will need to completely rewire this boat and redo the livewell system and the trolling motor system.
I suspect i will be here on a daily basis looking for help once i get going with the project, i am giving myself 12 months to get it ready.

Thanks and wish me luck...

THanks Peter....I take some pics tomorrow and get them up.

The O/B is an Evinrude 115....currently lying on top of the boat...dont even know if it runs or not...but an engine is an engine to me, if it has compression i will get it going.

I'm not super familiar with these boats, but those old johnsons were not a favorite in the world of outboard engines. I owned one, same era but it was the v4 140hp. with the VRO pump. best thing you can ever do to that engine is bypass that VRO and mix the fuel in the tank. its very simple to do, and eliminates a HUGE failure point in those engines and will set your mind at ease while zipping across a lake at WOT.
If the engine was pulled off and discarded onto the deck i would have to make one assumption, That someone was running across a lake and the VRO pump failed, leaned it out and melted the pistons.
So before you spend any money you may want to get some compression numbers and take a good look inside those cyls if possible.
also dont touch the idle adjustment because it is actually part of the timing circuit in those engines.
I don't know what your investment or total endgame is with this boat but you may want to think about looking into re-power which will cover all of your engine wiring because usually O/B will come with a complete harness and controls minus steering.
whenever i look at a boat with an O/B, the boat is what i look at last, the motor is where all the value lies.
Downside will be initial cost, but the plus will be overall satisfaction and reliability.
I believe i still have a factory manual for my johnson, If i can find it, it may be helpfull to you, i plan on never looking at another one of those motors for the rest of my career so its yours if i can find it.
-Tony

I lucked out when mine failed and it injected too much oil so the engine wasnt damaged. my alarm never went off either. and it worked at the time.
There are miles of debates of people trusting these pumps and arguing that bypassing them is a mistake. And its true, when these pumps are working they work good, they cut back on the ratio at idle to keep from fouling and increase the ratio with rpm. I feel the engineers had all the best intentions but in the field it just didn't quite deliver when it came to reliability. so do what you feel is best, but from my experiance any failure point that can be eliminated, should be.
I personally just think people get afraid of math and getting the ratio wrong. 50:1 is what is desired.

If i remember you just unplug the wiring harness that goes to the pump in order to disable the warning alarm and lights in the tach. then i believe you just cut and plug the oil feed line airtight. the unit also encases the fuel pump so it stays on the engine.

Definitely post up some pictures.

skutsch wrote: Definitely post up some pictures.

X2 bass nautique are cool .

This is what i have gotten myself into













took a quick look underneath the deck today and from what i saw seems to look okay, except for where the gas tank sits.....a bit soft and flaky there...

skutsch wrote: - Still for what ever reason, I have always liked these boats... Probably because its a correct craft. What is the plan? Full restoration or just get it back to something you can fish ?

If it's a correct craft it's beautiful . I hope he does a full restoration, but it won't be easy. I hope to see this boat come to life.

ohh.....as a side note, the trailer is the original correct craft too....so i have a matching pair...gonna paint it up in the same style as the boat

I spent 10+ years fishing a SlingShot (exact same hull and appears to be same deck if iirc) and I remember rather basic flip seats readily still available.

Orlando76 wrote: I spent 10+ years fishing a SlingShot (exact same hull and appears to be same deck if iirc) and I remember rather basic flip seats readily still available.

will the standard flip seats fir inside the scoop bases for the fixed seats ?

Ready for the restoration thread to begin, very cool.

Cant wait to get started on this project.......she's gonna be a beaut' when she's done.....

you're right

looks like i might have to fabricate the seats....doubtful i will find spare seats anywhere...

KRoundy wrote: Bass Nautique 2018 - In just three more years it will be new! Great find - enjoy the journey!

Does that mean he could sell it for $200k or trade it in for a G25? Gosh boats are to expensive these days .