help with hatteras rebuild

[scubajohn]

Hi I am rebuilding an old hatteras about 40 ft long any help will be appreciated

First what is a good brand and model gps. That is not too pricey

Second I would like to get advice on fuel tanks and holding tanks I was thinking plastic but open for suggestions

I have Detroit 6-53’s they are low very low smoh. time are they worth keeping

And I want to install a air compressor for diving

At this time the boat is in need of new interior can I move bulk heads and not ruin boat

Thanks in advance

[SeaSpark]

Garmin GPS systems give good value for money, there are more cheap brands on the market but Garmin gives good quality and user interface. Opinions on user interface can be a bit personal.

Reading your post i was thinking you have a lot of work to do and money to spend before you need an GPS.

Moving bulkheads is a very bad idea in general.

Good luck with your project.

[FAST FRED]

Plastic fuel tanks are the best of all, but the Mfg's are few so installing the same SIZE tank may be difficult.

If the tank/tanks are close to the orig volume , so you're overall fuel cap doesn't change much , home run!

FAST FRED

[SamSam]

You should seriously reconsider what you are doing. It sounds like you are on the verge of spending large amounts of money on a project that has a good possibility of never being finished. Does the boat run? How long has it been unused? How did you acquire it? Has it been surveyed? How much per month does it cost to keep it where it is? Are you prepared to spend 10s of thousands of dollars? What is your experience and what are your capabilities?I'm not being nosey or nasty, sorry if it sounds that way, but there is plenty of time to ask other questions, you should determine first if what you want to do is reasonable. Pictures? Sam

[scubajohn]

thanks to all that have replied the boat is going to be surveyed before i drop a dime into it. it is reported to need total refit on interior. but has good hull. and both engins run fresh rebuilds and fresh trans. i was going to put new tru hull fittings and bottom job zinks ect. my experiance is small boat owner twenty year. i am a trim carpenter. and i keep all my ranch equipment mantained so i have good mechanical skills & carpentry skills. i have rebuilt a track loader after a fire now thats a transmison. buying on the internet can be tricky I LACK large boat experiance i am trying to make a list of what i need to buy and do right now. i cant find a good sourse for fuel tanks if i do the job i want a large fuel capability. i have looked on this site some and it seems good. so i am hping to find some help. thanks

[SamSam]

Originally Posted by scubajohn

thanks to all that have replied the boat is going to be surveyed before i drop a dime into it. it is reported to need total refit on interior. but has good hull. and both engins run fresh rebuilds and fresh trans. i was going to put new tru hull fittings and bottom job zinks ect. my experiance is small boat owner twenty year. i am a trim carpenter. and i keep all my ranch equipment mantained so i have good mechanical skills & carpentry skills. i have rebuilt a track loader after a fire now thats a transmison. buying on the internet can be tricky I LACK large boat experiance i am trying to make a list of what i need to buy and do right now. i cant find a good sourse for fuel tanks if i do the job i want a large fuel capability. i have looked on this site some and it seems good. so i am hping to find some help. thanks

Here's a current fuel tank thread going on in 'Materials' on this site..
http://boatdesign.net/forums/showthread.php?t=11238
I am real relieved to hear you haven't put any money into it and a survey is the first thing you're doing. I don't know where your location is but around here it costs $6-10 a foot per month for dockage. That alone is reason for a number of older, big boats being abandoned at the docks. Repair costs, maintenance, fuel prices and loss of interest after people find that actually owning and operating a big boat is way different than they thought it would be, are reasons most big boats hardly ever leave the dock. If you can figure out the search functions for this site, you can find horrendous amounts of information. You can search the whole site or you can search each forum and you can also search each thread. I don't know what you intend to do with the boat but I've seen a few boats of that size turned into 'express cruisers', where the whole flybridge with upper station is cut off and thrown away. The v-berth ,galley, head and stateroom in the walkdown forward section of the boat is kept, the whole elevated deck over the engines, fuel tanks etc is open with an elevated center counsel. It makes them lighter, less top heavy with a huge open deck for fishing,diving etc. and less equipment to restore or maintain. Sam