1977 Hawaiian Mini Day

« **on:** April 21, 2009, 05:29:44 PM »

This is how my 1977 Hawaiian Mini Day cruiser looked when I picked it up

Actually, this is it's good side (with something nice on the bow too ;} ) but on the port side it had some damage on the bow and corresponding side. The guy I bought it from told me a sub woofer box went through it, but I think he didn't know how to drive a boat and hit a dock somewhere...scary.

We dropped it in the water right after we bought it to make sure the jet pushed water and to see how the engine ran. We were pleasantly surprised, the small block has TRUE camel hump heads and a some sort of cam. As bad as we want to break into it and see what it's guts look like, it ran toooo good to mess with anything...at least for this season.

My sister and step dad Mike on the maiden voyage...McIntyre Park, Blythe.

So we brought it home and started working on it ASAP. First on our list was to fix the damage on the front and get the primer down.

(That's Mike...the mastermind behind this project. I had the vision and he had the skills)

Filled some unnecessary holes

We decided to make this job as easy as possible and keep the boat on the trailer for now. We still sanded and painted the bottom of the boat; just around the bunkers. We plan on putting a finishing coat of white when we lift the boat to fix and paint the trailer. Easiest way to access the side of the boat is to put the trailer on jack stands and plasma cut off the fenders. Take the wheels off and Wallah!!

The primer was complete

The damage on the bow was gone

We put the white coat down next. We used LIC Brand oil based car paint (way cheaper than water base, and surprisingly durable). The white is really called "City Lights". Same brand for the primer.

Taped it off the next weekend and put the purple on. Same LIC Brand paint; color is called "Eggplant"

We had 2 colors left to do and some ideas for a design on the bow. We decided to put some extra effort into the side design and leave the bow plain. We thought it may be cluttered with any graphics. But left it open for future upgrades

We taped off the boat for us to paint the green and silver in one shot. Since the green was on the side and the silver was only on top we were able to use a "paint and flip" technique designed by us (don't ask us to do it again...can't be duplicated

)

Classic technique called "Redneck"...hahahaha

And this is how it she turned out..

Next we are going to clear coat the top and start putting her back together. Carpet, gauges, and steering wheel all too come!!! I also have all of my receipts for this job. I'm waiting until I'm finished until I tally it up but I'll be sure to break it down and post.

« **Reply #1 on:** April 21, 2009, 06:39:00 PM »

Great work. Keep the pics comin.....

« **Reply #2 on:** April 21, 2009, 07:29:55 PM »

Chad, You did a great job in putting everthing on this website, and you and Mike did a super job on the boat. To my husband Mike and to my son Chad I'm so proud of both of you, and I love you both very much.

« **Reply #3 on:** April 21, 2009, 07:37:43 PM »

Welcome everyone

That should look good on the water.

« **Reply #4 on:** April 21, 2009, 07:44:07 PM »

looking good for being "redneck"

jk, you guys are doing a very nice job, keep the pics and info coming

« **Reply #5 on:** April 21, 2009, 08:36:32 PM »

Very Nice!! Keep up the Good work! Tom

« **Reply #6 on:** April 23, 2009, 12:04:03 PM »

LOOKS GREAT NOW WE NEED TO FINISH THE CARPET IN THE HORNET.

« **Reply #7 on:** April 23, 2009, 03:04:07 PM »

Lookin' good guys, nice documentation too! Keep the thread alive!

« **Reply #8 on:** April 24, 2009, 10:47:50 AM »

hahaha...ya Riversled..and a little fiberglass too. Thanks for all the positive comments guys. I'll be sure to keep the pics and info coming as we go. Probably gonna be working on Riversled's Hornet in between, so I'll put some pics up of that project as well.

« **Reply #9 on:** April 24, 2009, 08:03:44 PM »

Thats one hell of a job for a "home" job! Keep it up!

« **Reply #10 on:** April 24, 2009, 09:28:11 PM »

NICE!!!!

Congrats on a great job restoring a classic back to something that anybody would be pround to own. Keep it up!!!!

« **Reply #11 on:** April 24, 2009, 09:43:17 PM »

What a change! Also a man that had a vision... I always wanted to do a lime/purple deal, never had the opportunity, I knew it would look cool...now go get some neon green Taylor ignition wires and I have a set of tall SBC valve covers powdercoated Plum Crazy Purple!!!, how badass would that be.

GT

« **Reply #12 on:** April 29, 2009, 04:24:04 PM »

I appreciate the positive comments. After seeing some of the boats on this website, it feels good to get recognized...hopefully it's the same on the water

GT; We have a BBC sitting in the garage...tempted to throw it in next season!

« **Reply #13 on:** May 04, 2009, 03:38:46 PM »

Alright....after having fun and painting the boat, some real work had to be done on the trailer.
Getting the boat off of the trailer was the first step. After some ingenious thinking on Mike's part, we decided to use a bobcat at the back end and a forklift strapped to the front.

We were both pretty surprised that it worked!!!

We threw some tires under the ass end (because the bobcat was losing pressure slowly) and got on with looking at the trailer.

The first thing I noticed was the round hex bolts used to keep the bunkers on. He actually put the bolts all the way through the carpet/bunkers and allowed the boat to scrape on the bolts every time it was put back on the trailer. I really didn't think anyone could be this stupid.

Wherever he was pinned it was good because he pulled the trailer over something too tall and bent back the cross beam in the back of the trailer. Actually breaking the welds!!

Originally, the guy that sold me this boat, told me that a non-strapped speaker box caused the damage to the boat, after taking it off of the trailer we figured out the real reason for the damage. Apparently, at some point in time, this guy jack-knifed the hell out of this boat and trailer, thus punching a hole in the boat where he did and twisting the trailer on the same side.(left side in picture below)

« **Reply #14 on:** May 04, 2009, 03:50:44 PM »

We hacked off the back piece.

And re-fabbed one out of 3 inch square tubing.

Bought some new wood and carpet and put the bunkers back on the right way....put a little paint on it too.

Now we had to get it back on the trailer. This was fun in it's own right.

And this is how she sits now...

We still have to put the new wiring in with lights and carpeted running boards, but this is a 100% improvement from what we started with. The trailer is still 1.5" taller on one side than the other because of the jackass jack-knife job but we gained the clearance we needed in order to prevent future damage.

(We also noticed after looking at this pic that we need to move the boat over a tad to the left and move the outside bunks up a little...no problem since we metal-screwed the last 4 brackets for future adjustment purposes.)

« **Reply #15 on:** May 04, 2009, 05:15:22 PM »

Looks GREAT!!!

« **Reply #16 on:** May 04, 2009, 05:37:15 PM »

i still have to weld the bunks on the back,then we can paint them.this weekend we will be finishing up with fiberglass the floor and what ever we can finish.i forgot to tell you we have no reservation at McIntyer FOR THE BIG WEEKEND my memory is long as my?

« **Reply #17 on:** May 04, 2009, 06:20:09 PM »

Nice job!

« **Reply #18 on:** May 04, 2009, 07:58:09 PM »

Nice work, man you guys really get ish done, and the right way too!

« **Reply #19 on:** May 04, 2009, 08:03:10 PM »

That has turned into one great looking machine!! Congratulations! Can't wait to see what you do with her next. Now I need a Bobcat, a Forklift and even more understanding neighbors, lol.

Ray

« **Reply #20 on:** May 04, 2009, 08:11:54 PM »

i am willing to help anyone i live in beaumont ca. and have the coors light waiting.

« **Reply #21 on:** May 11, 2009, 07:09:01 AM »

that is looking fantastic, keep up the good work

« **Reply #22 on:** May 11, 2009, 09:06:23 AM »

trailer looks a million times better!

« **Reply #23 on:** May 11, 2009, 03:57:47 PM »

HEY THANKS GUYS FOR YOUR COMENTS.WE HAVE ONLY 2 WEEKS TO GET IT DONE THEN WE WILL BE IN BLYTHE FOR 4 DAYS WHO COULD BE THERE?

« **Reply #24 on:** May 11, 2009, 06:10:03 PM »

Monday, I might be able to make, we'll see. Git too many peeps on vacation that weekend.

Ray

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