project baron
 

with all you guys buying 20 cigarettes and going thru them. and a few of my friends with 18' donzi's. one of them doing a complete resto. i figure it's time to go thru the baron. i have not had it in the water in 5 years now. so yesterday i went down to the shop and started taking it apart. got the engine compart striped. the drive and tabs off so far. wood is a little soft. so the rear floors in the engine compartment and transom are next. hmm i wonder if tommy monza well warranty this. i've only had the boat for 23 years lol.
todd

Well somebody has to it so here goe's:worthless_without_p

Junk It thoses things aren't worth 2 bucks,

I am waiting for one of these resto cig guys to take on Triple Dip CHits, and put him in his place !!!!!!:evilb:

WILL

I was just thinking yesterday about redoing mine also starting in November when it cools down and i find a place to work on it.

My cockpit floor feels soft and i know there has been ants in the boat so I think I will have to cut the floor up andcheck out the stringers and pull the gas tank and check it out.
My boat probaly does not have 40 hours on it and has never been jumped but time and outside storage the last 5 years has taken its toll. Mine still looks great from 50 feet.The paint job Jack put on it was never very good.I want to strip mine and straighten and regell the whole boat.

I am looking for the pics i took from the 1st time i redid your boat Todd.


Found 1 of them

hey tom
bring it up hear to michigan. it has already cooled down. and we have a new 40x65 shop out back. just enuff room for 1 more baron. thanks for posting some action shots. i well get the kids to snap some pics and get them posted. watch out triple d were coming for ya. lol
todd

We need Travisis engine and your Arneson and my CMI headers and Keikhafer Tabs and boat and I don't think Tripple Digs would stand a chance in some rough stuff

God i wished I had the time and money to do it right now I would gladly do yours at the same time just to have a shop to work in and some cool weather.

I am going to strip mine and replace the stingers if they need it and than cut a 6 inch notch into the transom and replace the transom even though it is solid so i can raise my ex dimension.

I have a brand new Alpha drive and Transom assembly and a Bravo drive that i bought also that I would trade you for that Arneson if you wanted to switch back

My younger brother bought a PowerPlay a couple of years ago.He was desperate for money so i almost bought from him for 3000 .I don't care for the way it rides though .

traviss here. God I love these boats, Hell my motor is running better and better each year.. got up into the lower 80's this summer.

I will donate my motor for a project just to woop on Tripple digs :D :D :D LOL!

I am curious about a surface drive in this hull, I now have a alpha SS and the only way to get bow lift is with a laserII, and its is handful to drive, I would think with a surface drive it would just skate all over the water?


I was curious what other 185 xlts are out there running over 80 and what they have for power.

Didn't the orignal powerquest builder of these 185's have a boat that had a BB and surface drive?

Thanks guys,The pics are great! Thats what this place is supposed to be all about. Keep'em coming:ernaehrung004:

If you like pics here are some of mine, can't post pics here so click this link and you should see some..

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/inde...lbumId=1117971

Hey Travis hows it going.
My older biother was the designer and builder of the Barons.I owned the blue one in the pics that was a 78 .I bought it used out of St Clair shores in 83 and repainted it and ran it for two years before i moved to Florida and sold Todd aka Baronmarine it .He built a 406 and put a Arneson on it.

With the little 3 blade prop he was running and a 406 through stock manifolds he was running low 80s.

I never went out on Lake Michigan with Todd on it but he says it is a runnin machine now with the surface drive.

How much shorter is the SS ? and what kind of speed improvement did you see over your old one and did ypur old one have a nosrcone.

The 1st hull being tested on Reeds Lake in Grand Rapids the day before Thanksgiving 1977

Heres is Travisis Bad Boy

More of Problem Child







Travis is there anyway I could get you to take a accurate propshaft center line to bottom of the boat measurement.Do you have any problem with cavitation coming out of the hole?

SS should be around 2 1/2- 3" shorter, 3-4 mph increase, yes old one had a cone

Thanks for putting the pics up!!

Propshaft is 6 inches below the boat, no cavitation at all coming out of the hole, unless I goof around I can make her spin up like a god damn drag boat LOL!

I will remeasure the propshaft measurment tommorrow just want to double check, its right out in my shop, tonight is my birthday dinner so I am outta here.

cool!

Happy Birthday Travis.Don't get drunked up and try to ride your Sled across the lake:ernaehrung004:

Some more of Problem Child

I was going to move my engine bulhead back a foot like the Powerquest is . Than move my dash back a foot and than cut the windshield down to sleekin things up but I decided I like the huge engineroom . So I am going to move the dash back 3 feet and make the rear bench seat into the helm seat with some fold down dividers that will convert it into a 3 man bolster.Than i want to cut down the windshiels and shorten the wings and move it back about 2 feet.I never will have more than 3 people in it anyways.

Then off comes all the cheesy hardware and vents.Just a lifting ring on the bow and stern and no running lights.Also want to build a nice camberd rear hatch.Probaly leave it padded though.

very nice touch. i like that. with the girls i need a 4 seater. i'm at a stand still on mine right now. i need about a 1 hours help with a couple of things. plus amanda's soccer pactice and game's are killin me.
todd

who's that young punk ???? way to skinny to be monza. ha ha ha
todd

hey traviss

long time no hear. your boat looks sweet as ever. with the surface drive there is not much bow lift at all. mine has a wing on the skeg helps a little. so it runs very flat. in the big lake it rocks. running flat like it does and the motor moved froward for the trans, it does not come down on the stern. it just fly's flat as can be. last time out we were running a 17x23 1/2 pitch 3 blade chopper with lots of cup for bow lift. 2' chop almost no fuel and one person it was at 81mph on the speedo (not gps) at 6000 rpm's and lots of stick left. when i'm done hopfully in the spring. i'm going to try a 26 pitch 4 blade clever for starters. as for the powerplay with a bb and surface. thats the first i've hear. and my grand parents had a cottage on hess lake and i think it was keven had one there also. he would always bring different things up there and i never saw that before.
todd

5 bladed Rolla is what you need.

Where is those pic? .You know now that you started this thread you are commited to follow through.

I will stop by and uncover mine and take some pics.

What happened seeing all those micro boats up at Hardy get you fired up,That and it probaly cost 1/3 to go out for a day of fun compared to the Cig huh.

What do you have planned for it? How is your interior and seat seats holding up?

tommy - How does the Baron ride different than the PP? I always thought they were the same boat?

I never saw it with my own eyes, but I did hear that they had one with a big block running on the pond at Dryland Marina in Grandville.

5 blade rolla on your account. all i wanted was a 38 cig. and now i can't wait to get this thing out again. plus the girls well be 14 this spring. one of them has her boating permit so i figure this would be a great boat for them to drive in spring lake and on the river(with me in it). the buckets are still fine, the side pannels i cut when i move the seat forward on the first deck. man i'm i glad jack held on to that other deck. the back seat is junk. the big plan is to change the transom and stringers. the fuel tank i change maybe 10 years ago. would love to repaint it. but i'm running it next summer so if it's not painted, that well be later down the road. it still looks petty good. and a good wheel job will make it shine. hope to see you guys soon. sorry we missed you this summer.
todd

Wlel back from dinner and all is good :evilb: The sled is still out in the shop covered up, we are safe LOL! :D

You are doing good diggin up those old pics, I don't even think I have those anymroe LOL!

I will get you a accurate centerline measurment for you tommorrow after work. You guys have a good evening.

:ernaehrung004:
Thanks bro I apprecaite, its taken me 6 years so far to get where I am at, I am just like a proud father :drink: Sounds like your boat runs like a raped ape, Congrats :ernaehrung004

All this info I just love it!! :drink::ernaehrung004:

The powerplay/powerquest is not built near as heavy or solid as the old Barons.The Barons had a 52 gallon tank foamed in under the cockpit floor and was foamed outside of the stringers also.

The Powerplay/Powerquest have a 25 gallon tank mounted up in the nose and a skibox in the floor where the fuel tank was in the Baron.

My brithers Powerplays you could feel the whole floor move when you were runnin and it just felt to light to really run in any type of real waves.Its the only one i have ridden in so maybe it is a fluke or not i don't know.The fit and finish on the Powerplays is much better thabn the Barons though.

Not going to happen unless they run over 100

i'll tell you this. put 52 gallons in the floor. and hold on! for a 19' boat they realy cut the rug in some waves.
todd

you never know how they were all built, some could have been monday boats and some could have been friday boats :eek:

Myself, I am very impressed how solid mine is, No noticable structual cracking, nothing flimsy or loose. 32 gal tank in the front which sucks. You know they are built better then normal, they are 18.5' and wieght 2650 dry, my dads 1988 22 baja only wieghts 2600 they say. Only flaw I have on mine is right above the rub rail little tiny stress cracks along the rubrail on the upper deck, like it was not cured when they screwed the halfs together or something, if you looked close they look like little face frowns one after another, The normal person would probably never see them, but I am very picky so it bothers me I have run mine in 4's one time and Loved it, I was alittle bit intoxicated that day, but no drinkin anymore on the boat for me! :drink: This boat has takin a beating and It doesn't owe me a dime.


Seriously It has taken me 6-7 years to get this far and to tell you the truth i spent many of those years dissapointed cause of the lack of mph I was achieving, the last 3 years with this motor, I kept thinkin to my self this motor must be tired or has something broke cause it should do atleast 80, I kept tinkering around and this summer I got it dialed in, spent many many hours on the carb, new fuel pump, more psi, bigger fuel lines ect. Up to the begining of summer it only did 78.8. The last day of labor day weekend, I nutted up and told my self it has to run over 80 everyhting is perfect long as I can stay in it alittle longer, I have been scared of this boat ever since I put this drive on it, never WOT more then 1/4 mile maybe and I would back off. So I set the gps on the seat Lined up into the wind, 1' chop and let er rip, ran the trim up little by little and ran her hard till I started losing control So I gave up and slowed down, probably ran no more then 1/2 miles or so. I looked over at the gps and it said 81.9, that goal and dream I have had since I bought the boat is here... I have waited my whole life to tell someone I own a 80+ boat, now I do. This might sound like much to you, but this is all I have, I don't make much money I can 't buy the new age stuff or run the big money motors, I am just very content right now.

hows that for rambling all evening :eek:

Sleep it off Travis.. I feel the same way about mine, except I don't care if I hit 80 or not.. but you have done what many have not...stay cool :cool-smiley-027:

I always loved the 185XLT's - great boat, and lots of fun to drive - even in snotty water. My buddy still has his 1987 that he got new in 1987, over 1,000 hours on it and still holding together. Travis - yours could be one of the nicest ones out there today!

I even went so far as to call Powerquest a few years ago to ask about the molds and she said they destroyed them - what a shame. I would love to resurrect that boat - with a 6.2 / 320hp Merc and a Bravo, it would be a fun package! :cool:

Stretched to 22 feet and a little sheer change and it would be perfect.

HEY MR! Yoiur better cherish this info, It took me alot of concentration to get this done, been a long day, got ass packed by a dodge today doing 60+ at least I was in a work truck :eek: and it seemed the alckyhall got ahold of me this evening plus I am full of stuffing right now and about to pass out,

but just for you.. my hull to propshaft centerline is about 5.25+ - 1/8" god it seemed like forever to get that #, it felt like forever to get the drive to trim down, then the beers came faster... oh then I got on the creeper.... do you know how straight levels are... very straight when they fall on your head.... do you realiaze how sharp a labbbed prop is when it graces your forehead???? they sure are shiny though~~finially after 15 million measurements I got what you needed... You owe me cause I got really dizzzzy.... I do take payment of fresh MILFS to my doorstep :D

Thank you.. I appreaciate it.. Alot of pride in this rig

As always Travis not enough information.:D

Are you positive it is 5.25 and not 5.19758693245672. I really need a absolutly precise measurement if I am going to be able to over come the parasytic hdrodynamic drag of my unmodified Alpha drive so that I will be able to beat the dreaded Tripple Digits.

LMAO!!


parasytic hdrodynamic drag ???? is that some sort of sex postion??? :D:D its too late for those big words.. keep it to 4 letters after 9 pm :cool: