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    Inherited my dad's boat
    #1
    Registered BDC1013's Avatar
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    Hey im new here but not new to forums. I belong to Chevelles.com and have been wrenching on cars since i was in high school. My dad recently passed earlier this month after battling pulmonary fibrosis and I inherited his boat. The boat i believe is a 36ft. 89 mirage.

    I grew up on the water in that boat with my dad, on the delta and SF bay in CA all through the 90's. While my dad was sick i told him that my mom, sister, and i would get back out on the water in his boat. The boat has been in indoor storage for the past 3 years and has a brand new full cover that covers down to the flaps.

    Currently the boat does not run, it blew an engine years ago and with the economy we could not fix it. Now that it is in my hands, i've been burdened with a $365 indoor storage payment that i wont be able to pay, as i'm still in college at San Jose State. I'm currently looking for a less expensive place to store it, as selling it is not an option. This boat means a lot to me, and my goal would be to get it running and go to mccovey cove for a SF Giants game, my dad and i always watched on tv together saying we would take the boat out to a game.

    I just thought i would get involved with a forum, as chevelles.com has been a great help to me during the restoration of my 71 chevelle.

    Here's some pictures.





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    #2
    Registered 38fountainSC's Avatar
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    Boat great nice old classic, I cant help you with the storage since I'm in ohio but welcome to the board. I like hearing you want to keep the boat for sake of memories of your father. Sorry for your loss. I recently lost my dad and looking back wish I would of done more with him.
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    #3
    Founding Member Bobcat's Avatar
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    Welcome to SOS, that's is a very clean looking boat.
    Parabellum FJ²B
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    #4
    Registered Slandrew's Avatar
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    Nice boat I whould go to a marina where you could work on it yourself just cover it well if outside storage good luck!Ford motors
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    #5
    Great boat! Unbelivable condition! You've go a gem with a great reason to keep it that way. I've redone a couple boats and a few motors myself. There are some very sharp guys here who could help further.

    What happened to the "blown" motor and how long has it been since the other was run?

    What can you do yourself in the way of work/tools/garage space?

    I totally understand the budget builders limits. I am there... Maybe look at outdoor storage and a tarp/tent shelter. They are getting cheaper all the time. This was my storage last winter Sometimes ya gotta be creative on a low budget
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails 02-17-10_1548.jpg  
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    #6
    Is the boat for sale? Sorry for the loss of your Dad. He obviously had GREAT taste.

    Todd

    midocean@comcast.net
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    #7
    Charter Member txriverrat2001's Avatar
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    Very cool old ride......
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    #8
    Registered htrdlncn's Avatar
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    Looks to be in great shape.. While I understand money crunch you want to be picky where you store it, much easier to keep boat in great shape if it is stored correctly.
    You have a truck big enough to tow that?
    I used to be big into Olds 442s myself, owned 17 of them,W30s,W31,H/Os you name it , I sold them all, boating is a very expensive hobby and just couldnt afford to do both cars and boats and boats are way more fun!
    If boat has been sitting that long youll probably want to go thru both motors, you seem to already be handy with tools so you can probably freshen both of them up for around $5k so long as nothing is majorly wrong with either of them. Probably want to check drives as well,go thru the electrical,clean out gas tank,new belts,filters,impellors,fuel pumps and new batteries.
    Interior looks new, just treat with something to keep material from getting brittle and protect from the sun. I would think you can have it back in the water for around $6000 total and have one bad ass ride! I always liked the Mirage boats, very sharp looking.
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    #9
    Welcome and nice ride, lets see some pics of the chevelle, as you can tell by my scree name, I had a '71 also.
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    #10
    Registered Donskihp's Avatar
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    Even a covered boat sitting outside will deterate a lot faster than one stored indoors. Maybe you can get a little help from your mom or sister until you get out of school. If theres any sentimental value with them they won't want you to loose the boat.
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    #11
    Registered rschap1's Avatar
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    Good Luck with it.
    You will get alot of great advice and help here.
    Sorry for the loss of your Dad, make him proud!
    That is a nice looking rig.
    It will be a good time for you guys when back on the water
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    #12
    Charter Member old377guy's Avatar
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    It's great to have you aboard. I too am sorry to hear about your dad. As mentioned, everyone here stands ready to give you the benefit of their experience. I agree with htrdlncn that you are not very far away dollar wise on this project. My son lives in Santa Clara and works in Milpitas. I hope to visit him soon and would look enjoy looking over your boat with you. Feel free to PM me. - Jeff
    People we meet in life are either a Blessing or a Lesson
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    #13
    Contributor Davidmnc's Avatar
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    Welcome to the site. The boat looks great, and I think it's awesome you are going to keep it as a tribute to your father. There is LOTS of good information here for the having.
    Taking Over the World One Thread at a Time
    The Penguin Cometh
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    #14
    Founding Member Buoy's Avatar
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    Welcome to the site, and sorry to hear of the loss of your father.
    It's a beautiful boat. Stick around here, the guys will lead you in the right direction.
    "Keep the bottle on the bar Ira, I won't be long".
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    #15
    Founding Member / Competitor MOBILEMERCMAN's Avatar
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    Welcome..
    Looks like a nice boat.. How about sharing a pic of the transom.. Looks like it has 420's and #3 speedmasters. Cool package.
    Last edited by MOBILEMERCMAN; 02-01-2011 at 06:53 PM. Reason: typo
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    #16
    Competitor / Charter Member imco offshore's Avatar
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    sorry about your dad ,,you now have my dream boat ,,good luck ,,it,s well worth keeping and putting back together,,good luck
    IMCO #10- 2009 National Champions
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    #17
    Registered BDC1013's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Underdog88 View Post
    Great boat! Unbelivable condition! You've go a gem with a great reason to keep it that way. I've redone a couple boats and a few motors myself. There are some very sharp guys here who could help further.

    What happened to the "blown" motor and how long has it been since the other was run?

    What can you do yourself in the way of work/tools/garage space?

    I totally understand the budget builders limits. I am there... Maybe look at outdoor storage and a tarp/tent shelter. They are getting cheaper all the time. This was my storage last winter Sometimes ya gotta be creative on a low budget
    The blown motor threw a rod going about 65 down the sac. river on the way home from the SF bay. Cracked the block. Most of the parts from that engine were still boxed up in the engine bay and were stolen while it was stored outside. The other engine hasnt been run in over 10 years, it will probably need tearing down and rebuilding. It's a mercruiser 454 as far as i know and im not sure how much time is on it. The story of the engine that blew is my dad had both engines freshened up the winter before the one engine blew. After they pulled the engine that blew and tore it down at his ford dealership, the mechanic told my dad that he got screwed by the builder and that he used old used parts. My dad tried to go figure it all out with the builder and found that he was no longer in business. SO... this is why my dad didnt fix the boat because he had just dumped a bunch of money into it hoping to enjoy it for a lot longer than half a summer.

    I have the tools to fix the thing but i know getting the engines put in would be the problem as i would need a very large cherry picker haha. I dont have anywhere to work on it either, thats another problem. I was thinking of storing it outdoors and building some kind of tent over it.

    Quote Originally Posted by MidOcean View Post
    Is the boat for sale? Sorry for the loss of your Dad. He obviously had GREAT taste.

    Todd

    midocean@comcast.net
    nope not for sale

    Quote Originally Posted by htrdlncn View Post
    Looks to be in great shape.. While I understand money crunch you want to be picky where you store it, much easier to keep boat in great shape if it is stored correctly.
    You have a truck big enough to tow that?
    I used to be big into Olds 442s myself, owned 17 of them,W30s,W31,H/Os you name it , I sold them all, boating is a very expensive hobby and just couldnt afford to do both cars and boats and boats are way more fun!
    If boat has been sitting that long youll probably want to go thru both motors, you seem to already be handy with tools so you can probably freshen both of them up for around $5k so long as nothing is majorly wrong with either of them. Probably want to check drives as well,go thru the electrical,clean out gas tank,new belts,filters,impellors,fuel pumps and new batteries.
    Interior looks new, just treat with something to keep material from getting brittle and protect from the sun. I would think you can have it back in the water for around $6000 total and have one bad ass ride! I always liked the Mirage boats, very sharp looking.
    I was told to find a couple take out 525EFI's and just freshen up the trans. and drives, because they would be solid behind an n/a bbc. I could probably do most of the work myself as i've rewired cars and wrenched on cars most of my adult life. How would i go about cleaning out the fuel tanks?... I think there are 4. I do have a few friends with trucks to haul the boat around so that shouldnt be an issue. I did go take a look at the tires on the trailer and they are shot. the size of the tires are 8-14.5 load range F. I found some on ebay new for 65.95 each plus $35 shipping.

    Quote Originally Posted by old377guy View Post
    It's great to have you aboard. I too am sorry to hear about your dad. As mentioned, everyone here stands ready to give you the benefit of their experience. I agree with htrdlncn that you are not very far away dollar wise on this project. My son lives in Santa Clara and works in Milpitas. I hope to visit him soon and would look enjoy looking over your boat with you. Feel free to PM me. - Jeff
    Yeah i'm not sure where the boat will be in the near future, but right now it's stored in Milpitas. I wish i could feel that way about the dollar amount that is needed to get this thing going again but i just dont see it happening for around $6000... but thats why i'm here and i hope you guys are right.

    about the ford boxes in the engine bay... my dad worked at a ford dealership so those boxes were handy, the only ford engine that will be near this thing will be the truck hauling it.
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    #18
    Registered BDC1013's Avatar
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    my uncle lives in discovery bay (brentwood, CA) and has a house on the water, the cool thing about this mirage other than the sentimental value is i've never seen a boat in all my years like this one while visiting my uncle.

    I want to keep the exterior and interior the same, they are both in pretty good condition. I do want to add stereo equipment, that was all stolen out of the boat too... it needed to be updated anyways.
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    #19
    Registered BDC1013's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by rchevelle71 View Post
    Welcome and nice ride, lets see some pics of the chevelle, as you can tell by my scree name, I had a '71 also.
    here ya go




    its got a 383 with a tko600 5 speed

    my dad and i worked on this car together while i was in high school. It's pretty much set and i drive it all the time. It may become my daily driver, insurance on two cars might be impossible with school payments.

    main goal right now is to keep going to school while working and to find a place to store the boat CHEAP, or free haha

    Quote Originally Posted by MOBILEMERCMAN View Post
    Welcome..
    Looks like a nice boat.. How about sharing a pic of the transom.. Looks like it has 420's and #3 speedmasters. Cool package.
    I will take some closer pictures of the trans. and drives so you guys might be able to tell me what i really have.
    Last edited by BDC1013; 02-01-2011 at 09:46 PM.
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    #20
    Your Dad had very good taste thats a beauty from my neck of the woods built in Miami by estanislao cortes,heavy boat but will go thru anything.The old builders sons screen name is pops57 they built a very nice boat.The project will be extra special to you remember patience is needed when dealing with this! Good Luck keep us updated.
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