"New" Tender

T

Tim LaVan

Member
I spent a week in WI at my friends 'building' a new tender for her. She bought a 20 foot Bailey boat......an old military boat used from WW II thru Vietman as pontoons to move tanks across rivers when the boats were bolted together. We stripped the boat, got paint from Lou Tisch, and used center console and fuel tank from Trip Gentry (it was from a War Eagle that survived Katrina, so it has some VERY interesting history) and cedar from a mill in the UP. After svereal trips to Fleet Farm and just one trip to Cabela's, it is ready for a motor and cover. She is looking for a 90+ Merc or Etec for it. We had a great time putting it together, even in the 100+ heat.

Here is the boat stripped with priming where needed..
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Decoys rigged and waiting to pack!
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Painting by Clinton with Open water gray from Lou Tisch color #34.
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Tool box with seats that we decided to keep. It is great storage.
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The center console and fuel tank we got from Trip Gentry....painted.
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The boat painted.......looked kind of dark at first, but it is perfect!
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Bilge pumps (2 of them) going in.
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"Tool box" and base for the console.....we decided to raise it up 10 inches.
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Console installed on the base!
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Starting the decoy box.
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Decoy box about done.
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Decoy box filled! It has 7 strings of bluebills, one string of buffies, 2 strings of cans and 2 strings of redheads.
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Adding some accessories......
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Adding the MLB Big Man layout!
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Side view.
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Rear view.
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Another from the stern.
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Dog platform added.
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"Boulders" added for potential wall hunting.
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Relaxing a bit!
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We worked on this for basically 4 days and pretty happy with the way it turned out! I cannot wait to get to hunt out of it on Green Bay!
 
Looks VERY COOL! Got 2 questions for you though, how do you get the layout boat in and out, and what are the hoops for? Does a camo cover go over them? I can't wait to see a pic in action.

John
 
Now that looks like one well thought out rig. I love the handle on the side low enough for the guy in the box to easily use to control himself. Very, very, nice rig!
 
Nice boat, you accomplished a lot in just 4 days, you must have had it all planned out before you started
the job.
What kind of performance do you expect with a 90HP ?
 
John:

The 'hoops" are 1-inch electrical conduit that are the bows to support the boat cover. Trial and error on that one. The layout is just turned perpendicular and the anchor attached, thrown out and the layout slid off the gunwales. To pick it up, we get the anchor rope from behind witha boat hook, pull the anchor in, then lift the back of the layout into the tender forst. Someone is on the starboard side to pull it across if bring it in from the port side. Works pretty well for us so far!
 
I have a 21 foot Starcraft with pretty much the same interior setup and it is pushed by a 90 Etec.....max out about 35 mph.
 
Nice looking setup! Let's face it there's no easy way to get a layout in and out of a boat unless you have an electric boom.
 
Rich:

The boat was being used as a carp bowfishing boat when she bought it! They had a big platform on the front with 16 giant floodlights as well. They had a 75 on it. I think we need a min of 90 on it....115 might be really sweet. This was the first Bailey I had seen but they are built like a rock.

Tim
 
Nice Job. Curious how much weight you think you can hang off the back for an engine? I'm running a 60hp 4stroke Yamaha on mine. Don't think I'd even condsider a 115, simply because of the weight and no splash area. I was curious to see if the transom had been cut or if an extension had been put on. Love my Bailey Boat, just wish the transom had not been cut to take advantage of the high stern when backing down in rough water. Nice set-up though.
 
Man that looks like one heck of a boat, Tim. I like the look of that console. Where did you end up putting the gas tank? Looks like you guys had a heck of a crew thing going on. Hope you had someone to fetch the beers during the process. Anyway, good job. Cant wait to see it fully rigged, in the water and with feathers in the boat. Oh, and some ice all over the place would be great too. Trip.
 
NICE TENDER HOPE I see it out there this year.

we usually hunt the east side of the bay or lake michigan for sea ducks

hopfully the gunning is as good as it was on the bay last year

good luck to all
 
It looks like a nice, sturdy boat. Was wondering does it have flotation or did you add any flotation to the boat? It looks heavy with all the weight you added with the box and console then when its fully loaded with decoys and the engine weight.
 
Tim,

Any chance I could stop by sometime and see that boat in person? I have seen them on here several times but never in person. I have thought about picking one up for years but since I have never seen them I have shied away from them. Thanks. Feel free to PM me if you want.

I like the decoy rack/layout storage system.

I would think you would be able to hang a 90 with no issue given the beam. If you are concerned with the 115 Hp possibility they have calculations you can do to see if the boat can handle it, but then you also would want to contact the original manufactures (or find what they stated max HP was in a counsel/remote set up) This is mainly for insurance reasons and obviously safety.
 
Troy:

is yours a 20 footer? How does the 60 push it? A buddy of mine has a 20 foot Sea Ark with a 75 on it and it pushes it pretty well. The transon can be seen in a couple pics I posted but it definitely was not extended. I agree with you on the 'no splash well" thing. I put 2 bilge pumps in it to help with that...one is a 500 gph and the other an 1100 gph pump. Hopefully they never become critical. We are concerned with the size and weight of a motor, no doubt.

Thanks....got any pics of yours? I would LOVE to see them.

Tim
 
Hey Trip:

ICE! I cannot wait to see some of that!!! The fule tank was mounted in the back port corner.....behind the storage/seat box. It can be seen in a couple of the pics. It actually fit almost like it was built for that spot. We figured it holds about 33 gallons....that sound about right?

Can't wait to TAKE those feathers/ice/smiles pictures with it!

Tim
 
Hey Tim,

Pretty sure mine is 18-1/2' I never taped it but those are the specs on the Bailey Boats.

The 60hp good, no speed demon but the bow design is not one that was meant for speed anyway, IMO. My boat typically carries 4 doz magnum bulap/foam and or cork decoys, three or four people, a dog, and a lot of gear. I use it for pulling my daughter and her friends tubing too.

Here are a couple links if you don't already have them.

http://ugliboats.com/gallery2.htm

I really like what Wes did on the transom with the sea drive.

http://duckboats.net/...;;page=unread#unread


And my old post of the boat.

http://duckboats.net/...t_reply;so=ASC;mh=25;

I have since removed the center box to allow more room to walk around. It was very tight with three or four people, I was always walking on top of the box.
 
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Pauly:

No flotation added. When I was reworking my Starcraft, a guy on here said to avoid flotation under the floor, basically turn the boat upside down and add it in the rails. There was nowhere to do that in this boat.

Tim
 
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