80% re-make of E 35 MkII in Hawaii

Aloha all, just thought I'd post some pics of my re-make of my 1973 E35-II. I bought the boat for $9000 in March 2009 and worked on her for an average of 4 hours/day for almost a year to get her into her present condition. One of the main things I did to make her user-friendly in Hawaii is to move the traveler forward (over the cabin), and build a full-cockpit bimini. I also replaced the old, wasted Atomic 4 with a Universal M-25 diesel that I was lucky to find on eBay and have shipped out to Honolulu from Long Island NY for a total of $3000. The only real problem encountered is that the (gas) varnish in the steel gas-tank is now breaking up and clogging the filters. To deal with this I purchased a 3-gallon plastic (outboard) tank and am using this instead of the steel tank. I'll try to answer questions from EYO members about my work. Mike G.
PS "Makani" is now for sale for $35,000 in Honolulu

Gas tars in the tank.

Mike, I too had the same problem in our gasoline-powered E25+ years ago and the way to dissolve tars is to use lacquer thinner. In my case, a chap who makes his living as a fuel polisher did the job for me and started with a gallon of thinner that he poured in through the fuel float hole and agitated around, past baffles by use of compressed air delivered to the tank bottom with soft copper tubing attached to the hose. It was a slow process but he virtually got all of it out as evidenced by the increasing clarity of the sight glass on his three-stage filtration system as the polishing began. You might want to consider the thinner for cutting into your crud problem. Hey, let it sit in there for a day or so before tryting to dislodge it. Glyn Judson, E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, CA

Thanks for the tip..

I've already removed about a quart of the crud, and will try your idea or pass it along to the next owner. Mike G.

Mike,

Very nice. How do you like the traveler up front? I'm thinking of the same move for the same reason (as alternative to two Bimini's - one for the cockpit and one for the skipper's well). Are the traveler supports off-the-shelf, or did you fabricate?

--Steve

Traveler up front reply

Traveler works great! I'll try to add some pics of the set-up/re-inforcing. I had to fabricate almost everything.
I made the bimini using my buddy's Singer (home machine); broke a few needles, but got the job done in 2 weeks; total bimini cost, with 4 new bows, was around $1600. I then added remove-able (& roll-up) side screens for more weather/sun protection. I can easily roll back or remove the portion over the main part of the cockpit and keep the part over the helm in place. I can also use my dodger with the bimini in place. With the sun and rain in Hawaii this is the "only way to fly".