Seagull restoration

fergal.b · 01-07-2014 11:06am

roadsmart wrote: »

Really nice to meet you Bren, and thank you very much. I know I said that I'd take my time and amass the bits and pieces needed over a few months, but I couldn't help myself and managed to find a refurbished cylinder head and piston/rod on ebay already! And so it begins.....:D

I might have a few bits left over so don't go buying anything till you check to see if I have them first

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roadsmart · 01-07-2014 11:05pm

BrensBenz wrote: »

Excellent! Glad to be of some help, even if the engine wasn't what I remembered!

Oh, by the way, my brother's 200hp, V6 Yamaha "outdoor" motor came with a complimentary emergency pull cord. Unfortunately, Yamaha failed to supply a Sumo Wrestler strong enough to actually pull the pull cord so, since the cord should fit a Seagull, you're welcome to that as well. You have my number!

fergal.b wrote: »

I might have a few bits left over so don't go buying anything till you check to see if I have them first
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Thanks lads, I'm away on holidays for a while from tomorrow but I'll certainly be taking you up on the offers when I get back.

lockmaster · 04-07-2014 6:35pm

fergal ....
you have out done yourself again . that seagull looks as if it just came out of the factory how do you do it ... great hands .. keep it up man .

Caspy · 06-07-2014 9:52pm

Truly amazing work.. Your a very gifted man..

mufflets2 · 07-09-2014 9:31pm

I knew when I saw Fergals that I had to have one

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its a 40 series 1956

Needs a new motor head

But the cylinder looks good

Any suggestions on the best way to unsieze this piston it looks all the way in

fergal.b · 07-09-2014 9:40pm

Good stuff

If you steep the piston in WD40 or diesel overnight it should loosen it up also take the gearbox off to make it easier to move. I might have a head that will do you.

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mufflets2 · 08-09-2014 7:10am

Thanks fergal, I'll try that, am taking it apart already ,there Seems to be lots of information on the internet on these and not a lot of complicated parts to em

fergal.b · 09-10-2014 3:46pm

I picked up this little forty plus for forty bucks yesterday God only knows why

I just felt sorry for the poor thing.

Alkers · 10-10-2014 10:07am

fergal.b wrote: »

I picked up this little forty plus for forty bucks yesterday God only knows why I just felt sorry for the poor thing.

I think we have one of these in the garage somewhere? How many man-hours and how much roughly did it cost you to restore the last one do you mind me asking? Would love to give it a go!

fergal.b · 10-10-2014 10:43am

It's very hard to say with these old engine till you have it all stripped down, some nuts and bolts can take half a day to take out if they snap also depending on whats wrong be it electrics or a sized piston like mufflets2 above can add a lot of time, the good thing is that all the parts are easy to get and are still quite cheep to get posted from the UK compared to the old mercury parts that I get from the USA.:eek: I guess the amount of hours you put in will also depend on the finish you want. If you have one give it a go it won't break the bank and you will have a working bit of history at the end of it.

I have just discovered that this engine was found strapped up in the bow section of a 1964 mermaid "Nicapando" that was found in a shed behind Bob's casino in Skerries it turns out the boat belong to Ollie Grimes Dad Harry it seems that back in the day there was no rescue service from the clubs so the mermaids were built with a cutout to take an outboard.

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Hifive · 10-10-2014 9:06pm

That's great to have some history on it Fergal.
Do you know when was the mermaid last in use?

Just remembering, I sailed (crew/ballast) in the mermaid nationals in Clontarf about a million years ago and we could have done with an outboard!

fergal.b · 10-10-2014 9:14pm

Hifive wrote: »

That's great to have some history on it Fergal.
Do you know when was the mermaid last in use?

I don't know yet I'm still digging

but going by the engine I'd say around 20 years, The mermaid is also being restored but it will now have a full back deck with nowhere to hang the engine.

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Alkers · 11-10-2014 12:25pm

So I had a look in the old man's garage this morning and look what I found:

Both were apparently running when they were put into the garage at least five years ago.

I haven't got any experience at doing anything like this, so all advice is appreciated.

I'm thinking I'll spend a bit today trying to get them started and do a bit of a clean-up, then order parts online to give them a service and once running, have a go a restoring them as per this thread - if I get them looking half as good I'd be delighted.

Actually, might just make my own thread seeing as I'll have lots of questions!

BrensBenz · 11-10-2014 1:36pm

Off topic, I know, so apologies in advance but I have to say that hearing that Nicapando is being restored makes my day! I was fortunate enough to crew with Harry Grimes and his brother John in "Nica" during Mermaid Week, yonks ago in Dun Laoghaire. Two enormously talented men and a pleasure to spend time with.

I restored a National 18 of the same vintage as Nicapando so PM if I can render any assistance.

By the way, I'm pretty sure that the boat name's spelling is Nicahpando, an anagram for "No Handicap".....I think.

fergal.b · 11-10-2014 4:13pm

Simona1986 wrote: »

So I had a look in the old man's garage this morning and look what I found:
Both were apparently running when they were put into the garage at least five years ago.

I haven't got any experience at doing anything like this, so all advice is appreciated.

I'm thinking I'll spend a bit today trying to get them started and do a bit of a clean-up, then order parts online to give them a service and once running, have a go a restoring them as per this thread - if I get them looking half as good I'd be delighted.

Actually, might just make my own thread seeing as I'll have lots of questions!

They look the same as my two a 102 and a forty plus

If you don't get a spark don't strip it down till you try charging it you can do this by taking the plug out and then using a socket connected to a drill and put it on the big nut on the flywheel and spin it for about a minute.

fergal.b · 11-10-2014 9:38pm

BrensBenz wrote: »

Off topic, I know, so apologies in advance but I have to say that hearing that Nicapando is being restored makes my day! I was fortunate enough to crew with Harry Grimes and his brother John in "Nica" during Mermaid Week, yonks ago in Dun Laoghaire. Two enormously talented men and a pleasure to spend time with.

I restored a National 18 of the same vintage as Nicapando so PM if I can render any assistance.

By the way, I'm pretty sure that the boat name's spelling is Nicahpando, an anagram for "No Handicap".....I think.

I know John Grimes well he lived across the road from me in Skerries and did a lot of boating with my dad, funny when I lived in Limerick many moons a go my neighbours were also mermaid sailors Irene and Trevor Brown.

fergal.b · 27-11-2014 7:06pm

fergal.b wrote: »

I picked up this little forty plus for forty bucks yesterday God only knows why I just felt sorry for the poor thing.

Here she is now I didn't go to town on the polishing just gave her a bit of a makeover

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fergal.b · 10-11-2017 3:35pm

A few more seagulls I'm working on.

The first one is a forty plus with a recoil starter.

The shaft was too rough to clean up.

So I cheated a bit and gave it a coat of hammerite and used some pluming pipe covering.

sogood · 10-11-2017 6:10pm

Would you call that a flock of seagulls fergal? Lovely work as usual. Looking great.

fergal.b · 10-11-2017 6:33pm

sogood wrote: »

Would you call that a flock of seagulls fergal? Lovely work as usual. Looking great.

It will be now that I bought two more on Adverts yesterday

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Alkers · 10-11-2017 8:24pm

fergal.b wrote:

It will be now that I bought two more on Adverts yesterday

Let me know if you're looking for any more. What do you do with them all?

fergal.b · 10-11-2017 8:43pm

Simona1986 wrote: »

Let me know if you're looking for any more. What do you do with them all?

These six are going to lakeside Marina for display in the bar

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Daibheid · 10-11-2017 10:06pm

The recoil starter takes all the fun out of a seagull, no risk of getting wrapped up in the flywheel, the ease of pulling it repeatedly before you drift onto the rocks and no chance of giving a crewmember a black eye from the flying starter rope!

You were haunted to get tanks in such good condition, most of them have the end caps at least stoved right in and they're difficult to do anything with. Super standard of finish.

Did you re-jet them to run the lighter oil mix?

fergal.b · 10-11-2017 10:30pm

Daibheid wrote: »

The recoil starter takes all the fun out of a seagull, no risk of getting wrapped up in the flywheel, the ease of pulling it repeatedly before you drift onto the rocks and no chance of giving a crewmember a black eye from the flying starter rope!

You were haunted to get tanks in such good condition, most of them have the end caps at least stoved right in and they're difficult to do anything with. Super standard of finish.

Did you re-jet them to run the lighter oil mix?

Yep on the older ones I change them to run at 25 to 1.

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pedroeibar1 · 10-11-2017 11:34pm

fergal.b wrote: »

These six are going to lakeside Marina for display in the bar .

Best place for them! :P;)

Daibheid · 10-11-2017 11:57pm

fergal.b wrote: »

Yep on the older ones I change them to run at 25 to 1.

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I have one that had been changed and the previous owner filed off the mix numbers on the filler cap to help indicate there were new jets. Maybe it's a convention in the Seagul world?
25:1 saves a lot of oil and definitely kinder to the environment. These were always run on STP or GTX too, none of your new fangled clean specialised 2-stroke marine oils!:)

fergal.b · 12-11-2017 12:05pm

Daibheid wrote: »

You were haunted to get tanks in such good condition, most of them have the end caps at least stoved right in and they're difficult to do anything with. Super standard of finish.

?

I tend to leave them with their battle scars

but with a bit of work you can remove the end caps and flatten them out then solder them back on.

fergal.b · 17-11-2017 5:08pm

The next seagull to leave the nest is a 1971 Silver Century with clutch.

Daibheid · 22-11-2017 6:30pm

Best one yet Fergal!

How did you get the alloy to come up so well? It's shinier than when it left the factory.

fergal.b · 22-11-2017 6:36pm

Daibheid wrote: »

Best one yet Fergal!

How did you get the alloy to come up so well? It's shinier than when it left the factory.

Polishing wheel and a lot of time

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Daibheid · 23-11-2017 10:50am

fergal.b wrote: »

Polishing wheel and a lot of time

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Knowing your dedication to patience and polish and 16,0000 grit paper, I was expecting you to say that but half hoping you might have a magic bullet, e.g.found a way to electro polish!:(

To be fair to Seagull, it's probably a testament to the quality of the original castings too.

fergal.b · 24-11-2017 5:25pm

This week it's the baby leaving a 1970 forty featherweight.

Kerryman79 · 28-11-2017 10:02pm

Beautiful restoration Fergal, makes my one look like crap , love those engines , my one was over 40 years in a shed , fresh petrol and she started first pick , id reckon if she had 30 hours done it would be alot ! love the simplicity of them . Any luck on locating your boat mate ?

fergal.b · 29-11-2017 11:30am

[QUOTE= Any luck on locating your boat mate ?[/QUOTE]

Nothing yet but when I do the world and it's Mother will know about it

All updates are in the sticky above.

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fergal.b · 02-05-2018 8:31pm

Another forty plus with a recoil starter.

This one is quite rough so I decided to paint it.

The bling carb was rotten so I had to get a replacement not an easy thing to do as they are very few and far between.

Not looking great the tank was all rusted so I filled it with pebbles and gave it a good shaking.

Also had a little pinhole.

A bit of blue hammerite.

fergal.b · 23-05-2018 4:56pm

Next up is the 1973 silver century stolen from Joseph P Dowling Athlone maybe he would like it back now

My heart is not able for all that pull starting anymore

Daibheid · 30-05-2018 12:37pm

Another one better than the day it left the factory. Not often you see a seagul without the tank ends dented.

fergal.b · 30-05-2018 1:06pm

Daibheid wrote: »

Another one better than the day it left the factory. Not often you see a seagul without the tank ends dented.

Cheers

what are my chances of doing the same to this thing it's a 1936 OMC elto service twin, plugs were left out for years everything is sized and some parts are missing :eek:

Even has a plant growing in it

Hifive · 02-06-2018 10:53pm

Jasus! Did you dig it up? I have lots of faith in you Ferg, but you have your work cut out on this one. Maybe polish it up and make an ornament out of it?

fergal.b · 14-06-2018 10:22am

Next up is a forty featherweight.

ezra_ · 17-06-2018 10:43am

Gorgeous job!

What paint did you use on her?

fergal.b · 17-06-2018 10:47am

ezra_ wrote: »

Gorgeous job!

What paint did you use on her?

Thanks

I use Halfords auto spray paint cans and lacquer on the tank and there high heat paint on the block.

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fergal.b · 19-09-2018 2:37pm

fergal.b wrote: »

Cheers what are my chances of doing the same to this thing it's a 1936 OMC elto service twin, plugs were left out for years everything is sized and some parts are missing :eek:

Even has a plant growing in it

All back together coil rebuilt just waiting on a part for the carb before I can get her running, parts for this thing are not easy to find

The coil works off a 6V battery as there is no magneto.

The exhaust was missing and I cant find an image of one so I just made one out of a brass curtain poll

I might flatten out the end insted of having it round.

fergal.b · 29-07-2020 10:29am

So for my next little project I am going to restore this special 102 it belonged to the late great boat builder Jimmy Furey and was left to his apprentice Cathy Mcaleavey who is at the moment restoring what I believe to be Jimmy's grandfathers Shannon one design, can't wait to see her being pushed along again.

If you haven't seen the Hands program with Jimmy it's well worth watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XthOkO-wsK4

And the one with Cathy is at 15 min's . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sa9IBP0uCZY&t=556s...

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Daibheid · 29-07-2020 10:58am

That looks like it would fire up with a clean plug and fresh petrol! It's in great condition for its age but looking forward to seeing it chuffing away when you've done it up.
That Hands series is brilliant, captured some great craftsmen in action. That one is well worth a look. I can't imagine what it would cost to build one today! My favourite program was the TINker doing amazing sheet metal work at the side of the road recycling old copper cylinders into buckets, etc.

fergal.b · 29-07-2020 11:07am

Daibheid wrote: »

That looks like it would fire up with s clean plug and fresh petrol!

And a carburettor

It also has a R in its number that tells me it has been back to the factory to be remanufactured.

Daibheid · 29-07-2020 11:39am

It will probably merit an "F" added after the Fergal makeover ðŸ‘

fergal.b · 12-08-2020 6:25pm

A seagull running with it's head cut off

Just making sure she will run before I doll her up.

antietam1 · 13-08-2020 1:44pm

Very enjoyable posts lads.

gonzo1 · 13-08-2020 4:01pm

fergal.b wrote: »

A seagull running with it's head cut off Just making sure she will run before I doll her up.

Your cat wasn't long clearing off once you go it going:D

Great Job Fergal

Seagull restoration

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