1961 Roamer 31' Express resto by 21 year old

Good for you young man!! Im sure Q240Z will contribute about rudder freeze! Typically, those are stainless shafts with wet packing in a brass nut on a steel post. Get a quart of PB Blaster in there with a string to "wick" oil onto the shaft above the packing. Let it drip in there for a week and work the wheel occasionally. Thats all mechanical steering and you should be able to have the wheel turn by moving the rudders. C clamp a short 2X4 on the blade and gain some leverage!
The worst place for rot is below the front cabin windows/bulkheads, the back end of the side window/bulkheads, and the lower corners of the windshields. Is the roof fiberglass or painted canvas. If its the latter, be prepared to change that out with some bad wood underneath that.
I would guess that the power is 6 bangers or 283 Chevies. Maybe an MCCK 6.5 Onan generator? Those are 2 cylinder opposed units and quiet, or a 4 banger Kohler.
I have a '63 36' Roamer for almost 40 years and enjoy it immensly. Get yerself a MIG welder and a sawzall and have at it! Just make sure you do a good job so we can all be proud of you! r n

My boat was actually in Sturgeon Bay from 63-80 when my dad died and I brought her to chi-town. Been overnite at McKinley but never as a regular. I am in negotiation on a house on the river in Two Rivers with a nice dock... come for a visit! r n

BTW.... 185s are 283s and 210s are 327s. Mine now has Merc 330s which are 454s... what a major difference!!
Was your boat at a yard by some old train tracks? Looked at two next to each other years ago...Racine maybe? r n

Careful with that blasting! If you get down to orange primer, thats a pretty decent barrier coat they used at the factory. When the blaster comes around and above the chine, be prepared to enconter fairing compound (bondo) which it IS NOT!! Dont think about blasting the hull sides unless yer a good body man... trust me on that! If theres a little spot or crack in the fairing here or there, spot blast that clean down to the steel and then make a repair. Make sure all the doors and windows are closed up tite! Even some tape over the window joints will keep a ton of dirt out of the inside.
I just did mine last spring, used 2000 + lbs of black beauty and finished with two full coats of coal tar epoxy then bottom paint. The coal tar is about $40 for a gallon (two part) and is an excellent electrical barrier coat. r n

Just a shot showing the coal tar (immersion grade) and, the finished project! r n

I would go to a Sherwin-Williams paint store that has an adult English speaking counterman and ask there. The stuff we used is STRICTLY INDUSTRIAL made by Koppers. Its CARBOLINE 300M Immersion grade. GOOGLE it. Roll it on or spray it and thin sparingly with MEK. My pal can order it for you plus shipping of course. Its HOT stuff and splatter feels like paint stripper. Dress accordingly!
My boat being aluminum will not tolerate any copper based paints. I am limited to Interlux TRI-LUX or Pettit (yuck) alumaguard. Steel is another story... You need to do some research on dissimilar underwater metal bonding, as long as you are doing a complete bottom job.
That flybridge came off of a wood 1968 Uniflite and only seats two... my pal calls it the Ferarri Flybridge. r n

I would... even in fresh water you need to bond (tie together) any dissimilar metals to the zinc. That is the sacrificial anode. ABSOLUTELY remove the CAPAC system if its still there. . If you have one, theres two 10 inch discs on the hull about 8 feet apart. Cut those wires too and leave them in situ to plug the holes.
I needed about 125 lbs to provide the cathodic protection required. Start reading! r n

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q...uZZQrv&sig=AHIEtbTJE6-M9caNdbVh1wUYcVnJvzj39w