Bullet by Jack Lundquist, Las Vegas, Nevada

21 February 2010


These photos show several of the topside modifications I made. I made a roll bar to place some stereo speakers on; additionally it will hold a padded head rest.

I had a custom 9.5 gallon fuel tank made and moved the tank up front. The fill spout will be directly above it with easy access without getting out of the boat.

I am foaming all areas beneath the deck, as can be seen in some of the pictures. I use 2.5 inch thick blue foam which works perfectly.

I had the upholstery done locally; probably a bit early in the process, just the way it happened. The rear portion is covered likewise.

I am sending the boat for the engine install now. Ordered a Nissan 30HP with electric start and power trim.

Also is a picture of the uncompleted instrument panel.

I experimented with the red paint, although I like it, decided it is too hard to work with since it has to have a white base. I opted for the blue and white as pictured in the upholstery picture.

Placement of the control box will be a real challenge--wish me luck! I will follow up with some more pictures once painted.




20 May 2010 Update

I built this mini Bullet over the last 6 or so months. The hull is built per plans, however the deck has been redesigned.

Since 2-stroke outboards will be illegal on many lakes, particularly the one I will be mostly using, I did not wish to mount a 2-stroke engine. I chose to go 30 HP 4-stroke, with all the bells and whistles; electric start, tilt and trim, fuel injection.

A problem I encountered is the fact that this engine weighed about 40 pounds more than the basic 2-stroke. In order to compensate for this weight, I moved the fuel tank permanently to the front. I ordered a custom made aluminum 9.5 gallon tank that would fit perfectly in the area up front. I mounted an external filler cap, along with the vent on the upper deck. This moved considerable weight forward to keep the boat balanced at rest. I did mount it so I can easily remove it by sliding it out the front, although I maybe should not have used the word "easily" since nothing seems to go easy on boat repair. My point is I can remove the tank for inspection.

The battery was kept in the back area, but moved as far forward as possible. I did install a bilge pump, with an automatic flapper next to it so I don't have to worry about watching for water at any given time, although I can turn it on manually too.

The boat has considerable foam applied, although none is visible. The front portion is foamed, as well as the sides beneath the deck all the way aft. The seat is sandwich foam for a little extra safety. My only concern in this area was to prevent the boat from sinking to the floor, should an emergency ever occur.

The roll bar was designed primarily to make the boat stand out among others. I installed a couple flood lights on top, with marine speakers on the inner posts. The floods work very well, along with the hide-away nav light up front.

The paint job is marine two-part epoxy primer, with automotive paint as final color, topping off with a good coating of clear coat. I don't intend to keep the boat in the water, thus felt automotive paint is fine.


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