Commander 26 Re Build

[Sttr]

Hi Everyone,

New member, long time lurker……
First off I would like to thank everyone for making this forum happen on a daily basis with posts and updates. I truly enjoyed many threads and fishing updates over the last couple years and hope there are more to come! And thank you to all that do so much and spend so much time fighting for our and our children’s right to fish for salmon.
Little info about myself before we get started. I’m under 40, this is my FIRST boat build, always been on the water recreationally,my first boat besides a 12 tinny was a 1970 18 foot springbok aluminum with a 70hp outboard, 2nd boat is my 2015 Thunderjet which I LOVE, and now my 3rd is another Beauty I fell in love with, a 1980 commander 26. I would need to start another thread regarding why I decided to go with the commander but we all know a lot has to do with the wife… she just has no idea how much this is going to cost me

First of all,this is going to be my personal boat and not a build to resell, the boat is in my shop on blocks and the process has already been started, I have the interior removed and engines removed and will update all work putting her back together. I do have a plan for mostly everything but will take all advise from everyone and will not hesitate to make any adjustments necessary . I never thought my first thread would be a boat re build but I feel this is my way to contribute something to this forum that gave so much to me.

Here are some pics of where we are at, will post more

 

[Capt_Ed]

I'm going to have to buy more popcorn, looking forward to this one .26 commander is my all time favorite.

 

[Rain City]

Hello Everybody,

New member, long time lurker……
First off I would like to thank everyone for making this forum happen on a daily basis with posts and updates. I truly enjoyed many threads and fishing updates over the last couple years and hope there are more to come! And thank you to all that do so much and spend so much time fighting for our and our children’s right to fish for salmon.
Little info about myself before we get started. I’m under 40, this is my FIRST boat build, always been on the water recreationally,my first boat besides a 12 tinny was a 1970 18 foot springbok aluminum with a 70hp outboard, 2nd boat is my 2015 Thunderjet which I LOVE, and now my 3rd is another Beauty I fell in love with, a 1980 commander 26. I would need to start another thread regarding why I decided to go with the commander but we all know a lot has to do with the wife… she just has no idea how much this is going to cost me

First of all,this is going to be my personal boat and not a build to resell, the boat is in my shop on blocks and the process has already been started, I have the interior removed and engines removed and will update all work putting her back together. I do have a plan for mostly everything but will take all advise from everyone and will not hesitate to make any adjustments necessary . I never thought my first thread would be a boat re build but I feel this is my way to contribute something to this forum that gave so much to me.

Here are some pics of where we are at, will post more


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I can't wait! Are you adding a side door? I've been thinking about that. My two bits is you should chop the top. If I had endless amounts of time I'd do it to mine.

Edit. I see that repair is to the transom. Is that for the engine to nest into?

 

[Sttr]

I can't wait! Are you adding a side door? I've been thinking about that. My two bits is you should chop the top. If I had endless amounts of time I'd do it to mine.

Edit. I see that repair is to the transom. Is that for the engine to nest into?

 

[Sttr]

I can't wait! Are you adding a side door? I've been thinking about that. My two bits is you should chop the top. If I had endless amounts of time I'd do it to mine.

Chop the top …. Hmmmmm I’m listening

 

[Sttr]

I can't wait! Are you adding a side door? I've been thinking about that. My two bits is you should chop the top. If I had endless amounts of time I'd do it to mine.

Making a door out the back to the pod. I’m not too thrilled about the big step from the pod but it sure beats jumping over and most importantly the dog can get in and out

 

[Sttr]

I think I’m having issues replying correctly, no it’s not my phone it’s me…. I will figure it out

 

[Rain City]

Making a door out the back to the pod. I’m not too thrilled about the big step from the pod but it sure beats jumping over and most importantly the dog can get in and out

Oooh I see. I didn't realize the 26 didn't have a rear door.

As far as chopping the bridge I wanted more room so was thinking about killing that helm (I'm not a fan of driving from up there) and then cutting down the brow a little. The whole thing is removeable but some kind of sides are nice

 

[Brando]

Shop envy very nice! What is it you do for work? Looking forward to this build thanks for sharing.

 

[Sttr]

I picked up this old girl in December, fell in love right away. She was on the water not used very much last couple years and waiting for some major repairs. However the overall condition of this 40 year old boat blew my mind. My first inspection was for any sign of mold or water inside the cabin, I quickly realized she was dry and mold free ( I seen a different commander that age with a inch of mold growing on bottem of every piece of teek) .
First issue- fuel tank leak. Fuel tank started leaking. I figured it started leaking sometime between the last survey in 2019 and now as there was no mention of a leak on the survey report . This was a big issue for me and would set the game plan moving forward because I have no clue at the moment the potential damage the fuel leak can cause…. Still love the boat.
I finish inspecting the interior and find 4 life jackets dated 1980 in immaculate condition without a single stain on them. Honesty that was the deal for me there. Anyone that kept these jackets for 40 years in this condition must of had a very good wife and taken care of his stuff.
Few other issues with interior was that it was just old, windows stiff and one broken because couldn’t slide.

 

[Sttr]

Shop envy very nice! What is it you do for work? Looking forward to this build thanks for sharing.

Commercial transport, truck and trailer repair.
This is by far my favourite project I have started and I’m super excited to finish it…. Before the summer

 

[Sttr]

Exterior- my unprofessional opinion

My next inspection was the exterior condition of the boat, I walked around inspected for any major damage, major spider cracks, missing hardware or neglect, couldn’t find any issues. The dinghy needed some work and was starting to rot, no big deal. I took a look at the swim deck and was pleasantly surprised by the condition of it, I have seen decks this age just falling apart. Rub rails and rails had no damage . I noticed there where no rigger mounts and no real sign of fishing except some crab gear, which I was happy. Who ever owned this boat did a very good job taking care of her for 40 years

 

[Sttr]

Oooh I see. I didn't realize the 26 didn't have a rear door.

As far as chopping the bridge I wanted more room so was thinking about killing that helm (I'm not a fan of driving from up there) and then cutting down the brow a little. The whole thing is removeable but some kind of sides are nice

With a 30 I can see it being tempting to chop to top, for my self and for fishing I would consider it for sure. But I love the flybridge, it’s one of the reasons I got the commander, kids can hang out up there and it’s so much more boat. I’m already in hot water for taking their swim deck away for some motors, if I chopped the flybridge they would know right away daddy is building a fishing boat, not a family cruiser

 

[Sttr]

Engines- twin inline 6 mercs with pre alpha drives. Honestly I didn’t know much between the differences of alpha drives and transom housings but I know a good sounding engine when I hear one. We started them up and boy did those inlines purrrrr, once they warmed up. One engine had sign of coolant in the oil, the other engine drive oil had signs of water in it, whatever let’s go take her for a rip. I’m lovin this boat, solid on the water, the 10 plus beam, but slow for my liking. Gearing seemed a bit hard engaging especially on the drive that had water in the oil. Now we full throttle North arm around macdonald beach and one engine overheats blows the cap, coolant everywhere, ok I think that one is done. We get back on one engine, all good.
So I have a 1981 commander in front of me, haven’t pulled it out of the water to inspect the hull. Fuel tank is leaking, one engine blown, other has water in drive oil and clunky when shifting. But oh boy…. Those 1980 mint life jackets and spare engine parts marked nicely in ziplock bags with notes to future owners , was all I needed to feel good about this boat and was confident she was taken care of. So I bought the life jackets LoL.
Next week I set up a haul from mac beach to my shop. Mid December, this year was crap, temp around zero, and blowin 40km winds. Whatever it’s only a quick ride from van marina. I start her up… only the engine that doesn’t over heat. Warm her up, get my anchor and rope ready just in case, still tied up I try forward reverse , all good. Oh yeah!!!! I was a long long week waiting to pick her up, I already paid the guy and left it in his slip, even thou he was super nice, gave me his fob and info, I still wanted the boat in my hands ASAP.
So let’s go… reverse out the slip, shift forward Bang! No drive. Engine running wtf. In my Thunderjet I would press a button, drop my anchor and assess the situation, or even beach myself whatever. Now I’m drifting in the wind 40 feet from the rocks and bridge, yes the one place on the Fraser with rocks and not mud, great. My anchor is on the bow, not set up to throw right away I decide the best would be to use the engine that overheats. I start it up and it dies. 1980 merc in freezing temp. Start it up again,it runs, put it in gear it dies, try that again. Now I’m 10 feet from the bridge post and maybe 25 from the rocks in intense wind, and forgot to mention the current. This is my final try and that’s it, she’s done, not just beached, but bashed on the rocks until she sunk. I start her up, rev it up for as long as I can to warm her up (5seconds) slam her in gear without dropping revs , got it in gear without dying, I slam her into the nearest dock that I swear was concrete on the bottem and in the mud on low tide. By now couple old timers are laughing at me at the dock , told me not to worry that guys been trying to smash these commanders for years and can’t LMAO, between the life jackets and the old timers comments I knew I had a keeper

 

[Sttr]

First Repair is the fuel tank. I have only remove one other fuel tank from a boat and that was aluminum, very simple, tucked in with welded aluminum crossmembers holding it in, floor was removed easily…. With the commander I needed a game plan, something was getting cut out. I have also never disassembled a cabin cruiser interior, let alone disassemble it without breaking everything. I quickly realized the only way to get it out was the cabin floor, everything on port must come out.
So I start the process. At this point I don’t have a full game plan just a dream LoL. Everything I take apart I try to save and be gentle. I disassemble the dinette and bathroom. I kind of have an idea where the tank is by the fill tube and breather but have no idea what is under floor. What made it worse is the fuel leak, there was fuel leaked all out in the back and under the whole tank, cutting was extremely slow. I drained the tank and thought about filling it with water but with fuel vapours all around it seemed like a waste of time, i figured if it was gona catch it would anyways if we were not careful. The water tank was also removed, located in front of the fuel tank. Cleaned up all the fuel and ran a fan for a few days

 

[Sttr]

Next up was the engines, I was sad to see the inline 6 mercs go but also excited. Pulled the drives out, removed both engines and both transom housings, I took apart each engine to the crank and found the block was cracked at #1 cylinder on one engine and the other looked very close to failure. Heads only thing that looked good everything else needed to be replaced. Back of my mind I’m still calculating cost of rebuilt short blocks , but thank goodness for the pre alpha drives, it killed any slim chance or thought of rebuilding the stern drives.

 

[Sttr]

Next up was the engines, I was sad to see the inline 6 mercs go but also excited. Pulled the drives out, removed both engines and both transom housings, I took apart each engine to the crank and found the block was cracked at #1 cylinder on one engine and the other looked very close to failure. Heads only thing that looked good everything else needed to be replaced. Back of my mind I’m still calculating cost of rebuilt short blocks , but thank goodness for the pre alpha drives, it killed any slim chance or thought of rebuilding the stern drives. View attachment 76114View attachment 76115View attachment 76116View attachment 76116View attachment 76117View attachment 76118View attachment 76119View attachment 76120View attachment 76121

 

[Sttr]

One of the first things I did was a really good pressure wash, cleaned her up and inspected the bottem, with my untrained eye everything looked mint, no damage anywhere. The port window was cracked. I checked all the window and they were tight in some spots with weatherstripping dirty and old but no sign of leakage, all windows had bubbles forming around the edges from the tint I guess , and just looked old. I decided to remove all windows and have them replaced along with new weatherstripping. Once the windows were out it was easy to remove the wall fabric. At this point I still don’t have a full plan for the boat so everything is coming out slowly, marked . I remove pretty much to entire interior except kitchen cabinet base. I cleaned each piece, sanded and re stained every piece of teakwood that came out and am very happy with the results and hope it looks good when installed.
I think in total I must of removed at least 500 Robertson screws from this boat LoL. I am impressed by the workmanship put into this boat, every screw was covered up somehow, pieces where glued and screwed, nothing was loose.

 

[Sttr]

Engine bay, disclaimer- I am not a glass guy, I have fibreglassed a few things before, never a boat and after this process I don’t think I will ever personally glass anything on a boat that I want to last another 20 years. I cut , my guy glasses.
We started with good inspection of the stringers, plywood , inside and in the engine compartment. There where a couple pieces that where saturated in fuel, cut those out. Cut out the floor in the engine bay for access for inspection, everything seemed solid, my guy drilled in a few places and was all good, front engine mount had 2 inches of soft wood from fuel but that’s it, was addressed and glassed. Replaced a couple pieces that separate the tanks but not from it being rotten just from it smelling like fuel. Every other piece I cut into looked brand new, especially inside the cabin.

 

[Sttr]

Transom- shout out to everyone that spent time talking with me over the phone about their own projects and giving me advise with out knowing me. It’s always awkward calling someone and starting the conversation with I don’t want to buy your boat but can you help me… most people are awesome. Decided to reinforce it another inch, factory is 2 1/4 .Before we did that, I also had my guy cut out a few inches of the first layer that smelled like gas. Then we installed 1 1/2 12” long gussets connecting the transom to the lower stringers, my guy said it’s over kill but I learned not to trust anyone until I feel comfortable. So he doesn’t know once the pod is on he is going to add gussets to outside stringers for a total of 6. It’s a massive hull extension.