I LOL'd at mirrored Butt Hut and Coke couches. Kind of epitomizes the 80's. Funny how all the sport boats of that era have the nearly identical layouts. Very cool conversion. Perfect for family and friends boating. Plus the breeze through the cabin when one needs to get out of the sun
Very nice work and very practical. Most cabins on boats are completely useless, I detail boats for a living and most of my clients never use theirs for anything but storage.
I hear you...pretty much useless, and hotter than heck on an average summer day. It sure was fun to pile a bunch of people up front and cruise around the lake! Thanks for watching.
Did you leave the roof in front of windshield to help keep integrity of the boat. I’m worried if I cut it completely out the boat won’t be as strong. I know they make boats like mine that are open bow. But wondering if they don’t have added supports.
Yes, keeping some of the original roof helped keep the integrity. It was also just a logical place to end the open bow. I didn’t want to remove the windshield or have to move the controls.
Very nicely done. Yeah, odd looking boat to start with, but your conversion makes it much better. Do you have this documented on any forums where there is more information? I am sure there are plenty of others out there that are thinking of this same conversion. I have a 272LS Formula that I want to do this to also. Already added the bulk head and glassed it in at the front of the cabin and have marked the deck for where it would be cut, just trying to figure it out as much as possible before I make that first cut.
The 272 Formula would make a great open bow conversion. Very similar to the 269 with the mid-cabin, and forward berth which lends well to an open conversion. I have done a few open bow conversions, but didn't document them, sorry. Each is so different, and mostly "one-off" projects. I do more head scratching along the way than anything. That deck cut decision is difficult. I would suggest coming in from your cut marks by 2-4 inches, and cut that out first. With most of the deck removed, you can dial down where the final cuts will be made. I played around with the layout of the front seats, storage, etc for a bit before I made the final cut. All in all, you cant really go too wrong, it just might make more work for yourself when finishing. Opening the bow on these boats sure make them much more fun to run around the lake in. Good Luck!
Thanks for watching. Each conversion is a bit different. In this boat's case, I left all the original bulwarks, and in the end, everything was much tighter. The front deck that was removed did nothing structurally...It was just a thin fiberglass lid.
Thanks for watching. Each conversion is a bit different. In this boat's case, I left all the original bulwarks, and in the end, everything was much tighter. The front deck that was removed did nothing structurally...It was just a thin fiberglass lid.
Hey bud bad ass boat! I’m lookin at this 87 sea ray 340 express and toying with building a open bow off shore fishing boat with twin outbounds. Nothing flashy or fancy have any tips? I’d like to off the inboards and cabin completely but I’m worried about how sturdy the bow will be once I cut the top off.? Thanks for any advice!
thanks for the comments. I could not feel any adverse effects from not having counter rotating props, but I'm sure on a higher performance boat it would make a difference. It was sure nice to keep it simple and the same for both engines.
thinking of doing the same, my 1987 19' cabin cuddy isn't worth a dime, and a deck boat would really work better for my needs. how long do you think the work took, how much do you think you spent?
It would all depend on how nice you wanted to make it. I did a similar conversion on a 19' boat, albeit a much smaller scale. If I remember right, I had around $2,000 into it, and around 250 hours. I salvaged much of the interior, but the costs were still pretty high for upholstery, marine plywood, and fiberglass.
I LOL'd at mirrored Butt Hut and Coke couches. Kind of epitomizes the 80's. Funny how all the sport boats of that era have the nearly identical layouts.
Very cool conversion. Perfect for family and friends boating. Plus the breeze through the cabin when one needs to get out of the sun
Thanks Greg...yeah, must have been 100+ degrees down there all the time.
Looks like you started out with a reliable brand and in great condition! Great idea. Nice family boat!
You bet. Cobalts are very well built boats!
Great job! Especially keeping the covered seating in the mid cabin! Definitely a 1 of 1!
Thank you!
Very nice work and very practical. Most cabins on boats are completely useless, I detail boats for a living and most of my clients never use theirs for anything but storage.
I hear you...pretty much useless, and hotter than heck on an average summer day. It sure was fun to pile a bunch of people up front and cruise around the lake! Thanks for watching.
Cobalt builds a great boat so you picked a winner to start with!!
Thanks, I am going to open the cabin on a 27 foot fishing boat, glad I am not the only one doing it....Thanks
Good Luck!
Nice work...when I started watching it my first thought was "yeah, but how many speakers does it have?" lol.
That was actually pretty clean and fairly well don't for a diy... well done, I've been thinking about converting my commander to open bow too..
Awesome build !
Thank you! It was a very fun boat!
looks awesome. doing something similar to my boat its 70 style fishing boat but saw some great ideas .thanks
Great job I’m about to do that
Good luck with your build!
Did you leave the roof in front of windshield to help keep integrity of the boat. I’m worried if I cut it completely out the boat won’t be as strong. I know they make boats like mine that are open bow. But wondering if they don’t have added supports.
Yes, keeping some of the original roof helped keep the integrity. It was also just a logical place to end the open bow. I didn’t want to remove the windshield or have to move the controls.
What did you use to attach the wood and also what the white stuff covering the wood? I wanna do the same thing on my boat thank you
Very nicely done. Yeah, odd looking boat to start with, but your conversion makes it much better. Do you have this documented on any forums where there is more information? I am sure there are plenty of others out there that are thinking of this same conversion. I have a 272LS Formula that I want to do this to also. Already added the bulk head and glassed it in at the front of the cabin and have marked the deck for where it would be cut, just trying to figure it out as much as possible before I make that first cut.
The 272 Formula would make a great open bow conversion. Very similar to the 269 with the mid-cabin, and forward berth which lends well to an open conversion. I have done a few open bow conversions, but didn't document them, sorry. Each is so different, and mostly "one-off" projects. I do more head scratching along the way than anything. That deck cut decision is difficult. I would suggest coming in from your cut marks by 2-4 inches, and cut that out first. With most of the deck removed, you can dial down where the final cuts will be made. I played around with the layout of the front seats, storage, etc for a bit before I made the final cut. All in all, you cant really go too wrong, it just might make more work for yourself when finishing. Opening the bow on these boats sure make them much more fun to run around the lake in. Good Luck!
How was cutting the front end of the boat? Did it have same stability and handling?
Did you use any fiberglass or sealer on the wood to protect it from getting wet? Even marine plywood will rot eventually.
looks amazing... when you coming to do my boat?
Awesome and inspiring! Is there a need to reinforce the boat in any way since it originally engineered to be a closed bow?
Thanks for watching. Each conversion is a bit different. In this boat's case, I left all the original bulwarks, and in the end, everything was much tighter. The front deck that was removed did nothing structurally...It was just a thin fiberglass lid.
Did you have any structural issues when cutting that apart?
Thanks for watching. Each conversion is a bit different. In this boat's case, I left all the original bulwarks, and in the end, everything was much tighter. The front deck that was removed did nothing structurally...It was just a thin fiberglass lid.
Hey bud bad ass boat! I’m lookin at this 87 sea ray 340 express and toying with building a open bow off shore fishing boat with twin outbounds. Nothing flashy or fancy have any tips? I’d like to off the inboards and cabin completely but I’m worried about how sturdy the bow will be once I cut the top off.? Thanks for any advice!
Did you ever get your boat converted?
and you still have the LHS prop turning right;
it would be best if it turned Left ,to cancel out vibrations and sideways torque on your steering;
thanks for the comments. I could not feel any adverse effects from not having counter rotating props, but I'm sure on a higher performance boat it would make a difference. It was sure nice to keep it simple and the same for both engines.
Wow what's the pitch on those props?
Is this conversion globally legal?
I don’t know. Not a boat you would wanna travel around the globe on tho. Maybe check with any country you would like to make the conversion in?
Hello, do you have all the cut information and materials. I'm looking at doing this to my cobalt.
Thanks for watching. Each conversion is a bit different, and pretty much a one-off custom. Good luck with your build!
The video would of been great if u talked how you did it the the letters are to fast to read
awesome job, but damn thats ugly, but your work was awesome
Thanks Man! Yes, certainly not for everyone, but sure worked much better for our needs.
thinking of doing the same, my 1987 19' cabin cuddy isn't worth a dime, and a deck boat would really work better for my needs. how long do you think the work took, how much do you think you spent?
It would all depend on how nice you wanted to make it. I did a similar conversion on a 19' boat, albeit a much smaller scale. If I remember right, I had around $2,000 into it, and around 250 hours. I salvaged much of the interior, but the costs were still pretty high for upholstery, marine plywood, and fiberglass.
You just ruined my whole year, these boats are so hard to find, and you butchered one… ruin am IMP OR VIP leave the classics to the real boaters