# 1985 Hewes Bonefisher II



## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

No, it isn't a brand new East Cape, Maverick, or Hell's Bay. But it is pretty damn awesome! It's a 1985 Hewes Bonefisher II 18". I drove from Raleigh NC to Coral Gables on Friday, hooked up the boat and did paperwork on Saturday morning and drove it back! I am the third owner. Here's the story I got from the second owner:

When the first owner got the boat brand new, he immediately cut the cap off and had a custom one made. Side console, and a bit wider than the original cap (so there is a good bit of overhang. He extended the rod holder area all the way under the gunwales to the very rear of the boat to accommodate long fly fishing rods. The casting platform is integrated and has the wires running through for the front light and plug for the trolling motor. None of the hatches have latches, which I will likely need to change.

The second owner did a few things to it. He had it repainted all blue in 2005, and the transom replaced. The color is Concept Paint PPG-14714 - Medium Blue. It's darn near the perfect Carolina Blue for me. The motor is a 1999 Yamaha 130 2 Stroke, S130TLRX, and it was put on the boat in 2012. It has about 700 hours on it the seller estimated. The trailer is a 1985 Seminole and did amazing for the 11+ hour drive with me having cruise control set over 80 mph for probably 7+ hours of that total. It also has a power winch on it that was added in 2012 when the hubs and springs were replaced. It also has a full spare with spare hub. The only reason I may replace it is to go with a trailer with brakes which would make it even easier to haul behind my Lexus GX.

It has trim tabs. The seller also included a 22.5 push pole, a cover that is custom made for the boat (has a tear at the seam I need to have sewed up, a spare prop for the motor, and damn near everything else he had (flare kit, VHF radio, life jackets, dive buoy, oils for the motor, grease gun for the trailer hubs, tons of extra little stuff.

I think I stole the skiff for what I paid considering all I got for it. NADA values agree with me. Hence my willingness to drive from central NC to Southern Florida!

I can't wait to get this thing on the water at our lake house and shake her down. If all goes well, the plan is to fish it all next year, then take it down for a COMPLETE cap off redo and repower. I'm already reading everything I can on here, taking notes, and making a list of what I want done when I redo it. However, there's no rush, as the boat will be perfect for me, my Dad, and my 5 year old.

On to the pics! Some of them make it look much darker than it is. It's more baby blue than smurf blue!


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## bryson (Jun 22, 2015)

Very cool! I have always thought that the 2 stroke 130 is the correct power for these boats, and I've definitely got a soft spot for side consoles.


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## BrownDog (Jun 22, 2019)

I really like that!


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## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

bryson said:


> Very cool! I have always thought that the 2 stroke 130 is the correct power for these boats, and I've definitely got a soft spot for side consoles.


It's funny you say that about the 130 because I was looking at motor options for potential repower, and it's hard to beat the Yamaha at 350# and 130HP. The biggest pain obviously will be mixing fuel, but it may be one of those things that if everything runs well and I can get a good system for mixing, I leave it on for a good while.


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## ReelFisher (Mar 14, 2017)

Dang that boat is way cool! They did a good job on that side console conversion.


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## BrownDog (Jun 22, 2019)

JRHorne said:


> It's funny you say that about the 130 because I was looking at motor options for potential repower, and it's hard to beat the Yamaha at 350# and 130HP. The biggest pain obviously will be mixing fuel, but it may be one of those things that if everything runs well and I can get a good system for mixing, I leave it on for a good while.


Get one of the graduated measuring bottles with the ratios printed on the sides, can’t get easier!


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## Net 30 (Mar 24, 2012)

Gotta love a lappy!

Only thing I would do right now is get rid of that padded wheel and put on a beautiful EDSON and PowerKnob.


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## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

BrownDog said:


> Get one of the graduated measuring bottles with the ratios printed on the sides, can’t get easier!


He included one for me! But it's a 26 gallon tank so I'd have to do my best to estimate remaining fuel, add the oil, and then fill it up completely.



Net 30 said:


> Gotta love a lappy!
> 
> Only thing I would do right now is get rid of that padded wheel and put on a beautiful EDSON and PowerKnob.
> 
> View attachment 100158


Absolutely the plan long term, but the current wheel is a Momo racing wheel (for a car!) and I had one very similar in an old Integra when I was younger that I was very fond of. When I take the Momo off, I am definitely keeping it.

If I redo the skiff, the poling and casting platform metal will become flat black, and I'd do gray seadek on the 4 vertical surfaces in the center space. 

I also want to convert the side console from the flat layout to slightly boxed in so I can place the wheel, throttle and trim tabs, and an integrated Garmin GPS/Maps piece in. Some of the build threads on here have exactly what I want, like @TX_Brad new skiff which you can see here: https://www.microskiff.com/threads/2019-east-cape-fury.68292/page-2#post-661518


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## GaG8tor (Jul 8, 2019)

Very nice


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## yobata (Jul 14, 2015)

JRHorne said:


> He included one for me! But it's a 26 gallon tank so I'd have to do my best to estimate remaining fuel, add the oil, and then fill it up completely.


You're thinking about this in a weird way. Fill up the tank with fuel, check the meter at the pump to determine how many gallons you filled, fill the measuring cup with required oil FOR HOW MUCH FUEL YOU ADDED to tank. ADD oil to tank. done!


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## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

yobata said:


> You're thinking about this in a weird way. Fill up the tank with fuel, check the meter at the pump to determine how many gallons you filled, fill the measuring cup with required oil FOR HOW MUCH FUEL YOU ADDED to tank. ADD oil to tank. done!


Yup, I was making it too hard. I was thinking about filling it from gas cans, but at the pump makes a ton more sense.


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## zlenart (Jan 30, 2016)

If you're ever in a situation where you do need to fill from a gas tank, like when you're camping, then you can premix the fuel in the tanks to keep it easy as well

Beautiful boat! I've always loved the lappy's and spent a lot of time on a friend's bonefisher. Really versatile!


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## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

zlenart said:


> If you're ever in a situation where you do need to fill from a gas tank, like when you're camping, then you can premix the fuel in the tanks to keep it easy as well
> 
> Beautiful boat! I've always loved the lappy's and spent a lot of time on a friend's bonefisher. Really versatile!


I've done the premix before for certain lawn tools! Clearly my brain wasn't firing on all cylinders. Let's just chalk this up to boat excitement clouding up my thoughts.


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## Zika (Aug 6, 2015)

Congrats on a cool classic. Now go get it slimed up!


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## No Bait / Lures Only (Apr 10, 2011)

Doesn't the 130 Yamaha have oil injection? If it does u shouldn't have to premix, just add oil to tank...


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## JRHorne (Aug 6, 2019)

No Bait / Lures Only said:


> Doesn't the 130 Yamaha have oil injection? If it does u shouldn't have to premix, just add oil to tank...


I was told very specifically by the last owner it does not. It's a 99 and a 2 stroke, so it makes sense to me it would use premix and not have injection.


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## Doublehaul (Oct 3, 2015)

BrownDog said:


> Get one of the graduated measuring bottles with the ratios printed on the sides, can’t get easier!


 Mayonnaise jar and a sharpie, then just measure out 4oz, 8oz, and 16oz using water and a measuring cup. Make your marks, write in the corresponding amount of fuel you're and good to go! works great.

Very cool ride BTW


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