WELCOME TO RIVER DAVES PLACE

1988 Original 21 Eliminator Daytona

JLG614

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Time for a project! After years of convincing we finally got my grandpa to let us redo his daytona for him. He built in new from eliminator in 1988. This boat has been his baby since day one and even though its 33 years old you would never know. He has done his best keeping it in great condition but everything gets old with time. It boated for a few years in needles before he took it up to Idaho where it has been for over 25 years. My family learned to ski on this boat and our kids are going to be learning to ski in the next few years and this will be one of the boats they will be on. This project means alot to us and my grandpa is really excited for his baby to be brought back to life like the day it rolled out of the factory. Here's a run down of what we are doing.

New Interior- We are keeping the exact same layout, color combo, and stitch and roll stitching. Still trying to decide who to use, Eliminator is always an option, Arko in havasu possibly. Both are booked out till January but we don't mind waiting till then. Are there any other shops you would recommend?

Color sand and buff- The gel is in great shape but while we have it we might as well get it done for him

New rub rail- The rub rail is definitely showing age. We are trying to decide what to do with it, put it back the same or add a stainless rub rail?

New Gauges, wiring, stereo and electrical. Most of the gauges don't work and the stereo hasn't worked since i was a kid. WOT Marine in Oceanside is a friend of mine and he will be tackling all of that for us

Trailer- Trailer is definitely showing its age the most. Repaint, rewire, new LED Lights, I want to do some new wheels but keep it classic with some low profile chrome or polished wheels like Boyd Coddington or something along those lines. not sure who is going to do this work either, possibly adrenaline in Havasu

I'll post more as we get going with things but this should be a fun project to watch. If you have any recommendations that we should do while its here let me know! Also any shop recommendation is welcome!

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stingray11

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Time for a project! After years of convincing we finally got my grandpa to let us redo his daytona for him. He built in new from eliminator in 1988. This boat has been his baby since day one and even though its 33 years old you would never know. He has done his best keeping it in great condition but everything gets old with time. It boated for a few years in needles before he took it up to Idaho where it has been for over 25 years. My family learned to ski on this boat and our kids are going to be learning to ski in the next few years and this will be one of the boats they will be on. This project means alot to us and my grandpa is really excited for his baby to be brought back to life like the day it rolled out of the factory. Here's a run down of what we are doing.

New Interior- We are keeping the exact same layout, color combo, and stitch and roll stitching. Still trying to decide who to use, Eliminator is always an option, Arko in havasu possibly. Both are booked out till January but we don't mind waiting till then. Are there any other shops you would recommend?

Color sand and buff- The gel is in great shape but while we have it we might as well get it done for him

New rub rail- The rub rail is definitely showing age. We are trying to decide what to do with it, put it back the same or add a stainless rub rail?

New Gauges, wiring, stereo and electrical. Most of the gauges don't work and the stereo hasn't worked since i was a kid. WOT Marine in Oceanside is a friend of mine and he will be tackling all of that for us

Trailer- Trailer is definitely showing its age the most. Repaint, rewire, new LED Lights, I want to do some new wheels but keep it classic with some low profile chrome or polished wheels like Boyd Coddington or something along those lines. not sure who is going to do this work either, possibly adrenaline in Havasu

I'll post more as we get going with things but this should be a fun project to watch. If you have any recommendations that we should do while its here let me know! Also any shop recommendation is welcome!

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Damn that's nice with a big old Johnson 2 stroke outboard on it. I like it, Definitely worth doing

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HydroSkreamin

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Well this is awesome!

After all of the work I put into mine (the StressEliminator), I ended up using stainless rubrail because the anodized aluminum is so hard to find. I really wanted to keep the anodized blue on mine to be period-correct, but actually, I’m glad I did the stainless because it’s much tougher against the dock if it happens to touch.

Good luck with your project, and keep giving us updates. Cool legacy for your family!
 

Nanu/Nanu

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Oh hell yeah this thread is going to be awesome!!
 

JLG614

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JLG614

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I will be out in Havasu on Labor day and get a bunch of pictures of the boat as it sits and post them up
 

JLG614

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Damn that's nice with a big old Johnson 2 stroke outboard on it. I like it, Definitely worth doing

Sent from my SM-G970U1 using Tapatalk

We blew up the motor last summer. We had it repaired but it was a hell of a time to get the parts for that old of a motor. Definitely happy we got it fixed though, keeps the boat period correct
 

02HoWaRd26

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Thank you for linking those! exactly the look we are going for!
A build like this I’m always playing on the internet at hotel for work send me a list I’m sure i can find a few things. But a set of old Centerline Hellcats is what i was searching for, no idea why i saw those in my head with this build be regardless some nice polished old Eagles fit as well.
 

Duramax

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Love that you are doing this Daytona for grandpa! Mine is a 94', and the only thing wrong was the interior side panels, rear seats, and my driver seat. They were all rotted. I also wanted to keep it with the original 90's theme, and it also helped that any quote I received for new interior was close to 10K!! I ended up building the new interior pieces myself (Baltic Birch and Systems epoxy) and carefully reused the covering. Turned out great, along with 50% new wiring. Good luck and keep that old 2 stroke around.
 

JLG614

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We brought home the boat from Havasu this weekend and its time to start! The boat is insanely dirty from the drive home and rain yesterday. First things first, we are pulling the interior out today and taking that to the upholstery shop. The boat is going to WOT marine this week and they will work on all the rigging, New stainless steel rubrail, the swimsteps and jack plate are going to be polished (we don't like the black), All new wiring and gauges, Color sand and buff, and anything else that WOT thinks is necessary. I'll keep updating as we go along


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KK12

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We brought home the boat from Havasu this weekend and its time to start! The boat is insanely dirty from the drive home and rain yesterday. First things first, we are pulling the interior out today and taking that to the upholstery shop. The boat is going to WOT marine this week and they will work on all the rigging, New stainless steel rubrail, the swimsteps and jack plate are going to be polished (we don't like the black), All new wiring and gauges, Color sand and buff, and anything else that WOT thinks is necessary. I'll keep updating as we go along


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I’ve been on the lookout for a while for an older eliminator. I’ve always loved these boats and as a kid wanted one. As soon as the right one comes along I’m gonna buy it. I’m really looking forward to seeing this one done. Awesome project for grandpa and to keep in the family for the next generations to enjoy!
 

JLG614

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We pulled the interior and the boat will be off to WOT marine in the morning! Not nearly as bad as i thought it was going to be but WOT marine is going to have some fun with the rats nest of wiring tangled up in there. Random wires were added at different times when something would go out so its basically going to be a full gut and rewire. Interior came out easy enough. Some of the wood needs to be replaced and all the foam will be replaced. We are keeping the exact same design and colors for the interior, tuck and roll with the brightest colors possible

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JFMFG

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Are you gonna do one of those fancy steering wheels? 😂
 

JLG614

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Got the upholstery back today! I feel like these guys knocked it out of the park. All new foam and alot of the wood was replaced because it was rotting. I dropped it off about two weeks ago and was told it would be done around mid december. I was completely surprised when i got a phone call on monday that it was ready to be picked up. We used a shop that WOT marine recommend in riverside, Riverside Boat Upholstery. for anyone that is curious it was $4500 all said and done, Eliminator quoted me 3x that price. Not bashing Eliminator because I know they would have done an amazing job but we just weren't ready to pay that much. The boat is having some glass work repair done and we decided to go with a half cap and stainless rubrail. Very excited to see it come together! We are still looking to be on schedule for a late December completion date


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Fltplan

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Kevin does such a great job! Glad to see it all shined up.
 

Albert

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following...Great progress! My son just bought a 88 207 skier doing a remodel on it as well.
 

JLG614

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So we didn't get as much as we wanted done for christmas but like everything there were alot of delays for parts. WOT did as much as they could and we put the interior back in so that we could show my grandpa while he was here for christmas. He was in shock that his baby was like new again! Took the boat back down to WOT after xmas and they are finishing it up


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JLG614

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WOT lifted the boat off the trailer and we ended up taking the trailer out to havasu to have Frank completely go through it. New everything, paint, lights, tongue, hubs, we also added a front walk pad. He is making quick work of it and we are definitely excited to see it completed. The trailer was probably the roughest out of everything.

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JLG614

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Got the trailer all finished up! still waiting on the new rims and tires. We are also going to add a few billet pieces on the side steps and then it will be ready for the boat
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JLG614

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Well she is all finished! This was a hell of a project but we had alot of fun doing it. WOT did an amazing job and we can't say enough good things about them. The process with them was so smooth and the rigging and attention to detail is top notch. We have the new trailer wheels we are just waiting for the tires to get here to put them on. For anyone thinking about redoing a boat just make sure you set a budget and then double it because that is what you will end up spending. Thats not a reflection of any of the shops but once you start going through everything you will just keep adding because you want it done right and don't want to cut corners. We will be out in it this weekend in Havasu for the spring meet up, also doing a helicopter photoshoot with Tommy gun on sunday so we can have a video made for my grandpa. It will be running around in Havasu for a few months and then its up to Idaho in July where it will stay!
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King295

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Nicely done! Its nice to see a boat getting restored to its period correct design without trying to slip in stuff to make it fit in with the latest trends. I bet your grandfather is going to be stoked. Make sure to post the pics/vid from that shoot, I can't be the only one that wants to see it in action.
 

KK12

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Congratulations man! Been watching since the beginning. She turned out beautiful, enjoy!
 

Nanu/Nanu

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That's awesome I like the decal you did on your cowling.
 

Groper

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This thing came out sweet 👍

Would you have or anyone have the contact info for Riverside Boat Upholstery, I did a search and couldn't find anything.

I need (2) Buckets made for the Stoker.
 
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