www.iFourWinns.com

My boat was a one owner boat, however the owner had become slighly ill and the cleaning of the boat wasn't kept up quite as good as it should have been. None the less it was a steal and I purchased the boat in October, however I don't think the boat had been vacuumed in probably 3 or 4 years. Not to mention the dirt, sand, and grease that were all mixed into the carpet. Last fall I had a chance to use my Little Green Machine carpet cleaner to get the floors into the ok shape they are in now. They will require a bit more cleaning this spring, however I need something a bit stronger to use on the carpets.

None the less, the weather finally broke last week here in SE MI and I was able to spend a bit of time in the garage working on the boat. The 70 degrees on Friday was a taste of the spring!

I started by pulling all of the interior parts from the rear of the boat. I am installing a 2nd battery / Perko switch as well, and this will make it much easier to work, among other things.



Upon getting all of the parts out, which was not easy due to someone using non stainless screws, as you can see by the rust. But by the end of it all I got everything out, and I am replacing all of the hardware with stainless.

Here are the products I started with, I believe I read on this site about the Magic Erase, and the thing works majic!


Here is an example of the grime I started with:


Here is the result after about 30 minutes of good hard cleaning and a completely destroyed Magic Eraser.



Similar results on the battery cover flaps:


And all the remaining components clean:



I am also working to clean up and re staple down all the material flaps etc on the backs of each piece.

I will post more photos of my steps as they progress, rain and 35 degrees aren't cutting it for working on it now.

Thanks for looking.

-Rob

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Rob

Present: 1999 Formula 280SS
Past: 1989 180 Horizon

http://www.robcamerondesign.com

Amazing clean up job for a 1989!

This is testament to the quality of materials that FW puts in their product.

Think a Bayliner would restore like that?

WOW

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2008 318 Vista -SOLD, but I am still around!
All Night Long, Seattle WA

Looks like you are making some great progress.

I can tell you this...those magic erasers REALLY work. I have used them several times for several different things. They are just awesome. My last use was removing the glue from the Four Winns symbols from the back of the boat so I could put our name on it. Worked like a champ.

Good luck with your little resto project you have coming. Lets see some pics when you have her put back together and all cleaned up.

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Current Boat:
2004 Sea Ray 320 Sundancer "Nauti Luvin'"

Previous Boats:
1999 298 Vista "Seas The Day"
2008 H200SS "Nauti Luv"
2006 Tahoe Q4

Looking good. Can't wait to see it shining on the water.

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Todd
1988 Four Winns Horizon 200
AKA "Summer School"

Thanks for posting pic's of your resto progress Rob. You should be proud of your hard work thus far, it looks great. This is one of the most satisfying things to take something and bring it back to life with a few parts and a good cleaning, without spending a ton of extra cash. Really looking forward to more pic's and the continued progress.

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2008 H210SS VP 5.7 Gi/SX
2011 Ford F150 FX4 EB

Thanks! I have only just begun, I know its an older boat, but I find something in these particular years that I really like.

I have a ton more work to do, again all little stuff, but a lot to do.

Next priority after the rest of the interior is the teak, I am searching for the teak swim platform insert they offered back in 89. I seriously doubt I will ever find it.

The next few weeks I will be getting the trailer ready with:New bearings / Wheels and Tires / Repaired lighting. I am having new Sumbrella covers made and I want the thing to be road ready to drop off. I know the canvas people are going to be like WTF, why is someone spending some cash for these covers when the boat is this disassembled / trashed, I just want to get it in before the rush and to save some cash!

I will post all the progress as I go along, I like showing whats going on with my boat, and showing off what these older boats can be!

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Rob

Present: 1999 Formula 280SS
Past: 1989 180 Horizon

http://www.robcamerondesign.com

I am with you. I love the look of the 1980's and 90's boats. I like the new ones as well, but this one is paid for. You are doing great so far.

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Todd
1988 Four Winns Horizon 200
AKA "Summer School"

Looks great. Make sure you put some UV protectant on everything once it is all done. Magic Eraser will remove any protecting qualities that remained on that material.

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Paul
2007 Four Winns Horizon 220
Mercruiser 350 Mag MPI w/ Bravo III Drive
2004 Ford Explorer Limited (V8-AWD)
Pomme de Terre Lake (Southwest Missouri)

We like this product:

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2008 H210SS VP 5.7 Gi/SX
2011 Ford F150 FX4 EB

+1

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1998 Baja Boss 252 7.4L MPI Bravo 1 (SOLD)
2007 FW H200SS 5.0GXI (Sold)
2004 Chevy Silverado 2500 Crew 6.0L (tow vehicle)
1991 FW 170 Freedom 4.3L (SOLD)

I will defiantly be picking some of this up. I am a big fan of Meguiars products.

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Rob

Present: 1999 Formula 280SS
Past: 1989 180 Horizon

http://www.robcamerondesign.com

It's coming along great...the quality of the OE stuff was really good, if mine was not left out in the elements I would not have had to replace as much of it as I did....the coaming panels are original, I replaced everything else. I had the canvas shop do the bow cushions and the helm and rear seats I got from Overton's. The all match the OE colors so it came out good. I just replaced the wood in the big sunpad this fall, so hopefully that's it for a while.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

looking good. i have a 1988 180 Horizon that could use a good cleaning like that. just curious where you were going for the new cover? i am in the lansing area and have been looking around for a place to get a replacement.

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1988 Horizon 180

4.3L OMC Cobra

there are two places in the area I am considering.

One is a lady in Clarkston and one is in St.Clair Shores. I don't know if your looking to drive all the way across.


I haven't chosen where I am going yet. Once I do I will post the progress!

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Rob

Present: 1999 Formula 280SS
Past: 1989 180 Horizon

http://www.robcamerondesign.com

I'll second that!!! The magic erasers are amazing!!!

Just make sure to be generous with the protectant afterwords.