95 355 Project Refresh

[RGrew176]

Really nice looking boat. Will be worth all the effort once you are done.

[mjk1040]

Ok you guy's! I need to know more about this swim platform ladder replacement. Our '98 has the same crappy ladder Carver installed and is a PITA to get back on the boat. Did new ladder mounting holes align with originals and did you use other types of attachments since you can't get into the swim platform to bolt on the new ladder on plates or nuts and washers, did you use expandable wall bolts? Can you share the removable grab handles installed with pictures and the replacement ladders with pictures?

And GREAT Job on the 1995 boat!!!!

[Viper]

You've been busy. Looking good

[g36]

Ill try not to be too long but this is how i did mine and no the mounting holes don't line up from old to new and they are also different widths. . I did this about 4 years ago still doing great. I Used 2 pieces of aluminum about 3 inches wide and1/4 inch thick abit longer than the ladder mounting bracket. On top of the plates i drilled down and countetsunk hole to allow mounting bolts to be flush . Nuts will be on bottom that secure new ladder to plates this way Top will be flush and tight to bottom of swim platform when screwed to it. Measured and drilled holes for the old ladder and I drilled holes using the old ladder as template so i didnt drill anything more into the boat. I screwed this setup as one piece into the existing holes that are threaded and tapped for the old ladder. I also did all this while the boat was in the water which isn't the easiest but can be done ,I had no time in the future the it was getting hauled. I can take pictures of the removable handles for you if you want I'll be at the boat this weekend.

[chpsk8]

I'm interested in those removable handles also. That middle grab handle on the platform seems to have been designed for Shaquille O'Neil!

My ladder install was a little crude, but seems to be working. When I was doing the aft cabin wall I had it all torn apart and was able to see the inside of the swim platform and what the existing ladder was bolted to. There are nuts glassed into a thick wood plate and the bolts were not protruding through that plate.
When I took the bolts out they were 2 1/2" long, so that wood piece was pretty substantial.
Four of the six screws hit that plate the other two I used shorter screws and also didn't expose themselves inside the swim platform. I used a liberal dose of 4200 on the screws.
I noticed a neighbor with a '96 has a similar setup to mine.


If anyone has any ideas for a ramp or something to get my 80 pound lab out of the water I'd be interested. I also need those wide steps for the bow to beach ladder. Hoping to troll some up on Craigslist.

[km1125]

Qr Bbpost I struggle to see the swim platform from the helm, so docking becomes a two person job since we tend to back in everywhere we go. It's a great handling boat, just tough to see all the corners. I installed a backup camera up high on the hard top. Pretty good coverage now. The monitor is just roughed in now, I'm going to mount it to the left of the gear selectors. The camera is wireless and is powered by the aft navigation light.

How is it backing into the slip while looking forward? How long did it take to get used to the image being "reversed"? I would think it might be better to have the monitor behind you so you actually have to turn around, just as if you were really looking at the stern of the boat.

[chpsk8]

Qr Bbpost

Qr Bbpost I struggle to see the swim platform from the helm, so docking becomes a two person job since we tend to back in everywhere we go. It's a great handling boat, just tough to see all the corners. I installed a backup camera up high on the hard top. Pretty good coverage now. The monitor is just roughed in now, I'm going to mount it to the left of the gear selectors. The camera is wireless and is powered by the aft navigation light.

How is it backing into the slip while looking forward? How long did it take to get used to the image being "reversed"? I would think it might be better to have the monitor behind you so you actually have to turn around, just as if you were really looking at the stern of the boat.

Still on land so haven't had a chance to practice with it. It's a true backup camera, so it has the ability to reverse the image and add measurement lines to the screen. I'm thinking it will be like backing my car up, I look forward at the screen and use my mirrors, so this would be similar. The thinking is this would be used more for reference. What I can't see is when I get close to parallel with my slip, but need to move 3' over to one side or the other. This will help visualize when that finger is clear and I can pull both sticks back.
I had thought about putting it on the hard top so I could look at it backing up, but didn't like the placement options. Having it right on the dash is cleaner looking IMO.

[g36]

Here's some pics showing under platform boarding ladder and with and without ezup handles on my 405 sorry they are sideways

[ColRon]

Wonderful job your doing!

[chpsk8]

Qr Bbpost Here's some pics showing under platform boarding ladder and with and without ezup handles on my 405 sorry they are sideways

That's very interesting. Any idea how those are screwed into the deck? Are they bolted with nuts? It would be very challenging for me to reach that far into my swim platform. Do they drain?
I emailed the company to see if they had installation drawings. Feels like I could just 5200 those things in and they would become part of the boat. Screws for visual effect!
Looks like the best solution to assist boarding I've seen.