New to me 2004 X30!!

[wakesurf6786]

So excited to say I finally pulled the trigger on a Mastercraft! I’ve always had a stern Drive boat growing up but I’ve wanted my own true inboard for years now. It needs some work for sure. The prior owner did not seem to do much more than oil changes and impeller changes. Vinyl is newer but definitely a cheap job. Here is my to do list let me know what you guys think:

Acid wash the hull
Distributor cap
Rotor
Impeller
Spark Plugs
Plug Wires
Manifold repair
Trans oil change
Decal removal
Compound and polish
New Decals

I’ll probably have more to add but I’m excited and ready to get her looking sharp again!

[Greg123]

Congrats on the new purchase. I picked up my 04 x30 almost 2 years ago. It has been a great family boat! Which motor does yours have?

Lots of great people on here to help out.

[gweaver]

Welcome to the club. I've got the Maristar version of that boat, 03 vintage. They're not the newest, they may not have all the bling, but they're darn roomy and do the job well. Yours doesn't look too bad, nothing some elbow grease can't fix.
You're going to enjoy it!
G

[2RLAKE]

Read BrianM's thread on oxidation removal ... i think this is the most comprehensive three step process and i used it on my '93 ... it takes time but it works

I also pulled out the trailer on my '93 and put the bat on concrete blocks .... make it much easier to work on and be able to get verything

Decals come off ... slow ... acetone, heat gun, plastic outlet covers ... they will come off

Congrats and cant wait to see the progress

http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/...light=compound

[tjrowbot]

Congrats on the purchase and welcome. A little TLC and she will shine right up. You will be amazed how she looks after you clean up the gel. Nice looking boat.

[pmkkdx]

congratulations and welcome aboard! Just takes time...

[CottagerGreg]

Congrats on the boat. You can make that thing look great with some elbow grease.

Hull will get clean with an acid wash. Polish the gel back to a great shine. Looks like no scuffs which is great.

As for the interior it will need some work. start with a more aggressive cleaner and use a brush (I like one that attaches to the drill.. soft bristles though) DO NOT forget after an aggressive cleaner to wash the seats with warm water and then use a vinyl protectant.

[dmbeck]

Congrats on the boat. You can make that thing look great with some elbow grease.

Hull will get clean with an acid wash. Polish the gel back to a great shine. Looks like no scuffs which is great.

As for the interior it will need some work. start with a more aggressive cleaner and use a brush (I like one that attaches to the drill.. soft bristles though) DO NOT forget after an aggressive cleaner to wash the seats with warm water and then use a vinyl protectant.

Congrats on the boat, I agree with Greg on the interior. I read through sodar's interior cleaning thread and ended up ordering some totally awesome cleaner and drill brushes off amazon and wow what a difference it made. Here is the link to the interior cleaning thread

http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/showthread.php?t=66817

[CottagerGreg]

I got a brush like this. but the soft one.

https://www.autoobsessed.com/collections/auto-detailing-tools/products/carpet-brush-wdrill-attachment-medium

[jsturvey]

Excellent choice! With a little elbow grease and some time, that boat will be shining like the diamond it is! Like yourself, I came from an I/O boat, but dreamed of getting an inboard for 12 years. Bought my MariStar (same hull as yours) 8 years ago and have not looked back. Great all around boat with lots of room for family and friends. Like others have already said, it may not have all the newest bling, but it still gets the job done well. Congrats! You'll love it!

[DavidF]

This might help with any left over residue from the decals. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[ValveCoverGasket]

congrats! looks like a solid start!


i just got done removing basically that same tribal x from the side of my 04 X9

use a heatgun or leave it in the sun - peel it back working a bit at a time and dont worry about how much glue is left over. keep some light heat on it while youre pulling to keep the sticker coming off in as many large pieces as possible.
plan for 45 min or so per side to peel the stickers depending on how much the vinyl fights you.

then spay some goof-off on the leftover grey glue, let it sit for a minute. use a plastic razor blade scraper to get the now soaked glue off - itll come off with almost no fight in big wrinkly sheets.

clean a few times until no residue is left... then polish with a random orbital and your favorite medium compound.

took me a couple nights after work to get ours done but its doable and rewarding to see those stickers gone! good luck and keep us posted (with pictures!! )

[wakesurf6786]

Congrats on the new purchase. I picked up my 04 x30 almost 2 years ago. It has been a great family boat! Which motor does yours have?

Lots of great people on here to help out.

350 MCX. Heard lots of great things on here about it! 585 on the clock.

[wakesurf6786]

Read BrianM's thread on oxidation removal ... i think this is the most comprehensive three step process and i used it on my '93 ... it takes time but it works

I also pulled out the trailer on my '93 and put the bat on concrete blocks .... make it much easier to work on and be able to get verything

Decals come off ... slow ... acetone, heat gun, plastic outlet covers ... they will come off

Congrats and cant wait to see the progress

http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/...light=compound

Thanks, that’s a great thread, I actually saw it a while back and bought the Makita Polisher and the new 3M Compound and Finesse polish/wax. Any ideas what you’d wet sand with for scratches that won’t buff? I’m thinking 2000? I’ll post pics of the starboard side. There is some dockrash.

I called MC and got the gel color and ordered a patch kit from Spectrum. There are 3-4 areas that need filling. I’ll probably post more pics asking opinions on how best to tackle them after I compound and polish the gel.

[wakesurf6786]

Congrats on the boat, I agree with Greg on the interior. I read through sodar's interior cleaning thread and ended up ordering some totally awesome cleaner and drill brushes off amazon and wow what a difference it made. Here is the link to the interior cleaning thread

http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/...ad.php?t=66817

Thanks, I’ve seen this too but hadn’t thought about a drill attachment brush! Great idea! Just ordered a soft and medium one from Amazon. I didn’t want to buy another smaller polisher. I’ve got some Totally Awesome waiting in the wings after I get her maintenance up to date. I figure I want to have her out for a sea trial first. I bought it sight unseen with a survey and compression check only. Haven’t had her out yet.