- Joined
- Jul 7, 2010
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- 14,920
In August of 1959 Moorhead Plastics began producing two boats: the austere "Free Way" fishing boat and the sporty "Silver Line" runabout. By 1960 when the sales brochures were printing, the branding of the company had become Sliver Line boats by Moorhead plastics, and over the course of the 60s (by 69) the brand moved to just be known as Silverline.
In 1970, Silverline began offering the Comoro boats in their line up. I believe she was designed by Jim Wynne as he was contracted by Silverline in 1969 and I know he was responsible for the Nantucket and the Aruba. The Comoro was available both as a V-Hull (Wynne's signature) and a tri-hull, and was available in a range of sizes (15' up through 19'). She was billed as a match between (according to the 1972 literature) "brawn and beauty." And over the years the marketing copy laid it on pretty thick.
Silverline was billed as a high quality boat (though it really competed with the Glastron / Larson range market), and the Comoro was highlighted as a wide, stable cruising boat built for safety and comfort. When it came to the tri-hull, the 1970 literature says it combines a "jaunty profile with an interior that's got all the stretchin' room you need." And of course the benefits of the tri-hull were loudly shouted because of the "keen-edged outrigger hulls" that would give one "Captain's Authority" in a turn (I have no idea what the devil that means). On the plus side, the V of the center hull does run all the way down the keel making her more of a cathedral hull and smoothing out the ride in choppy water.
The Comoro was produced all the way through the selling of the Silverline boat company (and consequently it's end) in 1980.
The Comoro I have is a 1972 17T that I purchased in 2010. Originally in 1970 it was the 16 1/2 Comoro, but by '72 they called it the 17T. And it is fairly "beamy" at 88" across the cockpit and 85" at the transom, giving it a nice roomy layout. Supposedly the hull design is supposed to give her a great hole shot, but my experience has been that getting on plane is a bit laborious for the boat. A gazelle she ain't; more of a rhino. Which fits the weight, 'cuz she's a chunky monkey at 1,850# according to specs (by 1980 it was more like 2,400#).
The outboard version of the Comoro 17 was rated for a Max HP of 140 and the sterndrive version was rated for 165HP. I have the sterndive version with an OMC 165 Electric Shift Stringer. For all of the goofy flaws of a Stringer, she has some redeeming qualities. For one thing it’s pretty quiet. I regularly get compliments at the ramp on how quiet it is. The other big benefit is instant short burst of power. The way the coils engage the screw when energized allows me to tap into gear for a second and tap back out with nearly no delay in application. It makes docking real easy. Not a perfect drive system by any stretch, but it ain’t the worst either.
This is the boat when I brought her home:
Looked worse than it was. She needed a bunch of cleanin' and some stern drive work. I got a lesson in OMC, that's for sure. Interior was in very good shape, and just needed some cleaning:
One of the first steps was replacing the helm: Cable let go on it, and it's one of those awful through-the-transom steering gigs.
The dash wound up lookin' like this:
In 1970, Silverline began offering the Comoro boats in their line up. I believe she was designed by Jim Wynne as he was contracted by Silverline in 1969 and I know he was responsible for the Nantucket and the Aruba. The Comoro was available both as a V-Hull (Wynne's signature) and a tri-hull, and was available in a range of sizes (15' up through 19'). She was billed as a match between (according to the 1972 literature) "brawn and beauty." And over the years the marketing copy laid it on pretty thick.
Silverline was billed as a high quality boat (though it really competed with the Glastron / Larson range market), and the Comoro was highlighted as a wide, stable cruising boat built for safety and comfort. When it came to the tri-hull, the 1970 literature says it combines a "jaunty profile with an interior that's got all the stretchin' room you need." And of course the benefits of the tri-hull were loudly shouted because of the "keen-edged outrigger hulls" that would give one "Captain's Authority" in a turn (I have no idea what the devil that means). On the plus side, the V of the center hull does run all the way down the keel making her more of a cathedral hull and smoothing out the ride in choppy water.
The Comoro was produced all the way through the selling of the Silverline boat company (and consequently it's end) in 1980.
The Comoro I have is a 1972 17T that I purchased in 2010. Originally in 1970 it was the 16 1/2 Comoro, but by '72 they called it the 17T. And it is fairly "beamy" at 88" across the cockpit and 85" at the transom, giving it a nice roomy layout. Supposedly the hull design is supposed to give her a great hole shot, but my experience has been that getting on plane is a bit laborious for the boat. A gazelle she ain't; more of a rhino. Which fits the weight, 'cuz she's a chunky monkey at 1,850# according to specs (by 1980 it was more like 2,400#).
The outboard version of the Comoro 17 was rated for a Max HP of 140 and the sterndrive version was rated for 165HP. I have the sterndive version with an OMC 165 Electric Shift Stringer. For all of the goofy flaws of a Stringer, she has some redeeming qualities. For one thing it’s pretty quiet. I regularly get compliments at the ramp on how quiet it is. The other big benefit is instant short burst of power. The way the coils engage the screw when energized allows me to tap into gear for a second and tap back out with nearly no delay in application. It makes docking real easy. Not a perfect drive system by any stretch, but it ain’t the worst either.
This is the boat when I brought her home:
Looked worse than it was. She needed a bunch of cleanin' and some stern drive work. I got a lesson in OMC, that's for sure. Interior was in very good shape, and just needed some cleaning:
One of the first steps was replacing the helm: Cable let go on it, and it's one of those awful through-the-transom steering gigs.
The dash wound up lookin' like this:
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