just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to this.

darkostoj

Recruit
Joined
Feb 15, 2009
Messages
2
well this is my 2nd boat. I bought my first one last year as a begginner boat at the beginning of the summer, used it for the whole season and sold it in the end for a little more then i bought it for so it was a real good experience for me. I also really liked the boat, it was a 17' bayliner capri i/o open bow...would have been perfect it it was a little bigger...and the motor was a 4 banger with a little blowby so some more power would have been nice also, but then it was good on fuel too.

I just bought a 1984 Century CTS (competition tournament skier) today. Its in pretty good shape and its a really sharp looking boat and it looks like its made to go fast. I just had a few questions regarding it and if anyone was familiar with these maybe some things I should look out for....since this is a little nicer boat than the last one and I want to make sure i'm doing everything right.

pic034.jpg

pic038.jpg

pic037.jpg

pic044.jpg


well the motor runs perfect, its got a mercruiser 260 horse chevy 350 with a borg warner velvet drive....is there anything really important to know about these? Its a inboard boat. The previous owner pointed out 3 little fins on the bottom of the hull called "skegs" i think it was...he said they made it turn on a dime...what exactly do they do?

I also got a knee board, wakeboard, waterskis, and a tube with it...and he threw in a water bladder. Its this big plastic thing that is filled with water to weigh down the back of the boat to make larger wakes. Does anyone have any experieince with one of these?

also the pole that sticks out of the floor for tying the ropes to is right behind the capitans chair. Is there anyway I could move that back more so I could put people in the back of the boat without getting hit by the rope when I'm turning? Can I just tye off tubes to the back of the boat on those metal things on each side, or is it much better to use the center pole mast thing?

how hard is it to put a new finish on these boats? There are some minor cracks in the paint that look cosmetic for the most part. I was wondering is there a special kind of paint I need to buy? Can I just sand it down and throw a new coat on or what?

also lastly how much is one of these boats worth about? I paid 3k for it all and I want to make sure that I didnt overpay for it.

thanks for the help!
 

superpop

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Mar 5, 2006
Messages
869
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

Looks like a fiberglass boat, the cracking in the paint may not be good news. Unless the boat was painted before, that cracking could be Gel Coat, Gel Coat cracks for two reasons, impact and stress, impact is not a big deal but stress cracks are because that means that the underlying structure is compromised. Do you know the history of the boat and did you inspect it for rot before purchasing. These old ski boats are notorious for rot because they are typically full of wood and also typically are exposed to a lot of water from folks climbing in and out of them. The velvet drive is nice but also requires regular service, you want to do this because this part is very expensive. What you paid for the boat is really dependent on where you live and the local economy. Any boat though is worth whatever someone will pay for it. A boat this old falls into that category, if it is dry and solid and the motor and drive are in good condition then you did great, otherwise these boats can get very expensive to work on.
 

darkostoj

Recruit
Joined
Feb 15, 2009
Messages
2
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

Looks like a fiberglass boat, the cracking in the paint may not be good news. Unless the boat was painted before, that cracking could be Gel Coat, Gel Coat cracks for two reasons, impact and stress, impact is not a big deal but stress cracks are because that means that the underlying structure is compromised. Do you know the history of the boat and did you inspect it for rot before purchasing. These old ski boats are notorious for rot because they are typically full of wood and also typically are exposed to a lot of water from folks climbing in and out of them. The velvet drive is nice but also requires regular service, you want to do this because this part is very expensive. What you paid for the boat is really dependent on where you live and the local economy. Any boat though is worth whatever someone will pay for it. A boat this old falls into that category, if it is dry and solid and the motor and drive are in good condition then you did great, otherwise these boats can get very expensive to work on.
according to the original owner here is the work thats been done

within last 3 years:
rebuilt transmission
new floor plywood and carpet
new prop shaft
new stuffing box
new trailer wheel bearings
new captains chair

this summer:
new tires
new stereo and speakers
new battery
new starter

there is only 1 spot with a crack in the gelcoat. Its right at the front and top of the bow from what I saw...nothing really bad looking.
 

RotaryRacer

Lieutenant
Joined
Jul 18, 2004
Messages
1,361
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

Those are interesting boats.

They were the last new design Century inboard. Any other inboards that were built by Century after the mid 80s were older designs that only had minor updates over the years. In a way they were the last of the breed.
 

smclear

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 14, 2008
Messages
626
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

When an inboard turns it does so by the rudder. The prop does not turn. As a result, the hulls tend to slide across the water creating a very large turning radius. The skegs on the bottom of the boat prevent that "slide" effect.

Century's have been known to have stringer problems. Century often overpowered their boats causing the stringers to weaken from the stresses of the motor torque. This may be an area that you wish to investigate.

Don't know about the CTS pricing but my brother just bought a 1974 18" Resorter for ~$6,000 last summer. It was in excellent condition and was priced comparably to others on the market. The following link is from a thread in the Century boat section that shows pictures of the Resorter

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=185464
 

RotaryRacer

Lieutenant
Joined
Jul 18, 2004
Messages
1,361
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

These boats were designed to do exactly what the name states.

Competition Tournament Skier. They were designed to pull slalom skiers. Straight inboard, ski pylon in front of engine, very flatish bottom for a flat wake, keel fins to keep the boat on course with a slalom skier in tow.

If you are into skiing then this boat should be pretty good. If you are into wakeboarding or other watersports you will be disappointed because the boat will not create much of a wake on its own. This would be why the previous owner had a ballast bag to try to get a bigger wake from the boat. This boat has very little freeboard so adding weight to it can get a little dangerous since you will just be decreasing the freeboard even more while at rest.

These are a very specialized boats.

It will pull just about anything or anyone out of the water on skis with no issue. I'm sure the prop and gears are set up for low end torque, not speed. In fact I would be surprised if this boat went much faster than 45 mph.

It will ride pretty rough on anything but a glass smooth lake.

They are neat boats that can serve their purpose. Before you invest much more into it make sure you will actually use it for its intended purpose.
 

Gary H NC

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
8,972
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

A good going over with a fiberglass restoration kit like 3M makes would bring the color back out without a paint job.
Do a search here for fiberglass restoration and you will find tons of info.
 

sickwilly

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Jul 9, 2007
Messages
1,089
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

What a sweet looking tournament ski boat. This boat was built when I was in my hey day of tournament skiing and I can honestly say I never saw one. I think you have found a gem!

well the motor runs perfect, its got a mercruiser 260 horse chevy 350 with a borg warner velvet drive....is there anything really important to know about these? Its a inboard boat. The previous owner pointed out 3 little fins on the bottom of the hull called "skegs" i think it was...he said they made it turn on a dime...what exactly do they do?

They do two things: 1- they are roughly under the ski pylon to help the boat stay in a straight line when towing a slalom skier and 2- they create a pivot so that you can make stable extremely tight turns. This boat is designed to hold a straight line through a slalom course, and then turn around on a dime and go back through the same slalom course.

I also got a knee board, wakeboard, waterskis, and a tube with it...and he threw in a water bladder. Its this big plastic thing that is filled with water to weigh down the back of the boat to make larger wakes. Does anyone have any experieince with one of these?

Sweet deal -- you have entered the wide world of water sports all for the price of the boat alone. If you take to wakeboarding you will soon enough value the ballast bag. If not, you have something to sell on craigslist.

also the pole that sticks out of the floor for tying the ropes to is right behind the capitans chair. Is there anyway I could move that back more so I could put people in the back of the boat without getting hit by the rope when I'm turning? Can I just tye off tubes to the back of the boat on those metal things on each side, or is it much better to use the center pole mast thing?

You can't move that, and when you better understand the purpose of this boat you will not want to. Looking at the back of the boat in the pictures, I do not see any of the classic eye hooks that you would hook a bridle too either. Those tie off metal things are for tying the boat to a doc, not for ski ropes. If I were you, I would purchase an ski tow eye from iboats and install it with a heavy reinforcement of marine plywood behind it.

http://www.iboats.com/Ski_Tows/dm/*******.614560562--**********.377212271--view_id.258673


also lastly how much is one of these boats worth about? I paid 3k for it all and I want to make sure that I didnt overpay for it.


It's a buyers market, but there seems to be a floor to how low a good tournament ski boat falls to if its in decent shape. Think about it, you have a basic V8 with a simple tranny and no outdrive. What a great set up.

thanks for the help!
 

tmh

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
1,136
Re: just got a 21' century competition ski boat and have some q's... still new to thi

Well, let me take a guess on something that may not be geat news for you ..... if the floor was replaced and no mention of the stringers, I'd guess you may have a hidden mess under the deck. Hope not, but if the floor was rotted out enough to replce, chances are the stringers were rotting also and maybe were left there and held together with the new plywood deck.

I'd expect you can put a tow pull on the back - if you do make it a pop-up type so you can still use the center pull if you want (otherwise the rope would hit the new pull, maybe).

All in all though, it looks like a nice boat if skiing is your thing! Not take big group out and ski - just 3 or 4 max if toeing from the center.
 
Top