1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

The parts alone would cost around $800 plus labor, unless of course I get brave and try to change it myself.

I have come up with several ideas that might help the situation. I'll give some further thought to them before I go "drastic".

The motor can be raised about 2 1/4 inches without disturbing much. That would help.

Even though this is a light motor and I have tried to keep weight forward,the boat still seems "stern heavy". The little bit I operated it, even with the engine trimmed in, it seemed to drag the stern some. Too much "squat". Perhaps because I could get no real speed up? Seems like trim tabs might help this boat and they might help lift the engine a bit while running.

By raising 2 inches at the transom and getting 1 1/2 inches of potential lift from trim tabs that would be 3 1/2 out of the 5 inches needed. Might be enough to work decent if not perfect.

A short "faux skeg" might help as well?

Anybody out there using trim tabs on their MFG?

 

[yanks21]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Hey Steve,
Just throwing this out there, is a 20 enough motor to get a good plane? I know my 13' carefree is definitely lighter than your Ox, and the Max rating for it is a 35hp. I run it with the Johnny 55HP that it was purcahsed with, and it is PERFECT. I have to wonder if the boat is'nt just a little heavy. From the pics, it doesnt look too long...

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Well ... I was able to raise the engine 2 inches without drilling new holes or disturbing anything major. It helped some but certainly didn't cure the issue. There is a kind of "bulge" on the Honda that should be above the transom bottom. That bulge creates a tremendous spray pattern at speeds above 12 mph.

I was able to get up to 19 mph while creating quite a "rooster tail"!

The boat never really levels up at any speed regardless of trim setting. I'm thinking of adding some weight to the bow and see what happens. If I could get it to run level at speed I'm sure it would be better.

But you are right yanks21, ... It never really seems to plane properly. At what speed does your boat plane? Personally I think by 18 mph it should be planing. I wish I could see it running from a distance.

Maybe the angle on the transom should be steeper so when the engine is trimmed in it would push the stern up more? Trim tabs might help too ...


The cost of just the parts to convert the Honda to short shaft is about $800. Yikes!

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

I've been working on the weight, balance and trim issues and have made good progress.

I added 100 lbs (patio blocks) as far forward in the bow as possible and added a greater pitch prop (9.25 X 10"). By experimenting with the trim I have now achieved what I think is decent performance for 20 HP. The engine was also raised 2" on the transom.

At 3/4 throttle I can now get 18 mph cruise and no water splash issues. Top speed is 22 mph on flat water. This is right in my target range for speed so I'm pretty happy!

A short shaft might gain me a few extra MPH but it doesn't seem worth the cost.

Here she is looking sweet at the dock after testing.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Glad you got is sorted out. She looks beautiful! You can always buy/make a jackplate to get a bit more height, but 20+ mph seems about right. I get similar numbers using my '66 20 hp on a 14' tinny.

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

I need to fabricate a sort of trim tab directly ahead of the engine to eliminate the transom splash, then I can move on to finishing the interior.

At least I can ENJOY it now! Instead of working on it all the time.

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Great job Steve ..... the paint on the bow really looks good. Beautiful!!

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Hey Steve ...... how do you have your fender attached in the front?

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

HA! Jon, You'll laugh at this one!

It's just a small carpenters spring clamp, clamped the inside edge of the side deck. The fender line has a loop that slips over one of the handles.

Easy on .. easy off ! Not pretty, but until I figure something better out, that's the method.

Thanks for the paint comment. I'm pretty happy with it! As I've said, I like things with a bit of uniqueness to them so I just couldn't paint the deck all the same color. Especially since the manufacturer gave me all those nice separate panels to work with!

Originally I planned to do what is white a "faux wood" kind of look. I'm glad I went with the white now. Looks clean ...

You can't even see my cracked and "starred" windshield in the photo. Looks almost new.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Here are some cool DIY fixed trim tabs that essentially use SS hinges and turnbuckles. You can't adjust them on the fly, but they may help all the same.

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Very Interesting ! Thanks!

In order to divert water from hitting my too deep engine and splashing back into the boat I have created a small "beavertail" trim tab like structure. Going slow will divert the most water. At speed it will have a very modest effect.

I just finished fabricating it today and will be testing tomorrow. If it works well I'll shoot some pictures of it.

Once the backsplash issue is under control I can install the splash tray.

Here is a shot of the steering wheel finished.

 

[pduquette]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Steve, I love the way your oxford is turning out!! I'm not sure if you have looked at mine; but I took a Qual Craft scaffold work bench and turned it into a jack plate. If you look at the pics closely you can see it under my 50.

 

[sphelps]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Man !! Steve the steering wheel and dash look incredible! What is the middle insert piece looks like an mfg emblem molded in it. I must have missed that part. And is the texture the paint or the glass?

 

[pduquette]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

steve here is anothre view...
sphelps- the '61 oxfords and a couple other models had an aluminum glove box door w/MFG logo and the texture is in the glass..sorta the woven mat of the glass

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Thanks for all the kind comments fellas!

Yes the aluminum glove box door has an embossed MFG logo. I was amazed to find it intact! They are so flimsy! Mine has a tiny crack at the lock but is generally not visible. The aluminum did not clean up well so I sprayed it silver.

The texture you see in the center of the foredeck and in the "dashboard" is molded right into the fiberglass from the manufacturer. It's not just just the matte showing, it is a deliberate molded-in texture. All I did was mask and paint.

pduquette .. that jack plate innovation is intriguing! If you can I'd love to see a photo of the mounting from the side, like your in-water shot but close in.

What size engine is that? What do you think it weighs? My Honda 20 is 134 pounds. Looking at your photo, you float nearly 3 inches deeper at the stern than I do.

Too bad we are all so far apart ... Wouldn't it be fun to have an MFG Rendezvous with all the old boats?!

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

I just couldn't resist ... a couple more photos!!

She's just too pretty!

 

[pduquette]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

>>trying to log into my photo bkt acnt<< I had documented it well but my old brain....
I'm running a '80 Johnson 50 so i think about 197# give or take yeah she sits low. I have my gas up front for balance a pair of 6 gal or a pair of 9 gal - depending on how far i wanna go.
Some of these are poor quality-but fit for upload size.

 

[pduquette]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

couple mo'

 

[SteveMFG_Oxford]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

That's quite an imaginative installation! Good work. I'll keep that in mind if I need to change mine.

By raising my engine any higher I would mess up the steering geometry. Something else to fuss with.

Luckily, I have been able to keep my boat almost stock. Very few new holes were made and no changes made except cosmetically. Hopefully I can keep it that way!

 

[yanks21]

Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life

Well ... I was able to raise the engine 2 inches without drilling new holes or disturbing anything major. It helped some but certainly didn't cure the issue. There is a kind of "bulge" on the Honda that should be above the transom bottom. That bulge creates a tremendous spray pattern at speeds above 12 mph.

I was able to get up to 19 mph while creating quite a "rooster tail"!

The boat never really levels up at any speed regardless of trim setting. I'm thinking of adding some weight to the bow and see what happens. If I could get it to run level at speed I'm sure it would be better.

But you are right yanks21, ... It never really seems to plane properly. At what speed does your boat plane? Personally I think by 18 mph it should be planing. I wish I could see it running from a distance.

Maybe the angle on the transom should be steeper so when the engine is trimmed in it would push the stern up more? Trim tabs might help too ...


The cost of just the parts to convert the Honda to short shaft is about $800. Yikes!

Steve,
I am guessing the pitch got her done! Mine is set up with a "power" prop. More pull than speed, so I plane at an estimated 12-14 MPH. (Plan on getting the GPS to tell me the truth soon.) I can plane off pretty fast with 2 skiers or a big water tube behind me. Great jump outy of the hole, but not much for top speed. the stern sits VERY low for a carefree. See the pics I have under '70 Carefree. Trouble is, even with the motor trimmed in, if it's just me in the boat, it will "push", or if trimmed out, it will cavitate. Gotta constantly adjust the pin depending on the task at hand.