74 Silverliner project

[Ron B.C.]

Well my "looks like it just needs new carpet and vinyl" great deal on a boat has turned out to be a little more...
So I will thank everyone now for the 1,000 questions I may ask as I get onto this project. :joyous:.

 

[Scott Danforth]

welcome to the restoration club

no such thing as a boat "only needing vinyl and carpeting"

now pull the drive, pull the motor, build a cradle and pull the cap and get cutting that rotten floor, stringers and transom out

 

[matt167]

IMO, I'd scrap it. That is a Ford engine there, and it's painted that blue so it is an OMC stringer outdrive. Both companies have been out of the marine stern drive business for about the same time ( early 2000's ). Parts for the out drive are very hard to find and Ford marine parts are very expensive.. It looks to be a nice hull so you could get a rotted GM Mercruiser powered boat and swap. But you have a rotted boat as it is so unless you really like it...

 

[Ron B.C.]

Matt ,you sound like a Ford hater! lol. I dont think I will scarp it just yet. It will give me something to do for the rest of the summer,fall,winter...spring.....

 

[matt167]

Nope. I actually just bought a 95 F250 for a boat toter. The sad truth is Ford gave up the Marine game in 1998. Manifolds and other parts you might need are NLA or expensive. That is ontop of the NLA outdrive parts

 

[Ron B.C.]

ok thanks for the info. So that leads me to a question. If Im replacing the transom which by the looks of the other wood in the boat I will be, are stern drives all the same for the cut out in the transom?

 

[matt167]

No. You have an OMC stringer. The hole is huge and the drive is supported from the stringers. If you run a mercruiser then you cut a much smaller keyhole. If you are going to restore it. It would be wise to repower it with a mercruiser. Any are good except the 3.7L and the mid 60s drives

 

[Panoguy]

Matt ,you sound like a Ford hater! lol. I dont think I will scarp it just yet. It will give me something to do for the rest of the summer,fall,winter...spring.....

...summer, fall, winter - etc. ;-)

(I say do the work - I hate throwing-out stuff!)

 

[Scott Danforth]

Matt ,you sound like a Ford hater! lol. I dont think I will scarp it just yet. It will give me something to do for the rest of the summer,fall,winter...spring.....

you forgot the next years worth of work

ok thanks for the info. So that leads me to a question. If Im replacing the transom which by the looks of the other wood in the boat I will be, are stern drives all the same for the cut out in the transom?

No. The largest hole is the OMG stringer. its basically a 16" x 16" square hole with rounded corners
the OMG cobra copied the Mercruiser keyhole in 1986 and Volvo copied it in the early 90's

you need to glass over the hole and then cut the appropriate hole if you change drives. a bit of work, however compared to the remainder of restoration you have....easy peasy.

 

[Ron B.C.]

I'm just about ready to pull the top off. Do I need to have the hull supported first? The plan was to get the cap off which will make the engine pull easy and I still may need to move the boat around the yard until the lady of the house is ok with where my project will be happening. It still has most of the floor in and stringers. Even though they are rotted. Just dont want to run into any issues

 

[matt167]

you won't want it supported on rollers. I would convert the trailer to bunks before working on it if you need it mobile. 4 bunks with just some extra support up front will do. And a bunk trailer is better for the hull anyway

 

[Ron B.C.]

I have the cap already to come off. Can lift up the back and sides. Bow seems to be stuck. Is there anything under the bow that might be holding it down? Or is it just the weight? I have the gas filler disconnected and any wiring.

 

[Woodonglass]

For Inboards it's really NOT necessary to pop the cap. Most DON'T.

 

[archbuilder]

I would second not popping the cap if you can avoid it. It however might make the transom easier to replace if you do depending on the configuration. I just finished up an inboard build, left the cap on and didn't have any issues. I did however lay upside down in a few odd positions lol!

 

[Ron B.C.]

I got the cap separated. To me it will be much easier to remove the engine, just a straight vertical pull, wont have to try and maneuver it from underneath the back cap. Also the deck that the fuel tank is sitting on has to come out so I can do the floor under it. No way im fitting my big ass in there lol!

 

[Scott Danforth]

I have the cap already to come off. Can lift up the back and sides. Bow seems to be stuck. Is there anything under the bow that might be holding it down? Or is it just the weight? I have the gas filler disconnected and any wiring.

screws at the bottom of the bow piece between the two consols

 

[Scott Danforth]

For Inboards it's really NOT necessary to pop the cap. Most DON'T.

I personally have actually found it easier to pop the cap on all run-abouts...... now Cuddys and pocket cruisers are a different breed.

 

[Ron B.C.]

The link for Boat Specs doesnt seem to work. Are there any other links that anyone knows about that might have the design specs for my boat? I want to make sure of the stringer dimensions. The outer ones are like chocolate pudding in spots. I cant be certian I will get correct measurments