1978 Starcraft Supersport 16' OB Restoration

[thull]

I just got a banana yellow 1978 SuperSport with decent trailer and a great running 1975 85hp Evinrude. All the wood in the boat is in various stages of decomp. The hull is scratched all over, but no serious damage. The upholstery is faded with a few rips and needs replacement. Best part of the boat is it's an aluminum StarCraft bowrider with a really good running motor. I'm going to redo the interior top to bottom and repaint the hull and motor. I'm crazy I know, but I really like the style of these boats. I talked the lady down from $3,000 (absurd) to final price of $1,800. I know that's a little high for what I got, as compared to pricing around the Great Lakes, but down here in central Floriduh you can rarely find these boats and anything near this size with a good motor can't be found for less than $2K. Wish me luck, I'm going to need it.

 

[thull]

More photos.

 

[Woodonglass]

Nice Find. Keep us posted on progress and any question you might have. Lots of helpful members with a Tremendous amount of Knowledge.

 

[thull]

Thanks WOG. I learned how to paint and did a couple jon boats based on your helpful posts and Rustoleum recipe.

 

[thull]

Can a Moderator move my thread over to the Starcraft forum please?

 

[jbcurt00]

Moved

Nice boat

 

[thull]

Got the boat and trailer registered today. Here in FL you can register a boat over 30 years young as an "antique vessel" and just pay ~$6.00 in fees. That's the total registration cost each year. The trailer registration (at least for boats I've had, which were all jons until this) is ~$30 each year.

 

[BWR1953]

Got the boat and trailer registered today. Here in FL you can register a boat over 30 years young as an "antique vessel" and just pay ~$6.00 in fees. That's the total registration cost each year. The trailer registration (at least for boats I've had, which were all jons until this) is ~$30 each year.

Well, doggone it, I didn't know that! :facepalm:

 

[thull]

Yep. Here's a link to the form:
https://www.flhsmv.gov/pdf/forms/87243.pdf

 

[BWR1953]

Yep. Here's a link to the form:
https://www.flhsmv.gov/pdf/forms/87243.pdf

Thanks!

Looks like my boats aren't eligible though. :blue:

Original Type Power Plant Engine of same year and model that the vessel had originally.

 

[astor]

nice boat
thats gonna be a fun project

 

[Watermann]

Welcome to the Starmada :wave:

The most prolific and popular tin boat of all time the 16' SuperSport and with the max 85 HP motor too :thumb:

Some advice, with the original wood and being rotten you really shouldn't load up the family and go out in it.

 

[thull]

There are quite of few rivets that the heads come off in my hand. Is this galvanic corrosion? The PO kept it in in the water in a marina. Would electrical current from something in the marina cause this? They are mostly just ones below the waterline. I guess I'm going to do a bit more of a resto sooner than planned. I was just gonna do upholstery for now and tear it down after we ran around in it for a while. With all these rivet heads missing, I'm afraid things are gonna come apart. This also explains why it leaks so bad. The auto bilge was pumping out around a half gallon of water every half hour or so.

 

[thull]

Is it best to drill out the rest of these rivets or use a punch to drive them inside? I guess I'm going to get an air hammer and solid rivets. Do I need to use 5200 when installing solid rivets like you do on closed end rivets?

 

[thull]

The tilt/trim don't currently work. Does anyone know what's set up here? There appears to be factory trim inside the motor bracket, and an aftermarket tilt mounted on the transom, which is currently not connected to the bracket on the motor. I'll be tracing the wiring and trying to figure out what's going on. The dash switch on the right is marked "tilt" and completely disconnected. The one on the left is marked "trim" and is hooked up.

 

[thull]

More pictures. It came with a metal OMC 6 gallon gas tank. I've been wanting to score one of those for a while. There were two other plastic portable fuel cans too.

 

[thull]

I was starting to remove the side cushion attached to the gunwhale in the bow and there wasn't any plywood. It was just foam and vinyl and seemed just stuck/glued to the side. Is that factory? Is there not supposed to be wood in those two cushions?

 

[thull]

Original StarCraft steering wheel emblem insert. It's starting to peel up though. Needs to be glued back down.

 

[thull]

There was this 20V Porter Cable drill/driver under one the seats! And it works perfectly. It's stamped manufactured just last year (2017)...score!
Can someone tell me more about the back to back seats and how they are supposed to work? These have an "end" on the box they sit on (which I'm thinking isn't stock). The "end" blocks the aluminum support in the photos from sliding out. Does anyone have a diagram, or better yet plans, for rebuilding new boxes?

 

[thull]

Some "mulch" in the seat cushions themselves. The floor is actually solid all over...no weak spots.