1966 Starcraft Holiday Interior Work

[66Holiday924]

So they, did the canvas and I'm happy with that. They also replace my decking, carpeted my floor and side compartments, and they installed my new back-to-back seats. I put the rest of the interior work on hold so I can try to get some use out of it before the season is over. It will go back to the shop in November to have the side panels rebuilt and upholstered and vinyl flooring put down the gunnels, across the dash & transom cap and have a new engine cover and jumpseats built. I'm slapping some outdoor carpet across the transom cap until it goes back to the shop to have the vinyl put on.

As of right now the boat is having welding done. I am having the trim, aluminum angle that runs across the two sides of the transom cap, welded to the new transom cap, so it will all be on piece. The ends that used to tuck under the rubrail, will now butt to the rubrail instead, so the whole thing lifts on and off. I'm going to try to fix it so it all fastens on with hotrod hood pins. Pull the pins and the transom cap lifts right off in seconds. We'll see how this goes...

I added the access porthole on the transom to get to my battery switch.

 

[boaterdave90210]

Looks good! The interior makes it feel complete

 

[SHSU]

You have a Count Down to Splash!?!?!

Boat looks SWEEEEEEET. Upholstery work was well done and makes the boat POP.

SHSU

 

[66Holiday924]

You have a Count Down to Splash!?!?!

Boat looks SWEEEEEEET. Upholstery work was well done and makes the boat POP.

SHSU

Thanks. I ordered the seats from Deckmate. The Canvas shop just installed them. They weren't very expensive, they use quality marine vinyl, all 316 stainless hardware, and the bases are composite (no rotting). It goes back to the canvas shop in November to have the rest of the interior done this winter. The rest of it will be built custom by the canvas shop, using the same vinyl.

As of right now, I don't know when it'll be splashed this year. Soon, it's having work done on the new transom cap. They're welding the trim, aluminum angle that runs across the transom and the adjacent side to it, so it will be all one piece. My transom cap isn't going to fasten on through that aluminum trim anymore. That's the goal anyway.

I think it'll be back in the water sometime next week for sure.

 

[66Holiday924]

Man, I wasn't kidding when I said I didn't know when it will be splashed this year. I got the boat back from the shop, welding looks great and I'm going to take it for a test ride in the morning.

They ended up making me a really nice cap out of C-channel that goes across the top of my transom wood. It really stiffened everything up. you can see it in the pictures with the transom cap off.

So now my transom cap is held on by the two hotrod pins and the screws that hold my cleats on. I like that set-up so much better than screwing in and out of my transom wood over and over again!

Now I just need it to run good. It should. All they did was take the throttle control off and reinstall it...

 

[SHSU]

I like the hot rod pins, makes a lot of sense. Curious if there will be any chattering when at speed.

SHSU

 

[66Holiday924]

I like the hot rod pins, makes a lot of sense. Curious if there will be any chattering when at speed.

SHSU

Thanks. I don't think there will be any vibration. They really did a good job on the transom cap. It fits like a glove. The angle across the forward side is 90 degrees but across the back they bent the angle in, to match the angle of the transom, so it's folded in 10 degrees and it hugs it really nice. It kind of snaps into place and holds itself on. Then I got the eight screws, 4 on each cleat locking it in. It's pretty secure without the hot rod pins. I could have did it without them but I figured they look bad ass, and they could be helpful if there is any rattling. If there is any rattling I can adjust the hot rod pins and/or add some rubber or carpet between my transom cap and the wood framing and I'm sure that will fix it too. The hot rod pins are adjustable. The posts just screw in and out and making it tighter or looser.

 

[DirkBoating]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, nothing looks more loved than a boat with new canvas!

2 questions, what's style bimini is that new canvas of yours.... and where did you get it? I have a '74 18ft Holiday... and I want a new canvas top just like that... I'm 6'7" n that low canvas sucks for me in the rain...lol any help would be greatly appreciated.. boat looks great!

 

[66Holiday924]

2 questions, what's style bimini is that new canvas of yours.... and where did you get it? I have a '74 18ft Holiday... and I want a new canvas top just like that... I'm 6'7" n that low canvas sucks for me in the rain...lol any help would be greatly appreciated.. boat looks great!

Hey, nice boat! I think it's the same hull as mine but the windshield is different. It's always nice to see somebody giving these old boats some love.

My bimini was custom built at a boat canvas shop. They made the frame and built the canvas the way I asked them to. It can be hard to see out the windshield so I specifically asked for the option to roll that up if I need to. I went to Berlin Canvas shop in Berlin Center, Ohio to have mine done, but there are custom canvas shops all over the place. What I'll say about that, is to make sure you bring it to somebody that is reputable. It is kind of an art, it's pricey, and you're basically stuck with whatever they build you. I made a 6 hour drive to Ohio because they built me a really nice cockpit cover a couple years ago.

 

[66Holiday924]

I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed reading your blog.Mod Edit: Removed Spammer Links.

Thanks! It's been kind of held up here the last few weeks. I've been trying to get some use out of the boat before the season is over (my 7 year old got up on the ski trainer), but I have plans for it to go back into the shop over the winter and have the interior work I wanted done, completed this winter. It ought to be unrecognizable when I get it back next Spring. I will definitely share pictures.

 

[66Holiday924]

Well, my boating season is over and my interior project can continue. It was a short season for us, but my 7 year old got up on the ski trainer, and my 4 year old caught her first fish, so it was one of the best and most important to me.

Right now the boat's at the shop to be winterized. Once they're done there, my plan is to either have the jump seats and engine cover rebuilt, or take it back to my welder and try to get a solution for finishing off the corners of the boat. Right now my aluminum corner pieces are removed and I'm trying to come up with a good way of finishing the corners off so they are either fixed to the boat or removable with the new transom cap. I guess whichever shop is available, I'll take it to next.

I did discuss the interior project with the shop that will be doing the work and I ordered the exact vinyl from Deckmate, to match the new back to back seats. Also, I installed my marine receiver under the dash and left the antenna and speaker wire hanging for the future installation of my new sound system. I went with the Kenwood kmr-d372bt, it had a lot of good reviews.

 

[66Holiday924]

I got bored and decided I want to take apart an outdrive. I think it would be kind of fun to take one apart at my leisure, risk free, kind of like a puzzle. I have no idea what's going to come of this. I'm hoping to learn something. I'm not a mechanic. With YouTube and a little luck I did a valve job on a snow blower once. I can perform basic maintenance on my vehicles (oil change, brake pads, etc.). I built my boat trailer, installed a new axle, leafs, bearings, bunks etc. Anyway, I think I'm going to be a boat owner for pretty much the rest of my life and it would benefit me to take a drive apart and learn something about it because if you have an issue in the middle of the season, good luck finding a mechanic that can get it fixed and back to you in under a week...

So, my first step was to find a drive, check.

I bought this 1988 Caravelle for $400 on Marketplace. It has a 4.3 Mercruiser in it. They didn't winterize it and destroyed the engine, and let it sit in the elements so the interior is complete garbage. For my purposes I'm interested mostly in the drive and trailer. I figure I can get my drive and sell the trailer, maybe some of the other parts (prop, swim platform, trim pump, etc.) to try an break even on this endeavor. IF the damage isn't too extensive, I might try rebuilding the drive.

My second step was to remove the drive, check.

Next, I'm going to build a cart for it.

 

[66Holiday924]

Quick update:

I picked my boat up from being winterized the other day and took it to an interior shop. I dropped it off with 12 yards of the white and 4 yards of the red vinyl, that exactly match my back to back seats I got from Deckmate. I asked them to rebuild my jump seats and engine cover. Since I widened my transom cap, the engine cover only needs to cover about a foot of engine, so I asked them to build a bench. When you look at the back of my boat it will have a bench across the back with a bulge in the middle for the 12" inches of engine. The primary color is white and I asked them to give it red accents. It's going to be about a month or so before they finish this part of the interior.

Also, I'm planning on having the hull repainted and vinyl boat flooring laid down the gunnels and across the dash, So I asked them to remove the interior and exterior rubrails so it can be painted, and because the vinyl is going to be laid underneath them.

As far as my outdrive venture goes, I stripped the donor boat of anything I can sell to recover my losses and disposed of the boat. I also had to purchase some tires for the trailer so I went and had some used tires put on it. I'm down another $100 for the used tires and $35 for the disposal, $535 in that venture.

 

[66Holiday924]

Here's an off topic question. Should I get a new tow vehicle? I'm kicking around the idea of upgrading and getting something newer. I might as well ask you guys, right??? Currently I have a 2008 Ram 1500 series with the 5.7 Hemi. It has 173k miles on it. When I bought it, it had 116k miles and that was in 2017. The mechanical history seemed pretty clean when I bought it, but who knows. I pull my boat which is nothing for that truck, but I also own a travel trailer that weighs about 7000lbs when it's loaded up and we take that on trips a few times a year. This coming year I have 4 trips already planned a couple 300 mile trips, one that probably about 750 and one that is 4000 miles. I have to admit, the truck is mechanically sound (at the moment) but I'm a little nervous about it, especially with the 4k mile trip.

What do you guys think? Pay to have it looked over? Time to upgrade?

 

[classiccat]

Here's an off topic question. Should I get a new tow vehicle? I'm kicking around the idea of upgrading and getting something newer. I might as well ask you guys, right??? Currently I have a 2008 Ram 1500 series with the 5.7 Hemi. It has 173k miles on it. When I bought it, it had 116k miles and that was in 2017. The mechanical history seemed pretty clean when I bought it, but who knows. I pull my boat which is nothing for that truck, but I also own a travel trailer that weighs about 7000lbs when it's loaded up and we take that on trips a few times a year. This coming year I have 4 trips already planned a couple 300 mile trips, one that probably about 750 and one that is 4000 miles. I have to admit, the truck is mechanically sound (at the moment) but I'm a little nervous about it, especially with the 4k mile trip.

What do you guys think? Pay to have it looked over? Time to upgrade?

Any modern half ton pick-up is certainly capable of pulling 7000lb but you need to start watching the payload (typically < 1800lb); you've eaten about 50% of that payload just in tongue weight...add people, gear etc. and you start getting into 3/4T category. But you've already made multiple long trips and if you haven't bottomed out the suspension &/or torched your rear axle bearings, you're probably good to go.

If you're not mechanically inclined, then taking it to a trusted mechanic wouldn't hurt. Check for rusted frame, body mounts, brake lines, trans cooling lines, fuel lines, etc. 12yo rusty brake lines sidelined me when I picked up the SS18 back in 2013. Now I religiously apply mainly lanolin-based undercoatings (fluid film, woolwax, surface shield) annually to all of our vehicles.

Does the service history include recommended service intervals for the engine, transmission, differentials, transfer case, brake fluid, PS fluid?

Another consideration, it's a great time to sell a vehicle and a terrible time to buy. If you had 2 vehicles capable of towing, one option would be to sell the Ram and buy when the market gets back to normal. It's fun spending other people's money .

 

[Moserkr]

Ive owned a few rams and know many family/friends that have them. If its mechanically sound at the time, I would hold onto it after having it gone over by a good mechanic. My BIL has a ‘08 Ram with 250k+ and it sounds ridiculously good when running. Sure a 3/4T would be better but its not necessary. Now is the absolute worst time to buy too and for that reason alone I would pass. If you can wait 2 years for the supply chain nonsense to normalize, then do it. Unless you are ok with a private party purchase used, I wouldnt buy, but thats the only way to find a good deal right now.

 

[66Holiday924]

On the boat front: I had a pretty good conversation with the shop. They're currently building my jump seats and new engine cover. It should be complete in about another week. They're having me check it out before it gets upholstered.

On my outdrive adventure: I built a cart for it and drained it. It's been very cold and I do not have a heated garage, so I'm waiting for a nice day to crack it open. It might be next Spring.

On my truck search: I've decided to go with a lighter, gas 3/4 ton. I just think at the end of the day, the beefed up frame and suspension is going to give me what I want, for what I'm doing, effortless towing. The 1/2 ton will do it. The 3/4 ton will do it, won't care about it, and last longer. I'm heavily considering payload. I've had two half tons. My Ram (by the book) can do about an 1100 lb payload. They say 10% of the trailer weight is on the hitch, so 7000 lb trailer means 700 lb on the hitch, plus I have a 200 lb cap on that truck. It basically eats up my entire rated payload. I actually took the Ram and had a leaf added. If I get a 3/4 ton payload isn't going to be an issue. I want this next truck to last, so I'm not trying to push it. I'd rather have a little more truck than I need.

 

[66Holiday924]

They called me today to come check out my new engine cover and seats. I'm pretty happy with how it's going. They're going to start upholstering it.

I'm pretty pleased with my make-shift work bench I created. I needed something to attach bench top tools to so I bought a tool cart, made a framing system and I have different bench top tools I can put on it, as I need them. It just takes up too much space to always have them mounted to my bench. So I came up with this system. I'm liking it. I attached some pictures. They explain what I'm talking about a lot better.

I've decided to go for a new truck instead of used. The prices for used trucks are outrageous. A new truck costs about 5k more than a lot of these used ones that are a few years old with 30-50k miles on them. Might as well go new. A lot of the used ones are trimmed up more than I care for and they actually cost more than what I want in brand new one. I'm going with a Ford. Chevy, Dodge and Ford all three make beautiful trucks but if I'm choosing a 3/4 ton right now, I'm going with a Super Duty. I didn't even consider diesel. I looked at the gas engines and in general people seem to think the 6.2 V8 is a very good, reliable engine that's been around a long time. Ford has a new 7.3 gas (they call it Godzilla) with a 10 speed transmission. They say it's a good engine, only been building it for a couple years though and it seemed like it would be overkill for my purposes. So anyway, I'm going to customize an F250 with the 6.2.

 

[Moserkr]

Ive driven all 3 newer full size ford, ram, and chevys, in diesel though. Ram was the best bang for the buck but rode rough. Chevy was much more refined than the ram but fell short of a ford. IF you can afford it, Ford was the best truck I drove. Im sure it will meet your needs and exceed expectations.

Nice bench too! Cant wait to see the new upholstery.

 

[66Holiday924]

I got a couple pictures of the back of my boat this morning and I couldn't be happier with what I'm seeing!

They're setting my boat aside to tackle a couple other projects before they do the sides. It's going to be beautiful when they get those sides done though!

In the mean time I'm gonna take it back to the sheet metal shop to have the corners cleaned up a little.