1968 Starcraft Restoration

[Bowe]

Hello...
This fall I purchased a 1968 Starcraft Starchief. This would be the 18ft. outboard. I just tried to load some pictures, but I'm getting a jpeg size limitation message.
Over all the boat is in really great shape. I paid $3000 for the boat and the trailer.
I have a few questions I'm hoping some of you can help me with or give me some advise. So far I have stripped everything off the boat and have removed all the paint with paint stripper. I will be lifting the boat off the trailer soon to do the same with the bottom. I plan on sanding the boat (aluminum) and applying a marine grade epoxy primer and paint. There are just a few small dings, nothing concerning.
I live in Colorado and this boat will mostly be used to take my Dad and Son fishing. I don't tube or water ski. The lakes I go to will be around 6 to 7 thousand feet above see level.
So a few questions...
1. The person that owned the boat prior has already done some work to the boat. Such as, replaced all the old wood in the floor and the transom. As a side note, I do restore old cars as a hobby so I like to think I'm fairly mechanically incline. From what I can tell, the work he did looks really good, very solid, nice cuts. 3/4 marine plywood...etc. I don't to remove the wood if there isn't a reason. I filled the boat full of water, after everything was out of it, to about the level of the wood, and I found 1 rivet up front (that I can get to) that was leaking a few drops of water. No other rivets had a leak. Thoughts about removing the wood and the form to seal the boat with something like Gluvit? The boat will never sit in the water over night. At best it will be in the water maybe 8 hours at a time and I will install a new bilge pump.
2. The boat still had the original 125HP Merc Tower of power, no trim or power tilt. I ran the boat, did the seaform de-carb trick for about 30 minutes and checked the compression. 5 cylinders were around 85 to 90, number 6 was at 73. From what I've read, there are not part for this old Merc and no one really wants to touch it. It still runs (in the driveway with muffs) and it even idles nice, but I think I'm going to re-power it. After month of looking and calling, I have found a newer 2011 Honda 4 stroke with very low hours that runs great for $5,500. that I am considering purchasing. The old book I have says the dry weight on the boat is 860. I figure with motor (360) gear, gas, 3 people, etc. I will be loaded up to about 2000 pounds. Do you think a never EFI Honda 90 on this boat at this altitude is going to be enough to get the boat on plane and at least do 30 MPH? I guess I just want to make sure I'm not really underpowering the boat to the point that I hurt the motor or cant get up on plane.
3. Final question. The boat has an older twin axle steal trailer, that appears to in really nice shape. If I pull this with my V8 Jeep Grand Cherokee, should I think about trailer brakes? This is actually a 4 lug wheel, so I have not been able to find a brake kit for the trailer. Don't want to buy a new trailer. Will service bearing etc. on the old trailer.

 

[Bowe]

at least 1 pic

 

[Bowe]

and another...

 

[jbcurt00]

There may be additional work pending requiring pulling the deck (floor) beyond using GluvIt.

There has been some damage to the hull that wasnt found until the paint was stripped so lets pin pulling the deck until you get it stripped.

@Watermann
@classiccat

Both are active helpful members and likely to pop in for a look, that did hull repairs

chemicalwire is running a smallish hp on his Chieftain 18ftr too, so although its a 90hp, you shouldnt be disappointed. A larger hp OB would get you where you want to go faster.

I suspect you could buy new axles for your current trailer if you wanted to get axles w brakes.

Welcome

Dig in, lots of great info in here. Take a look thru the topics here
http://forums.iboats.com/forum/owner...tarcraft-boats

 

[jbcurt00]

I prefer option #3 for posting pix, but here are 3 options to help w pix

http://forums.iboats.com/forum/forum-rules-and-guidelines/9938375-photo-upload-tutorial

You pix are sort of grainy, maybe method you used to take the pix or how you posted them. A different method may help. Esp if you need to show detail, it'd probably be lost in the size/graininess..

 

[Bowe]

These were just some pics I took of the boat the other day with my cell phone after getting most of the paint off the top side. I'll try to get some better pics tomorrow to post. Thanks for the replies and the link to the other Starcraft owners! I'm new and just trying to find my way around the website. This is so Cool! I tried to buy this old boat from my mother-in-laws neighbors for about 2 years until they finally gave in and sold it to me. I just loved the look of the boat! Great to see others saw what I saw and like them as well. Now it just really makes me want to ensure I do things right as I do the restoration.

 

[jbcurt00]

The Starcraft guys are a great resource. They just finished nominating and voting for a Splash of the Year 2015 from their ranks:

http://forums.iboats.com/forum/owne...oats-2015-starcraft-splash-of-the-year-winner

The previously mentioned Watermann won w a similar boat to yours for 2014.

 

[laurentide]

Bowe, welcome. Nice boat! I know nothing about altitude adjustment for horsepower/intake/etc. But I do run a 70hp OMC 2 stroke on a fishing-only boat. Same boat as yours. It's fine, gets me where I'm going on plane. I cruise at 20ish statute mph at 3800-4000 RPM. It tops out around 30. A Honda 90, besides being an excellent outboard, would be perfect at my elevation of 95 feet. You'd probably hit low 40's with it on my lake.

 

[Watermann]

:welcome: aboard and to the Starmada Bowe,

From what I can see it looks like you have a pretty nice little Chief. On the power, a 90 should do what you want, a guy doesn't really need lots of HP but these boats can take it just fine even to a 150. My Chief is an I/O but the smaller OBs are lighter and need less HP. Mine was originally a 120 HP but I wanted a little bit more so I upgraded some.

I don't have trailer brakes but I tow with full size trucks and have no issues without them.

Make sure that the decking and or transom wood wasn't replaced with treated plywood. A few drips off a rivet most likely won't add up to enough water to reach the bilge pumps float.

 

[GA_Boater]

Welcome to Tinhalla, Bowe.

I'm kinda partial to the old Mercs. Has the boat been laid up for a while? Your compression numbers aren't great, but rings could be sticking from lack of use. I would hit the water with her and run her around, then re-check the numbers. You can also add an aftermarket tilt and trim unit, either used or new. One of the guys here added a CMC unit and they work with up to 135 HP.

What size are the wheels on the trailer? You can get 4-lug hydraulic or electric drum brakes as long as the axle matches the wheel bearings in the drums and the wheels are large enough for the drums to fit inside the rims. Now the big question - Do you need them? It depends on the state where you register the trailer. GVWR as low 1500 lbs. in some states require brakes.

She's looking good all shiny!

 

[fishin98]

Nice boat....A 90HP Honda should push your boat quite well. My 2000 Bayliner 1802 Capri Cuddy which is heavier than your rig outfitted with a 90Hp 2str Merc ran in the low 40's with 2 people onboard. I also had a 2007 Merc 5hp 4str as a kicker for trolling mounted on it.

 

[laurentide]

In some states--like mine--trailer brakes are necessary only if the total trailer weight is more than half of the tow vehicle weight. I don't have trailer brakes as I'm right on the edge of that equation. No issues so far. These boats are pretty light. Just check your state regs.

 

[jbcurt00]

I'll only add that the terrain the trailer's towed on could add to the want for trailer brakes.

In Colorado, I've been places trailer brakes could be beneficial, here in WV too.

 

[Bowe]

Thank you for all the replies! Thought I would post one more picture. There have been a few weeks that were just too cold to even try using the paint stripper. During that time I mocked up the dash. The white dash is wood covered in cat hair fiberglass that I shaped sanded and painted. I then used 24GA 304 brushed stainless steel to make the top of the dash. Painted a white stripe on the boarder of the stainless. I took apart the vintage Airguide gauges that were in great shape, cleaned polished and repainted the orange indicators. They look almost like new now... or close and tested them and they all work. Although now that I'm adding the Honda 4 stroke, I thinking I wont be able to use the tach.
I also removed the old steering wheel that looked like an after market sport car steering wheel from the 80's and added the Destroyer wheel. I also re-did all the wiring and added a newer switch panel with modern marine fuses. There is polished aluminum for the bottom of the dash to hold a marine radio and an old Airguide compass I had.
Finally, you can see I'm building platforms for each side for the newer pedestals and modern higher back seats. I like some of the old and a little of the new
Again, can't thank everyone enough for chiming in. I've decided to buy the Honda. I really wish I could have done something with the old Mercury as I think it looks cool and fits the boat. However I also don't want to have issues with an old motor out on the lake and this Honda seems like a good deal. I do intend to use the boat and go fishing. When I bought the boat it had a 5HP mercury 4 stroke tiller on the back. I think it was only a few years old, so that is what I will use to troll with.
If anyone has any suggestion, please keep them coming. It looks like a ton of people have already addressed a lot of the challenges I will have to deal with. I've had fun searching and reading all the posts tonight. I really want to do this once and do it right. I plan on passing the boat down to my Son someday. In fact, I don't think she ever had a name... was thinking of calling her "Generations".

 

[jbcurt00]

No pix showed up in your last post, just an empty white square

 

[fishin98]

. Here is a picture of the 2007 5HP long shaft 4str on the back of the Capri. A quick disconnect steering rod was purchased from C*****as. It hooked to the steering rod on the 90 Merc over to the 5Hp...quick disconnects on both ends.

 

[laurentide]

I'd try trolling with the 90. You might be surprised how slow it can go and how little fuel it will burn. The 5 HP Merc is likely a single cylinder and they tend to vibrate a lot on metal boats. But it will still make a great backup engine. Or maybe it won't be enough to bother you. Either way it's a great setup to start with.

 

[jbcurt00]

So a few questions...
1. The person that owned the boat prior has already done some work to the boat. Such as, replaced all the old wood in the floor and the transom. As a side note, I do restore old cars as a hobby so I like to think I'm fairly mechanically incline. From what I can tell, the work he did looks really good, very solid, nice cuts. 3/4 marine plywood...etc. I don't to remove the wood if there isn't a reason. I filled the boat full of water, after everything was out of it, to about the level of the wood, and I found 1 rivet up front (that I can get to) that was leaking a few drops of water. No other rivets had a leak. Thoughts about removing the wood and the form to seal the boat with something like Gluvit? The boat will never sit in the water over night. At best it will be in the water maybe 8 hours at a time and I will install a new bilge pump.

Bump

Bowe, shorter paragraphs and less lengthy posts belp us 'see' all that your asking. This was likely missed by most of us when you originally posted it.

For future reference, I recommend keeping as much of your rebuild questions here in a single rebuild topic. That way its easier to keep track of details and whats been asked, answered and done up to that point when you ask a new question.

If you ask a question that goes un answered, quote yourself and repost the question. It happens...

Lots of stuff on a rebuild is related to other stuff already done or that will follow after the work you ask about.

Asking in just 1 place reduces duplication of effort by those following along and answering your questions. Thanks

 

[TruckDrivingFool]

The question JB quoted,

If I was sure the only leak was one rivet and even if the floor is just riveted in I wouldn't tear it out to Gluvit. I'd fix the one leaker with a closed end blind (CEB) rivet and some 5200. The key being the bold part of that.

 

[oldhaven]

Wow! I go away for a few days and we have a couple more Starchief's to follow along with. I have a '67 that I started last fall, and will be using a Mercury 4 stroke so we should get similar results, though I am at sea level in New England. You are farther along than I am, and having a place to work in is a real bonus, as my boat is buried under a tarp and snow for at least a couple more months. I really look forward to following along. These older little cabin boats seem to be getting popular as vintage restorations that are very practical.

If you look in the Starcraft restoration thread you will only find a few listed as true Starchief's, as they seem to have been limited by a shorter production period and some marketing changes that labeled later ones of the same length as Chieftains. There are a few ongoing projects not listed there, including mine, but hopefully that can be fixed at some point. I think your Chief is far enough along to qualify as a restoration project. In the meantime the search feature works well if you pick the right keywords.

Congratulations,

Ron