1971 16' Corson fiberglass runabout renovation

[bosdriver]

I?ve just started a boat restoration, and really appreciate all the excellent knowledge on iBoats. I?ve read through Runabout Renovation book, the sticky How-To?s, and some pretty amazing projects. I live in Massachusetts, and grew up by a small lake. I?d like to get the boat on the lake this summer and pull a tube for my kids.

A bit about the boat - an old neighbor, getting ready to sell his lake cottage, gave me a 16? fiberglass runabout - a 1971 Corson. Apparently his buddy had taken very good care of the boat for years, and had given it to him 11 years before. Sadly, he never got it in the water and it sat in his driveway under a tarp. A couple of years ago, a tree fell on the boat, and the windshield was ruined.

 

[bosdriver]

Looking around the internet, I found a newspaper article from the late 70?s about Corson boats. They were made in Madison, Maine by a family of boat-builders from 1955 until 2004. They made about 100 fiberglass boats a year and they were sold through dealers in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. I found one a dealer in Maine that sold only Corsons and Starcrafts in the late 50?s and 60?s.

I?ve had an auto search going on craigslist for Corsons in the entire New England area just to see what pops up. All of the boats I?ve seen listed so far are in Maine, some in amazing shape.

The Bill of Sale I got from my neighbor noted the year of the boat as 1977 ? same as the Bill of Sale he had from his buddy in 2005. Definitely not accurate as I went along ? there?re no floatation and no Hull ID. The motor is definitely a 1971 Mercury 65hp Outboard. Since that was the outboard of choice by the boat maker, I?m going to assume that the boat is a 1971 as well. I was told that the motor was running as recently as summer of 2015.

 

[bosdriver]

First order of business was to get the boat road-worthy to get it home. I pulled off the windshield and rotten upholstery, and killed about 1,000 ants. The trailer needed new tires and lights.

Corson built wood frames for the seat bases and glassed those onto the floor and up the side of the hull. Someone had applied sealant to the cracks where the floor was tabbed to the hull, but that didn?t fix the problem. I removed enough of the floor to see that the boat was full of water.

 

[bosdriver]

At this point, it?s 31 degrees here, and I?m happy the boat fits in my garage. I got the floor out and was not surprised to see that the 2 stringers and keel beam are rotten. I used a ?? drill bit to sample the transom, it is confirmed rotten as well. Not surprising considering that water must have been sitting under that floor for a number of years.

 

[CrazyFinn]

Welcome aboard, and it looks like you already have a realistic idea of what needs to be done! That's a good start.

 

[bosdriver]

Thanks for the welcome CrazyFinn. I feel like I've been in demo/discovery mode and now I have to figure out what to do next. I'm hoping to recruit my son and a couple of strong nephews to get the motor onto the stand and the cap off.

 

[proshadetree]

Cool looking boat man. Demo looks like its going smoothly. How is the transom?

 

[bosdriver]

Proshadetree - thanks for checking it out. I drilled holes very low on the transom where there most likely would have been standing water for a few years. Shavings came out wet, so I guess I'll have to replace it all. I assume that's my next step one I get the motor and cap off. Remove the transom from the inside without going through the hull. I'm going to look at some other projects to get an idea.

 

[ezmobee]

No Title

cool boat! I was able to adapt a modern 3 piece windshield from an old tri-hull or something to my similar runabout which also took a tree to the plexiglass one. Got it on ebay cheap.

 

[bosdriver]

EZ - I just bought a 3-piece windshield on ebay on Christmas Eve. The seller has shipped it, but it won't be here for a week or so. That new windshield looks awesome on your boat.

 

[Pusher]

Agreed EZ. It looks slick.

Nice lake boat bos. You seem to have done your research and are charging right through the steps in the proper order the first time. Good call.

 

[mickyryan]

welcome imma tag along as I love these old "glassers" good luck , looks like you got it well under control though

 

[bosdriver]

Mic - thanks for checking out the project.

I got a motor stand for cheap money off CL. Easier than making one myself. I wonder if I need to beef it up for my motor though. I have a 65hp Mercury 2-stroke. Weights about 200 pounds. Is this stand going to hold it?

 

[ezmobee]

If those cross pieces aren't through bolted, I could see the motor ripping those off.

 

[bosdriver]

Added some bolts and got the motor off. Thanks for the advice EZ.

 

[bosdriver]

I'm having a tough time getting the stringers out. They are glassed to the hull and the wood is in bad shape.

 

[jbcurt00]

The oscillating tool you're using is undersized for removing stringers, an angle grinder would make quick work of it.

 

[Baylinerchuck]

I agree with JB. Use a 4-1/2 grinder with a 1/16" abrasive cut-off disc. Be careful because they cut quick. The vibrating tool will work with bi-metal blades, but it'll take forever, and you'll go through a lot of blades. Good luck to you.