1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Had a bit of an issue with the mercury 850 over the weekend.. Apparently when I rebuilt the carbs last fall I must have overdid punching in one of the welch plugs.. It wasn't idling right and when I went to investigate and took them off. I was like.. "well thats not supposed to eb open like that.. then found it on the bottom.. Only bad thing was you have to buy the entire repair kit to get that little plug/disc thing. Got it together last night and retimed and synced the carbs.. running good again idling. Going to finish the tune tonight in the water hopefully!
I was thinkin man.. sure would be nice to have a new boat...... then I go to the showroom and see something comparable.. YIKES! More than I paid for my car that I drive every stinking day.... hard to see past that and justify a new one... and this old thing is paid for..

 

[classiccat]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Worst part of a carb overhaul are those plugs...I can never find a punch that stops flat.

Glad she's runnin' good for ya!

Nothing like some sticker-shock to keep us grounded! :jaw:

 

[barato2]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

if we can find one big enough that we can fillet out some of the "Y" bones and have a bigg enough piece of meat

so what Mr Lazy here does is just toss the fish on charcoal grill with skin and all, then when it's cooked, you just pull the meat away from the skin n bones instead of doing it the other way around.

no surprise that FW drum taste good.....they're from the croaker family, along with many of the better eating fish around....seatrout/weakfish/corvina, redfish, any croakers...

ya want some sticker shock? i regularly see ski boats that people paid more for than i did for my HOUSE

 

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Its not just ppl at the ramp want to check out the old vintage Super sport... heck... Even the fish want a close up view! This bad dawg jump into the splash well on the way to the put out... Knocked the front cover off of my motor.. luckily i was like lightening fast on retrieval of that..



HAHA!

 

[barato2]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

i've heard people call their boat a fish magnet, but this one does it for real....cool. what is that fish? i first thought bluefish but not many of them in MO.

 

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

i've heard people call their boat a fish magnet, but this one does it for real....cool. what is that fish? i first thought bluefish but not many of them in MO.

They are an invasive species, asian carp...... Escaped when a fish hatchery was flooded 20+ or so years ago into the mississippi...
Some of the things are HUGE! I would not want to get one to the face for sure.....

Check out some of the you tube vids of these things...

Tracking Asian Carp in the Mississippi - YouTube

 

[barato2]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

wow. those things jump like mullet. yeah, definitely want to make that windshield from Lexan........

 

[classiccat]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

man, close call on losing that motor cover...and getting your bell rung!

I believe the world record bluecat (out of the Missouri river) was caught on cut Asian Carp.

 

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

I believe the world record bluecat (out of the Missouri river) was caught on cut Asian Carp.

Thats about the only thing they are good for from where I stand. I hear you can fillet the big outs out and have some good nice white good tasting meat but the problem with them being filter feeders you can really hook one unless you accidentally snag one or cast net one which I have done.......

 

[barato2]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

actually, when i was watching that video, i was thinking that maybe bird hunters wanting to practice might help with those suckers. you'd have to use iron shot, and pick up the aftermath (know anyone who gardens?) it would definitely help train your reflexes for when a quail etc explodes from under your feet. bowfishing would work too, but not fast enough to help control the population.

 

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

So I've been thinking and been drooling over a a possibility of upgrading the powerplant on the ol 16' SS.... There is alot of marketing jargon here and there about what cost of ownership or cost of use/maintenance through out the season.

At first. I was looking purely at 4 strokes yamaha and mercs and then I came accross the Evinrude's new ETEC in the 75hp, which is pretty appealing to be honest.
With all the rebates and free rigging etc that the ETEC has as well as some of the quotes I've received still $$$$ but a mans gotta treat himself sometimes, right?
I guess I'm looking for some help in deciding which would be best. The ETEC dealership has been the biggest as far as communication vs. the others.. I also think it's gonna ultimately come down to personal preference. ie. ford/chevy/dodge etc..

My biggest issue is the big additional weight of the 4strokes vs the 2 strokes. Here is what I received about the weight difference in the ETEC vs my Merc 850.

"The weight on your 850 is 241 lbs plus 28 lbs for trim and tilt that was a option and not standard in 73.
That puts the Evinrude + 52 lbs = 2" approx more draft at stern.
Yamaha is + 98 lbs = 4" approx more draft at stern.

52 lbs is adding 2" more draft and 100 4"? that sure seems more that I expected.?.?

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Buy a 60lb bag of concrete, set plank across the gunwales at the motor well, lay the concrete across the plank & back the boat in the water. A 45-60lb kid would work as well. :watermelon:

I too doubt 52lbs will produce an additional 2" draft at the transom. How's it sit w/ the 850Merc on it?

Is the keel aground in this pix:

Which might lift the bow slightly & push the stern down slightly.

Off setting changes at the stern is often what initiates the move of fuel/batteries towards the bow.

 

[barato2]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

not sure on your trim Q. but JB is right, moving batteries forward will make up for the increased weight nicely. i really haven't heard of anyone being unhappy with their ETEC. i suspect it is noisier than the 4 strokes, but fuel economy is comparable. as far as the maintenance, the major difference is valve adjustments, which on an inline three shouldn't be that bad if you've done valves before.

 

[cj8mule]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Hey ShowMe!

I had a 300 pound Johnson on the back of my 16' SS. No worries man, it handled that weight great.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

My biggest issue is the big additional weight of the 4strokes vs the 2 strokes. Here is what I received about the weight difference in the ETEC vs my Merc 850.

You hit the nail right on the head !

The next biggest issue is dealer/service. Which is more common in the area where you boat ? Murphy like to through his wrench in at just the wrong time and driving 100+ miles for a small part is a real pain.

I'm running a 4 stroke Mercury 115 hp EFI. The powerhead is actually the same as the Yamaha 4 stroke engines of that vintage. I went with Mercury simply because they have the largest dealer network.

If I did it again today, I would probably go with an Evinrude, primarily to save the weight. The Evinrude 3 cylinder engines have a better power-to-weight ratio than their V4.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

With all the rebates and free rigging etc that the ETEC has as well as some of the quotes I've received still $$$$ but a mans gotta treat himself sometimes, right?

If money were not an issue, ETEC, no brainer....
90-HP Inline Engines Engines | Evinrude USA

So awesome.

Money is a major issue for me, rats:grumpy:

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

If money were not an issue, ETEC, no brainer....
90-HP Inline Engines Engines | Evinrude USA

So awesome.

Money is a major issue for me, rats:grumpy:

That's the same O/B one of my drivers has on his pontoon, super quiet, great on fuel and goes real good. If I needed and O/B, and had money that would be the one.

 

[ShowMeGuy]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

Buy a 60lb bag of concrete, set plank across the gunwales at the motor well, lay the concrete across the plank & back the boat in the water. A 45-60lb kid would work as well. :watermelon:

I too doubt 52lbs will produce an additional 2" draft at the transom. How's it sit w/ the 850Merc on it?

Is the keel aground in this pix:

Which might lift the bow slightly & push the stern down slightly.

Off setting changes at the stern is often what initiates the move of fuel/batteries towards the bow.

Yeah that is up on the sand bar a bit. The water level is like 2-3" below the splash well drains just sitting in the water if I remember. I'd have to go look again at the water stains....

Hey ShowMe!

I had a 300 pound Johnson on the back of my 16' SS. No worries man, it handled that weight great.

GOOD TO KNOW!!!

That's the same O/B one of my drivers has on his pontoon, super quiet, great on fuel and goes real good. If I needed and O/B, and had money that would be the one.

I always like to hear from folks that have had or been around them. I'm leanign this way pretty good...

 

[InMotion]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

I run a 90 V4 on the back of my 16 Jup and it sits fine. Difference is I have the gas tank at the front --- it helps A LOT to distribute the weight over the boat.

That Etec is super nice.... I wonder if there is all that much of a difference in price between it and a four stroke??? Curious...

J.

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1973 16' Starcraft Super Sport new to me

A set of small trim tabs would fix and problems with rear weight in a second, and if your going to spring for an Etec, what's another $120. for a set of Smart tabs. Just saying!!