1973 Starcraft SuperSport 16ft. restoration questions

[piperjoe]

Reached a bit of a milestone today. Now it’s time to lay the floatation foam down the middle. Onward we go!

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Sorry…realized I had already posted today’s work.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Preparing the floatation foam pieces so we can lay them between the flooring rails. It sure is a nice day to be outdoors.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

More floatation foam into the boat. Run out of spit and vinegar so this is where we stopped for the evening. Will be adding more foam down the middle in order to tighten it up a bit.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Getting there with the floatation foam. Feel pretty good with how it is coming along and I don’t have to walk on the hull bottom ribs anymore. That’s something I have looked forward to! I will add a few more floatation foam pieces up front and along the hull centerline for the flooring to rest upon and then rivet the metal flooring straps to the flooring rails.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Added some floatation foam under the bow decking.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Today I plan to cut out flooring pieces (thought I had them all cut out already but you know how that went ). Will put two or three coats of West Systems epoxy on the bottom of the flooring and edging, two coats of spar varnish on the flooring top surfaces, install flooring and then paint on one more spar varnish coat on the entire top surface of the flooring to seal everything. Then the deck covering can go over the plywood. Sound okay to you?

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Preliminary lay down of decking pieces. Three are cut and I need to draw up the pattern and cut the fourth piece. Checking fit and under surface support at this time; will be adding additional floatation foam down the middle as it needs another inch or so for good decking support.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Would appreciate seeing photos of your bilge pump(s) installation for this size boat. Wondering if I should recut the bilge pump’s opening in the decking to a larger size than original, as shown in above photo, to facilitate easier access for the bilge pump’s wiring/plumbing? Thanks in advance.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Would appreciate seeing photos of your bilge pump(s) installation for this size boat. Wondering if I should recut the bilge pump’s opening in the decking to a larger size than original, as shown in above photo, to facilitate easier access for the bilge pump’s wiring/plumbing? Thanks in advance.

Safe boating,
Joe

I would yes. Equal both sides. In case you want to put the pump on that side (and I would so it’s not in the way of reaching the plug) and for cleaning. Aside from that your build looks great

 

[piperjoe]

Thank you for your thoughts and kind words. Hadn’t considered plug access so that was a good heads up. I am going to enlarge the bilge access opening, too.
One other question: right now there is nothing specific to the bilge pump location regarding a pump mounting surface. What do I want to be considering with regards to the stationary mounting of the pump so that it’s not just sitting loose on the bottom of the boat?

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Using a variable speed Sabre Saw, set to cut on a 45 degree angle, I cut the side bevels (4 today) on the two aft decking sheets of plywood. Each sheet now lays snug to the floatation foam/deck rails. While the aft sheet of plywood was out of the boat I also cut the bilge pump access opening to a larger size as was suggested in an above post. And then it started to drizzle with rain now and then so we battened down the hatches…well, actually it was the tarp and the garage door. You’ll have to forgive me for practicing “Water Lingo” at times.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Question: should I install the bilge pump(s) and the wiring/plumbing permanently in the boat before riveting the aft decking piece onto the rails and rib ends? If the rain holds off I plan on getting a West System epoxy coat on the bottom of the new decking. We’ll see what happens….

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[Moserkr]

Ive been out of town and the foam is done! Looks great Joe! Glad to see you move onto the flooring. For the bilge pumps, I ran my wires above deck so no need to install before putting the deck in. Are you running plumbing under the deck for wiring? Under the driver side gunnel there should be straps for wrapping wires running from bow to stern. Keeps wires high n dry, out of the bilge.

 

[piperjoe]

Hi Moserkr! Who would have thought the Admiral and I would ever reach this point in the restoration! A huge shout out to all of you who have stuck by us with your helpful suggestions and comments. We are doing this!

As for the bilge: I would like to install two 1000 gph pumps, one automatic and the second to be manually turned on via switch at the helm. Wiring to run above the aft decking and within the gunwale as required. Do not want any wiring underneath the decking if possible. That leaves the expelled water plumbing and that is what I am not sure about as to how I will route it. The two pump installation is because of Lake Michigan conditions and as insurance on the many large lakes around here. We can get quick weather changes on our lakes and resultant wind/high waves conditions.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[Moserkr]

I knew you and the Admiral would get there! Looking great too and steady working as she goes. Floors are a huge step because it all goes in fast after that.

My plumbing for the bilge pump runs right out of the cutout, over the floor, to a fitting on the side of the hull - simple. The wires follow the drain hose to the funnel. All the wires and plumbing under the splashwell are usually hidden by doors or something.

I have not added another pump as a backup yet, but 1000 gph is a lot. Redundancy is smart, especially on big water. I drained a bilge full of water just over my floorboards in a matter of minutes with an 800 gph bilge pump (pre-resto).

 

[piperjoe]

Thanks again, my friend. Over the decking (neatly of course) it will be re bilge pump installation. How did you secure the bilge pump to avoid the pump sliding/moving around on the hull metal?

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[Moserkr]

The PO used some sort of adhesive, almost looks like 5200, to secure it to the hull. Was stuck so well that I just left it. So not sure what to tell you there, but 5200 would probably work? Or some sort of epoxy that you could scrape off if needed. Good question.

 

[piperjoe]

5200 was what I have in mind, either directly on the pump bottom, or, as an adhesive used to secure a piece of wood to the hull and then screw the pump to the wood.

Safe boating,
Joe

 

[piperjoe]

Decided on the final floatation foam layout for the area between the flooring rails. Used some 5200 (after breaking the cap off and having to cut the tube to get the sealant out) to adhere the foam pieces together where required so the foam won’t slide when I rivet the flooring to the boat. And onward we go to the next task…

Safe boating,
Joe