1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

[Cadwelder]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Will i be able to work with it on the trailer? It seems that would give it the most support. Or do i have to build a thingy ma bobber to hold it? I really need to save as much as possible.
Thanks

I personally wouldn't do it on the trailer, some have and got by okay. I just build a cradle out of some 2x4's and it works great. $40.00 worth of lumber and once you're done you can use the 2x's for whatever around the house or shop. The problem is the hull becomes flimsy once all the internals are removed and it's easy to build a "twist" right into it. If you go with the work on the trailer at least add some supports of some sort to maintain the hulls orginal shape.

And you can also check out and repair the trailer easily while the boat is off of it.

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

That is true, it would be alot easier to do the repairs to the trailer without the boat. But i don't have the access to a tractor or any kind of lifter/loader that is capable of lifting this boat. Maybe i can find a tree to hook a come along up to and use some large ratchet straps to lift it up. If i left it on the trailer, i would make a small cradle just for the bottom side of the hull, so the spots unsupported would have something to rest on.

 

[Cadwelder]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=453079

Here's link to a thread of mine, you can see a picture of the cradle I built in it. To get the boat off the trailer, I just furnished a case of beer and 6 buddies and we had no problem picking up the 18 footer (Now the cap was off before we picked it up, but nothing interior was out yet.)

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Sorry for the hold up guys. Roads have been froze, and police have been crazy around here. Since the trailer is not street legal i figure it best be safe to wait.
Hopefully i will have it tomorrow. I am curious about a few things that hopefully you guys can answer.
First, the engine. Is it a good motor(evinrude 115)? What kind of gauges and control setup can i run? Is it limit to a few amount of avaliable parts?
Also, i know this may be a dumb question, and i'm sure it does, but does the evinrude have a trim control on it?
And lastly, the steering cable is rusted, and busted. All the way out of the insulation. What this cable called? The steering cable?
Thanks guys!

 

[Last Mohican]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

That is called a steering cable. You may want to replace the whole rack. It is not much more expensive to get a rack kit that just the cable. It's not a hard project. You need to know the length of the cable.

http://www.iboats.com/Complete-Boat...5209771--**********.621266683--view_id.246967

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

That is a fantastic engine. You should still be able to get just about any part for it. It is doubtful that it has tilt 'n trim. I can't see a TnT unit in the picture. Unfortunately OMC used a different style unit from '73-'78 than then did after that and those units go for a zillion bucks on ebay. I had a '73 and looked for years for a decent used unit to upgrade it and never found one reasonably. You could add TnT with an aftermarket CMC Manufacturing unit which are reall nice, but they cost close to $500. You should be able to easily add a tachometer and that's the most important gauge for outboards. You could also add a temp and/or water pressure gauge with minor modifications. I agree with LM above that your best bet is to replace the entire steering system. The best deal anywhere on a complete system that even comes with a new wheel is here http://www.lowcostboatingstore.com/...e-9-ft-to-20-ft-with-STEERING-WHEEL_p_19.html

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

This will give you some good information on replacing the steering on your boat

http://teleflex.ru/upload/files/catalog/msru/How to Measure Steering Cables.pdf

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Wow, thanks for the link guys! Thats a super good deal. Should i still be able to use my steering wheel?
Also, what do you mean TnT? And I found out it did not have a trim sadly. Would it be hard to adapt one off a different johnson/evinrude engine?
Thanks guys!
Oh, btw. Stupid check was sent to my previous address,, by the time i got over there today it was after five so i couldn't get a tire. Atleast I know now for sure monday i will have my boat! Woop woop.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

TnT is short for Tilt n Trim. It is a hydraulic unit you can buy for the 115 hp motor you have. Hard to find and expensive. Yes, you should be able to use your existing wheel with no problems.

 

[archbuilder]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

That is a cool looking Cheetah, I haven't seen that model before. I went with the teleflex no-feedback rack. I have been really happy with it. You might want to shop around, I found the prices varied quite a bit. I had a 90 hp Rude, a little newer than yours. It was a quiet motor, pretty good on gas, but didn't seem to have quite the punch the Mercs have. As for the trim, I'm assuming it has trim, most outboards that size do. I'm not sure how Rude did theirs back then, but Merc had a couple of switches that mounted on the dash. Later they came out with the trim built in the controls....big improvement. I actually found my controls, sitting on a shelf since 1984 never used on ebay. I would get a Seloc service manual for it, it should show all the wiring and the controls etc. The manual's are a little "one size fits all" and somewhat generic, but they are worth it just for the wiring info.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Unfortunately Arch, her motor does not have TnT and it is cost prohibitive to add it to pre-1978 Johnson/Evinrudes.

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

lol i dont know how to say this.. Let's just say I'm the second oldest guy in my family.
And thanks for explaining that for me guys. Surely sometime in the future i will be getting the TnT setup. If the tire shop is open today, the boat will be here!

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Good news guys! Got my boat. Unfortunatly I got cought up with these little guys Half Heeler and half Beagle Pups.
Tomorrow I got to go get some collars for the female. She slips out of hers easily.
Hopefully I'll have time afterwards to clean it up and get some pics.

 

[archbuilder]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

looks like you have a couple of mascots for your boat! I didn't realize there was a second page when I posted earlier about the T and T......I got to the end of the first page thinking it was the end of the thread, duh! lol! Looking forward to seeing your progress!

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Sorry it's taking so long. It's freezing out and It's keeping me and my helpers inside. I'm ready for spring!

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Finally some decent weather! Felt awesome out today. Took a just about everything out of the inside. A bit of dirt and pineneedles left.
I can feel alot of play in the floor. Along the sides of the center, its the worst. It's not bad in the center though, so the stud(stringer if im correct?) is in decent shape i guess. There was some annoying little tabs screwed to the deck that i'm guessing the seats were attatched to? Some of them came out. The engine does turn over, and isnt froze. A suprise since it's been sitting for seven years or so.
You can see in one of the pics, the fiberglass has rotted through. Theres an indintion that i'm guessing is for the battery. On both sides of that it is rotted through. Then on the sides where the transom there is two spots where it's rotted through. The crack is mostly covered up, i can't tell if it goes the entire length of the plate, or just on the sides.

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

This one had problems loading.

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

anyone tell me what this little peice is for? it appears to go into the breather.

 

[kcabbie]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

Anyone got any tips on where i should start? I'm going to try to pick up some wood this week to make me a engine stand so i can get that thing off of the boat!
Thanks for any tips guys.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1977 Cheetah 17' Ski boat restore

anyone tell me what this little peice is for? it appears to go into the breather.

That's where the fuel line connects.


I'd start by tearing out the floor since it's rotted and checking out the stringer. You're fortunate that you only have one to deal with.