1977 Glastex Sea Star Streaker Restoration (Tri-Hull)

[Sea Star Streaker]

Hello iBoaters,

Long time reader, first time poster. The purpose of this post is to show and inform on the restoration of a 1977 sea star streaker.

I have owned the boat for about two years. I had bought it in poor condition for a couple hundred dollars and felt I had already got my money’s worth and that it was not worth a restoration since the floor was very rotten and the transom was also completely rotten.

I changed my mind and decided to restore it after reading the following post on another sea star restoration: https://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...eastar-rebuild

After finding out that my boat most likely had hollow strings with the exception of one, I decided that it may be worth the restoration.

After removing the floor, which was easy since it was so rotten, I discovered that my boat does have hollow stringers! With the exception of the keel stringer that has a wood core. The hollow strings only have a small wooden strip (that will need to be replaced) at the top.

However, the good news ends their. There are some major cracks in the hollow stringers along with some holes (see pictures). My plan is to grind /sand down the bad spots and put two layers of woven roving over the bad spots, maybe even the whole stringers? I am undecided as of now.

It was also discovered that the floor forward of the console was rotted out, along with all the flotation foam being completely water logged. In order to put new foam in and completely replace the floor I will have to de-cap the boat since the deck is covering that part of the floor. I understand I will have to support the hull since it will not have a cap, or floor for support.

Feel free to look at the pictures below of what the boat looked like before and where I am currently at. Also, feel free to add any question, concerns or, opinions!

Thanks for reading!

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Looks like you have your work cut out for you, looking forward to the updates. Good luck with your project.

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Update:

Finally got the Cap off, found out that at the very front of one of the hollow core stringers their was exposed fibers that seemed like resin was never used on. I ground all around the problem area until I found good glass. Probably took out around 200-300 lbs of soaked flotation foam in total from the boat, with the most saturated foam being in the front of the boat. Could this have been what caused the fiberglass to fail in the one area?

Should I be worried about fiberglass degradation (since this whole boat was done with polyester resin) due to the constant water exposure from the completely saturated foam?


Thank you all for reading!

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Another update:

Started cleaning up the hull to get ready for new glass on the stringers. I keep finding bad spots of glass that seem like no resin was ever even used. The first picture shows these problem areas where the fiberglass just comes right off, upon sanding at that spot I eventually do run into good glass as can be seen in the second picture. Looks like all these problem spots will need new glass. May have gotten into more project than I anticipated and also starting to question if this boat may be to far gone.

 

[GSPLures]

Keep up the good work. Grinding is the worst part of the rebuild. After that it is all up hill

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Another update:

Finally got the stringers all cleaned up and the keel stringer core removed. There was a lot of cracks and bad glass in the hollow core stringers than was expected. Going to wrap all of the hollow core stringers in one to two layers of 1708. I hope they are clean enough there is some questionable spots. If I was to grind anymore on the sides and top of the stringers there wouldn’t any material left. It seems like when they made them it was one layer of mat and one of roving. I for sure have the spots where the new 1708 will mount to the hull very clean.

The keel stringer might have been made of cedar. It was completely soaked, but was not rotting, it was still full intact. It broke in the picture when I threw it out of the boat. My plan for the new keel stringer is to make it by laminated two 3/4in exterior plywood pieces together. Since the original dimensions of the stringer were 1.5in wide by 3in tall.

Thank you all for reading, if anyone has any questions comments or concerns with what I am doing please do not hesitate to post!

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Update:
A lot has happened since my last post. Completed the floor and got the transom out and new transom installed. I didn’t take any pictures of the new floor I put in. Also, re-installed the cap and painted it blue. Still have to sand and Dremel all of the hairline cracks and blisters on the hull before painting.

As of right now I am currently working on wiring and installing new bench seats.

Thank you all for reading!

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

For those of you who are still following, here is another update:

Got the bench seats installed, built them out of pressure treated wood, wrapped all the seats in white vinyl. Just have a couple more things to finish up in the interior before covering the interior to keep it clean when sanding down the hull. Currently working on turning the two old jump seats in the back (the ones next to the splash well) into built in coolers. I did add quite a bit of weight to the rear of the boat, but also did remove a lot of water soaked wood and flotation before. If I had to guess, I probably added an additional 100 pounds. With some of this weight being closer to the center of the boat.
Sorry that I don’t have many pictures to share now, but once the interior is complete I will take more detailed ones to share. Feel free to ask any questions and thanks for reading!

 

[‘73BeeCraft]

Ok so I love the color of your cap can you tell me more about that process? Type of paint how? How did you apply it? Prep work? Did you tape off or remove the bow rails?

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Ok so I love the color of your cap can you tell me more about that process? Type of paint how? How did you apply it? Prep work? Did you tape off or remove the bow rails?

The paint is TotalBoat Wet Edge and the color is Boston Whaler Blue . The aluminum extrusion/bow rails that is used to install the rub rail and connect the top cap to the hull was removed before when I removed the cap, so it was not present when painting. I first sanded the whole cap and did two coats of Total Boat primer. I then lightly sanded and cleaned the cap before apply the paint. I used the roll and tip method and applied 3 coats sanding and cleaning in between coats. The paint turned out okay, But was difficult to work with in some spots. If the paint is put on too thick, it won't cure properly and you are not left with a good finish. I found it difficult to work around sharp edges and had some issues with the paint in those areas. I also had to paint outside in an non ideal environment, so some imperfections were introduced to the paint.

 

[Sea Star Streaker]

Hello Everyone,

I am not sure if anyone is still following this, but the boat has been completed!

It was completed in early spring of 2021 and I had been meaning to post the final product, but was to busy enjoying the boat.

I was very nervous on the maiden voyage, since I had pretty much redone the whole boat, but everything worked flawlessly right from the start. The only issue I had was a bad amp, which was easily fixed.

Thank you for anyone who has followed this. Let me know if you have any questions. I am hear to help in anyway that I can, since this forum was such a help to me for information and getting me started on this build.

Now I just need to find my next project boat.




Engine repainted and new decals.



Back on the trailer, after the trailer was painted and new rollers put on.



Finally out on the water, sits way more level than I thought, given how much extra weight I thought I added to the rear. Especially with the new tilt trim making the motor sit about 5 inches further from the transom.

 

[southkogs]

Not so sure about the highback seat in the stern, but I like the look of the boat and the lights and speakers are pretty cool lookin'.

Congrats on the splash.