1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

[knotperfect]

1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Those timbers look like 6x6's

Try 6X8's... You would have thought I was runnin' with a big block or something.

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

I have the just about completed my grinding and am looking to begin cutting out the ply for the new transom and stringers. My question is: Does the new transom need to be 2" thick for the entire transom area? My old transom is not a good reference since most of the area further than a foot from the gimbal were rotton, caved in, and had a ton of little holes in it.

I will fill in as many through transom holes as possible since I removed the trim tabs and the auxiliary motor mount. The transom is 7' feet wide and almost 4 feet tall and I think was the same thickness for the entire thing, probably the result of a quick fix. I am watching friscoboater and I would like to do the same relative size/shape of his transom on my boat.

What is the "right size" for rebuilding the transom?

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

I believe Frisco used 2 layers of 3/4" ply and a section of 1/2" in the center section to get the 2" needed for the transom.... What out drive are you working with? We can find the info on the thickness needed.

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

I guess my question is more about how much support does the entire port to starboard top to bottom transom need? I see his center portion, about 18"X24" is the correct thickness for his drive, but can the rest of it be 3/4" with CSM, resin, etc? He calls it a step transom. Is there an appreciable difference in support by doing it this way instead of the entire transom a single thickness? Also, what takes the force of the engine and drive? Is it the transom, stingers, motor mounts, all of the above?

I am working with an Alpha (I think, still trying to figure that out)

Thanks for the assist. I will take and post pics tonight.

 

[Greg Mrozinski]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Knot,

Good job so far. You will be pleased when you are finished. You will need more than 3/4" transom thickness. Most transoms average 2"+ so I would follow what Frisco put in his boat. You probably have a pre-Alpha drive if it's original. I think the Alphas came out in the mid eighties.

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

A lot of progress tonight. A 13,000 RPM grinder and a 36 grit disk are wonderful things. Here is where I started this evening.

Unless otherwise directed, I am going to build the transom to the height of the horizontal line you can see in the photo.

I imagine that the line between the upper and lower part of the transom was to separate where the ladder, tie downs, and other hull penetrations were required. After all said and done, I think I have everything pretty well cleaned up and ready for the next steps.

Speaking of hull penetrations, there are 42 holes through the transom that are not used for ladders, tie downs, or gimbal housing. Do you think thats where my water came from?

As for my outdrive, you tell me, what do I have?


Thanks for the help..... iBoats rocks....

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Can you find some serial number on that out drive? That would be a big help to identify it correctly.

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

I had a productive weekend. The negotiation went like this, "Saturday I work on Knot Perfect and Sunday I stay away from all things boat." So I got a solid 5 hours to get the transom, stringers, aft deck, and bulkheads all patterned and cut out. I was pretty excited about making my pattern for the bulks and stringers using son luaun 1/4" ply that I had laying around from my kayak build. I clamped in the basic shape and traced the bottom of the hull with a pencil. After I pulled in each line 1/2" to account for the hull thickness, I had a spot on starting place. This week, I will tweak each individual stringer to the correct height and some minor shaping of each one. Progress this weekend.

Hopefully I can PL the transom together this week and next weekend start with waterproofing. What a great feeling being able to see the beginnings of a usable boat.

 

[Greg Mrozinski]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Nice work Knot. Looks like it will be well supported and strong.

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Nice job on the support structure! It is a good feeling when you see forward progress

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

I need some help here. I am not an engineer and have never restored a boat before. I am looking at rick, frisco, tink, and others and am looking at how their engine compartment is configured. The thing that baffles me about mine is the motor mounts that were in the boat when I began tear down. These are 6"x8" treated timbers that are almost 4 feet long. On the bottom, they are cut the same shape as the hull. When I started, they were glassed in with something like 6 oz cloth, no roving. They were not secured to the hull so much as they were to the outboard stringers. I am concluding that they are treated since the resin did not stick very well to any of these things and just peeled off after I got them out of the boat. Now, they are solid, dry and show no signs of rot. My concern is that they are huge and I think that they are unnecessarily big. I am rebuilding the stringers to the same dimensions, give or take, as they were originally. I'm speculating here now... The simple thing would be to simply put these massive timbers back in their original position. More time consuming but seemingly better would be to make smaller mounts. What are your thoughts?

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Ayuh,... Access would surely be improved for the motor,...

I'd think, a foot, 'n 1/2, glassed in with woven would be sufficient,....
'ell, ya could bed 'em in PL...

They'd never move...

 

[rickryder]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Have you run across anyone that has the same boat that you can get a pic of the original engine mounts look like? Maybe contacting the manufacturer and ask if they have any info on it......

I think they are much too large and can be made smaller.

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

Have you run across anyone that has the same boat that you can get a pic of the original engine mounts look like? Maybe contacting the manufacturer and ask if they have any info on it......

I think they are much too large and can be made smaller.

I will make them a lot smaller, probably like bond-o said and like those I have seen on the forums. In the interim though, I will use the old ones as a guide for the new stringers, etc.

I should be ready for to install the transom tomorrow or Friday. Yeah...

 

[macca123]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

If you change the height of the stringers then will it not change the position of where the engine bolts on to the transom, I would go with what was there the 8x6, if the engine mounts are adjustable height wise then yes you could go with smaller stringers.

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

As for my outdrive, you tell me, what do I have?

Ayuh,... It's an MC-1 drive...

 

[knotperfect]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

If you change the height of the stringers then will it not change the position of where the engine bolts on to the transom, I would go with what was there the 8x6, if the engine mounts are adjustable height wise then yes you could go with smaller stringers.

I am going with same height, same width, 3 feet shorter. The 4 foot long 6X8 weighs about 50 pounds, each....

 

[NorCal408]

Interesting conversation. I will be getting my Dads Wellcraft 2000 suncruiser in less than a week. It seems the only problem that this boat had is that the hydraulic lift to the motor does work so the motor has to be lifted and dropped manually. Probably an ID10T error on my dads part...lol... ill see. By chance, does your boat have a toilet and also a sink and grill under the captains seat? mines does... Regards,

NorCal408

from what ive heard, this boat has a Volvo engine in it

Pics

 

[NorCal408]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

more pics

 

[NorCal408]

Re: 1977 Wellcraft Suncruiser complete restore

last 2