1979 Starcraft 16’ SS Refresh

[Moserkr]

She's lookin' less and less like a Jackson Pollock in there .

I had to look that one up lol. Wow... tape a banana to the wall n call it done! Should have clean floors by sunday

 

[SHSU]

Moving right along!

Nothing like a "First Mate" to give you proper motivation.

You have a chance to measure that front area for a Fuel tank?

SHSU

 

[Moserkr]

Just took a look and its measuring pretty small. 4” on the short sides, 6” to the bottom in the middle, 18” wide - all leaving some wiggle room for padding. Will remeasure tomorrow but thats close enough. So... rds 18g belly wont work but you may have already known that lol. Length wont matter if i can get all the fittings towards the bow. Even if i need to have a step to the bow deck between the consoles ill have space for fittings up there. Back to the drawing board and interwebs. I can see why watermann said not many people do it and why you went custom.

 

[Watermann]

Having some small leaks in my boats that never kick on the bilge pump over an entire day on the water I call success but there's always some that gets in just not much. Here's my SS bilge pump set up, I strongly suggest a separate float switch.

 

[Watermann]

What it this?

 

[Moserkr]

What it this?

Consoles and front deck fully removed?? Not sure what you’re looking at. Is something not right?? Lol. Cause that wouldnt surprise me. The stringers and supports were barely or not attached for the most part.

Will definitely think about adding the float switch to the bilge. PO said he tried installing one but never got it to work.

 

[Moserkr]

Alright, finally got the floors out!!! All shopvac’d and ready for the next step - pressure wash. Then count rivets and order them. So far not seeing as many wrong rivets as i thought i would. Meantime look for fuel tank options. Pretty happy with how the metal hull looks - no major pits, holes, or corrosion noticed yet. Just dirty which is easy to fix. Transom looks to have a bunch of extra holes without screws or rivets, but has a bunch of bolts all the was through. During my leak test, the transom never had an issue and seems to be solid otherwise. Wood is painted so I assume its also sealed - its not rotten and doesnt flex. PO did not change the transom so it was the POx2 that last did work to it for his duck hunting missions.

 

[Watermann]

Sorry, I was referring to that green stuff in the pic, I'm thinking was some sort of deck covering just didn't know what it was made of.

So does the transom wood have AL on the inside covering it? Or is it just me but I can't see any painted wood

 

[Moserkr]

@Watermann Yes the transom on the inside has AL covering it. There is another piece of wood on the outside of the transom that is painted black. Since its in the water constantly back there, i hope its sealed lol. I should probably look at some other transoms to compare and see if mine needs rehab while im at it. Seems solid to me whether right or wrong. Will get a pic of the outside for reference soon.

 

[Mikesta]

I know I'm late to the party here but I actually like the paint scheme you got going on there....the green flooring I'm not to fond of though. It would look cool if that floor design was blue instead of green though. Also on the rivet thing, If you think you're going to need more than 100 just order a 1000 pack, it will be significantly more cost effective then ordering 100 packs

 

[SHSU]

The aluminum sheeting on the interior isn't original, or at least not that I am aware of. I would definitely open it up and take a look. Also, for as cheap as you can rebuild these transoms it may be worth the piece of mind just to do it since you have it torn apart already.

The piece of wood on the exterior I am guessing is supposed to be a damping plate between the motor and the hull. I didn't have one but thought about adding one. Asked the forum and general consensus was not needed.

As for the fuel tank, ya didn't think you had 34 inches. How much extra height will the elevated deck give you?

Always good to have a float switch just in case. Simple wiring and I followed @Watermann suggestion to have it direct hooked to a battery so no matter if I have the House batteries disconnected it can still get power through the float switch. So I have switch at the panel and the float switch. Only time the float switch has been activated when out is when we were taking a pounding coming back in from a Jetty run in Galveston. Lots of water being sprayed up. Otherwise, I like to do a normal wash down of the deck on the trailer and fill the bilge to trigger the float switch. Even though I check every time before going out, still good to see it in action plus it helps wash out any salt that may have gotten into the system.

SHSU

 

[Moserkr]

@Mikesta glad to have ya along! Looked through your build and picked up some info from you too! Thanks! My floors used to match the paint but the sun/dirt ruined them. The green vinyl is really my biggest pet peeve but its out now and gone forever. Will definitely order way more rivets than needed but I dont want to do 1000 lol. @SHSU can keep the trophy for most rivets hahaha. Originally I estimated less than 50 and i think that will be close. I thought the PO used the wrong rivets since he replaced 170+, but it looks like he used the right ones after all! The wrong ones Ive been looking at are the temporary ones I put in over the summer.

@SHSU Interesting news about that AL sheet on the inside transom. I took a closer look and added some pics. There were some leaking rivets back there I sealed since they were the wrong kind. Forgot about them... Also was able to see the corner of the wood hiding behind the AL sheet and I poked it with a screw driver. Rotten... So... to redo those rivets transom would come off anyway. Looks like its getting redone on the inside. Outside wood piece, even if not needed, is new and solid. It may be whats holding my transom together so well right now lol. It looks like my motor needs that extra exterior wood to rest on. Is that not the case??

For the fuel tank, so far I have not found a stock one for the belly... I can get the length to where the fittings would go under either the front deck or a step to it. Not confident on the belly tank right now. Plan as of now is talk to my boat building friends and see what they think or know. If custom seems too pricey then she will get a bow tank. Wish I had more time/money for exactly what I want but im not picky.

I like the float switch idea and will do it. Good thing all this info is written down for me to review! Will hardwire as well. Note to self haha.

Pics of exterior transom. Lets see if you guys can find any other issues. Now I just need to figure out how to take my motor off the boat... i didnt want to unwire or disconnect it... something to ponder.

 

[Watermann]

@Watermann Yes the transom on the inside has AL covering it. There is another piece of wood on the outside of the transom that is painted black. Since its in the water constantly back there, i hope its sealed lol. I should probably look at some other transoms to compare and see if mine needs rehab while im at it. Seems solid to me whether right or wrong. Will get a pic of the outside for reference soon.

I would delete that outside wood motor pad, no need for it. I replaced mine with AL only because there were some non BIA standard mounting holes. The wood will only become a problem sooner or later and cause corrosion between the surfaces. Glad you were able to find the transom wood was compromised before moving on.

 

[Moserkr]

Yea worth discovering now than down the road. I figured there would be more surprise parts of the project so looks like she will get the full treatment. Bright side is with the motor removed the boat will fit in the garage better and allow me to take her over to my in laws where they have an air compressor for all the rivets.

Decided Im going to run a 17 gallon moeller fuel tank up front underneath the bow deck. Not the belly tank I wanted but my budget does not allow for custom, nor do I have time to endlessly surf the web. Also a bonus of under $200 for the fuel tank.

Moeller Marine, Below Deck Permanent Fuel Tank, for Boats Built Before 2011 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000MTB7LU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_az71FbRXP5E29

I have 12” of H space under my bow deck and the LxW dimensions will easily fit. Lose a little storage there but I gain storage under my future rear bench seat. Figure the fuel will add 100 lbs to the bow area and help balance against the big motor, as well as people sitting in the back.

 

[SHSU]

The picture showing your exterior knee brace rivets needs to be redone. The knee brace is a key component and will take a lot of force. You can see the extra exterior bracing I installed to help beef up the area. Plus I redid the drain plug location as it did no good being so high up. Still left way to much water sitting in the bilge for me.



As @Watermann said, exterior piece of wood is not needed and it isn't holding your transom together. Think the rotten wood may only be near the edges and you still have some solid at the engine mount. Will be interesting to see how much mulch you find when you open it up.

Now I just need to figure out how to take my motor off the boat... i didnt want to unwire or disconnect it... something to ponder.

Taking the engine out shouldn't be an issue and unhooking the wire harness should be fairly simple and straight forward. Your wires should be color coded so reassembly would be easy plus some of the maintenance is easier when you don't have to work over a splashwell.

Decided Im going to run a 17 gallon moeller fuel tank up front underneath the bow deck. Not the belly tank I wanted but my budget does not allow for custom, nor do I have time to endlessly surf the web. Also a bonus of under $200 for the fuel tank.

Nice!! Glad you found one that will work. Don't forget to create some kind of "floor" for the tank to sit on as it spans the keel.

SHSU

 

[Moserkr]

@SHSU I like how you have your drain set up much lower. I have noticed I get quite a bit of water sitting in mine. Due to the lovely laws of CA, if I am inspected before launch and its found i have ANY water present in the bilge, then I will not be permitted to launch. I will keep it in mind that I may need a better drain hole.

I also like the way you reinforced that knee brace. I will probably copy that idea and i agree, replace all the rivets of the brace. Not a lot of work for a lot of insurance.

I will work out pulling all the wires off the motor and disconnecting the steering today. Not sure how to do the steering though. I think it has fluid as well as cables? Will google it.

The moeller fuel tank will sit on the deck floor that runs floor to stern. It was put in by the PO and is 3/4” thick ply that has been epoxied. A few pieces of the bow area have not been epoxied though so I will be doing it for all wood going into the boat.

On that note, I will also be redoing the trailer bunks since they are treated 2x6’s, and not sealed. Once the motor is off, all wires will be taken out so I can have a bare hull. Even debating stripping the paint now after seeing classiccats, yours, and watermanns work.

I was hoping for a slightly less intensive renovation, but you dont really know until you tear into it. I have accepted the fact that I will not be done in a few months, but I should be done by June at the latest when boating season starts. Was originally aiming for the start of fishing season (march) but will see how it goes.

 

[SHSU]

I was hoping for a slightly less intensive renovation, but you dont really know until you tear into it. I have accepted the fact that I will not be done in a few months, but I should be done by June at the latest when boating season starts. Was originally aiming for the start of fishing season (march) but will see how it goes.

There is getting it done and doing it right. I will admit I had no idea how big of a project I was getting into when we bought the boat. We bought it in January and I thought we would be done by March, July at the latest. We did splash in July.... just two years later. LOL

As for your case, the extra time and effort will mean countless extra hours of fun with the first mate.

@SHSU I like how you have your drain set up much lower. I have noticed I get quite a bit of water sitting in mine.

I knew I was going to do saltwater fishing so good drainage after the day out was paramount. Plus, just makes me nervous when I see water in the bilge. Makes me worried I have a hole and with how fast things can change out on the water, not something I want to gamble with.

On that note, I will also be redoing the trailer bunks since they are treated 2x6’s, and not sealed. Once the motor is off, all wires will be taken out so I can have a bare hull. Even debating stripping the paint now after seeing classiccats, yours, and watermanns work.

Sounds like you already know, but need to get rid of that treated lumber. It will do bad things to your aluminum hull.

SHSU

 

[Moserkr]

@SHSU Absolutely. I know it wont be perfect but it will be done right. Not sure how long I will live at this house or in CA so time is of the essence lol. Plus I want to be splashed by summer time at the latest. I commend you for the long rebuild but that would kill me!! Want my garage back too haha. I was telling the Admiral how many little things had to be done to the boat and she asked if I was having second thoughts!! Only been married a little over a year so she hasnt seen me do a project like this yet. I dont start anything and not finish it. Then at her dad’s with the rock crawler I find out the crawler will be the only project he ever has finished!! I see where her doubt comes from... I have read enough threads now to know that a lot of times these poor boats get torn down and sit unfinished or forgotten.

I will have to reread your build on the lower drain hole. I know you have a livewell though with repurposed/added drain holes. I cant say I want 2 drains with 2 plugs.... i could always just dry out that low spot with a towel or shopvac too. Undecided here. If I stay in CA saltwater or brackish will happen eventually though...

I fully understand the horrors of the bunks I put in now. When I replaced them this summer I was unaware of what happens with treated lumber and aluminum. So soon I will have the motor off, hull off the trailer, and will replace the bunks. Also took a look at @Watermann ’s bunks and i know mine could be improved. Will be adding a larger area for them to sit on as right now just a corner of a 2x6 holds the boat up. My trailer is s&!t but it works for now. For the bunks, I need to figure out how to angle my 2x6’s, and add another 2x6 on top for a larger area to sit on. Maybe some angled AL bolted on to hold it together to form the T of 2x6’s. Ill take some pics to show what Im working with later today.

All this talk makes me want to get to work! Luckily (relatively) my business works with mainly business owners and during the holidays it slows to a crawl. Should allow me to buckle down and get a good bit done, especially when the Admiral is off for 12 days.

 

[Moserkr]

Getting excited! Got all the electrical out except for the stuff attached to the motor. But, plans are in place to pull the motor tomorrow, after fishing, meaning the gutting will be complete! PO is also coming over sunday to mill some lumber and hang out.

Then I can wash her and prep for rivets/paint stripping. Also can free up my garage, and pull her over to my in laws for riveting after xmas. Seeing it come together in your head is half the battle I believe. Actually happy she will be completely gutted and given the full treatment so I know every rivet, bolt, and wire in the boat.

Admiral and I even agreed on a paint scheme and colors. Will be two tone like the pic attached (looks like an iboat resto, props to that guy). But throwing in a red pin stripe along the gunwale for an all-American theme. Love America, guns, and freedom so the boat will be given that honor of its American roots. Pics of blue color choices 1&2 attached as well. Admiral wants it glossy.

Father in law is also the highest level certified painter and has worked on some very nice cars. He wont be painting the boat but my advice will come from him.

May be just the beginning but tearing down is half the battle and the part I like the least. Rebuilding is a lot more fun in my mind.

Also I have what looks to be the original red/green bow light, railing pieces, and cleats. Under the grey paint I can see the mustard yellow original paint. If anyone wants these for a period resto or something, happy to send em your way for the shipping cost. Im upgrading everything to led and new larger chrome cleats.

 

[classiccat]

May be just the beginning but tearing down is half the battle and the part I like the least. Rebuilding is a lot more fun in my mind.

Also I have what looks to be the original red/green bow light, railing pieces, and cleats. Under the grey paint I can see the mustard yellow original paint. If anyone wants these for a period resto or something, happy to send em your way for the shipping cost. Im upgrading everything to led and new larger chrome cleats.

In some cases (like my most recent rebuild), tearing down was 5% of the battle !

Classic paint scheme right there. Aluminum prep is key. I went with interlux 2-part tip-n-roll...very pricey but it's bombproof. If your FIL has access to a proper paint booth / PPE (fresh-air supplied), you should start sucking up to him now .

I don't recognize this restoration but it may have been done on here before my time.