Question 1973 17-6 Glassmaster Gm 165hp

[Thomas B. Caine]

Hi my name is Tom and am new to the forum. I bought this glassmaster boat and trailer for 112.50 which I thought was pretty cool however I notice owninga boat is not cheap. This is my first boat. I have some mechanical ability (rebuilding MG engines trannys etc). The boat itself is a v bottom with the omc stearn drive powered by a 165gmc eng. The boat has "sat" since 1995 at which time the previous owner said "it ran". I tried to turn the engine by hand and found it was seized. I removed the plugs and squirted a liberal amount of PB Blaster on top of the pistons, let it sit for more than a week and managed to free it. My question is; am I looking at a lot of money to get this ole girl back on the water' The previous owned said he knew nothing about engines and that the outdrive would not lift properly and he was tired of fooling with it. I haven't tried to remove the little motor I assume is used to raise and lower the unit. The fiberglass/getcoat seems to be in great shape with exception of a small "spider crack" on the port bow. The boat has always been used on fresh water lakes. Comments please. Thanks Tom
P.S. This is a great forum. I just don't want to get too excited yet.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Question 1973 17-6 Glassmaster Gm 165hp

You are probably looking at significant cost to rebuild the engine and outdrive, so I would examine the transom, floor and stringers to make sure the boat is worth fooling with. Making sure that the stringers are not rotted out is very important in a fibreglass boat in general, but is especially so in one with an inboard engine. This is true because the stringers are the "backbone" of the boat and carry the weight and stress of that heavy engine.

 

[Thomas B. Caine]

Re: Question 1973 17-6 Glassmaster Gm 165hp

You are probably looking at significant cost to rebuild the engine and outdrive, so I would examine the transom, floor and stringers to make sure the boat is worth fooling with. Making sure that the stringers are not rotted out is very important in a fibreglass boat in general, but is especially so in one with an inboard engine. This is true because the stringers are the "backbone" of the boat and carry the weight and stress of that heavy engine.

Thanks for the reply. As a update I have freed up the engine and found the starter to be toast along with the alternator. I guess I should be paying attention to the stringers. Where do I find the stringers. Are they below the deck area around the engine compartment? The floor itself seems to be firm. I am goind to rip up the carpet cover and if there are no weak spots I was going to cover the area with blue colored rhino liner. Good idea? I appreciate any help you can offer. Tom