Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

[Adam Leyva]

My dad and i are going to try to restore his old Mckee Craft. I will try to get some pictures up tomorrow, its too dark now.

I would first like to know, since i cant find anything about it anywhere (in detail). How were these boats made? I think he said it was early 70's. Definitely 70's though.

I know they were pretty much a BW copy, but im curious to know what exactly is inside the hull. Is it just foam? Are there stringers? If so, were they coated in glass? Is there any wood? If so, was it coated in glass? Can it rot easily? The transom is still pretty strong, but im curious how that was made, too.

I also have some questions on gel coating. How exactly do you do that? I have a rough idea of what it is (being that i surf, i have done some fiberglass work and do know a bit about that). But is it kind of like painting with poly/epoxy resin? Whats the best way to go around that?

Finally (for now), theres some damage, dont really know how to explain (gotta get those pictures) but since you all have been around boats a while, they are from hitting waves out at sea going fast. They are located at the bow and about six inches forward from the transom on both sides. Im assuming, since theres foam inside, the foam has been cracked. The outside is strong and only needs minor work.

Sorry for the overload, all and any help is very appreciated!

Thank You, Adam


P.S. I WILL get some pics up soon!

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

use the boston whaler restoration info as a guide. continuouswave.com is a good site.

don't mess with the inner hull. you probably don't have water in there and if you do you can't get it out. The beauty of that boat design is that you don't need to mess with them. If you have serious issues then it's not worth fixing; replace the hull.

if the "damage" is big gaping holes then you have a problem; if they are thin cracks don't sweat it. verify that your transom is solid by pushing down on the motor.

I encountered a busted up whaler once from the sixties and was surprised to see steel, which had rusted, in it, but mine shows a little rust stain at the rail in some places, too.

Don't know what you are doing with the gel coat. holes and big cracks should be patched with resin and cloth; plain resin is too brittle. You can also mix glass powder into the resin. Marine tex is good for dings.

 

[Adam Leyva]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

Thanks for the reply. I will definitely check out continuous wave. The only holes are from the previous console (which was huge might i add) and other hardware. I was asking about the gel coat because we would like to gel coat the whole inside after we seal it up, instead of paint. Here are some pictures i took today.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

I don't see any need to gel coat it, just paint it. Why add the weight and money and time?
Fill the screw holes and sand.
make hatches for the front and floor and varnish them.
You may try buffing the blue and see what happens.
Paint the outer hull.

That crack in the front is not from waves. Something hit the boat, possibly from the side while it was on the trailer. Seal any cracks that may let water seep into the hull and forget about it. You can saw the bow off and keep going.

Inspect your drain hole for leaks into the hull there, too.

 

[Adam Leyva]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

Yeah, i guess painting would be fine. It just matters if we do it right or not, haha.

We still have the original hatches and floor boards, the one for the middle top is cracked and the wood inside most/all of them is rotted, no biggie, easy fixes on those.

That crack though mirrors the other side of the bow and theres two on both sides by the transom. I figured it was from going over big waves out at sea and while the boat was airborne it flexed and cracked in those spots. My dad was saying that they had a lot of fun jumping the waves (out in the keys) a lot though...

Thanks again for the advice, looking forward to finishing this thing up!

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

I've jumped a lot of waves, inlcuding in whalers, and don't see that happening. But it really doesn't matter "how."

On restoring it "right or not" my advice is based on it being an old, servicable hull still good for hard use, but not for restoring to show condition since it's not a Whaler and is starting off too rough to make that grade of restoration practical. Get it running and looking good from a distance, and enjoy using it and that it has its family history, but at the same time it's a work truck not a British sports car.

Good that you still have the wood for models. One good source of mahagony is old furniture, especially bed rails and headboards. Many cheap paste-board dressers have solid tops, too. Jus tbe sure to ask the wife before hauling them out of the guest room and cutting them to size.

 

[Adam Leyva]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

Good point, just looking to get water tight anyways. Hahaha, true, better ask first! Thanks again!

 

[oldandintheway]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

+ agree with check continuouswave.com

I had a McKee craft when I was in Sebastian, FL - what a great, fun, popular boat.
One of the few boats that I sold for a lot more than I paid.

 

[crabby captain john]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

I had a 17 McKee Backwater. Took it into the skinny and 17 miles offshore too. NOT a BW copy or clone. BW sued when the company started and the result of the BW loss is the public found what great boats they are and BW buyers became McKee owners. Sad they went out of business during the Obama-recession. Everyone is unsinkable and dam n near indestructible.

 

[Bahamas.boy]

My dad and i are going to try to restore his old Mckee Craft. I will try to get some pictures up tomorrow, its too dark now.

I would first like to know, since i cant find anything about it anywhere (in detail). How were these boats made? I think he said it was early 70's. Definitely 70's though.

I know they were pretty much a BW copy, but im curious to know what exactly is inside the hull. Is it just foam? Are there stringers? If so, were they coated in glass? Is there any wood? If so, was it coated in glass? Can it rot easily? The transom is still pretty strong, but im curious how that was made, too.

I also have some questions on gel coating. How exactly do you do that? I have a rough idea of what it is (being that i surf, i have done some fiberglass work and do know a bit about that). But is it kind of like painting with poly/epoxy resin? Whats the best way to go around that?

Finally (for now), theres some damage, dont really know how to explain (gotta get those pictures) but since you all have been around boats a while, they are from hitting waves out at sea going fast. They are located at the bow and about six inches forward from the transom on both sides. Im assuming, since theres foam inside, the foam has been cracked. The outside is strong and only needs minor work.

Sorry for the overload, all and any help is very appreciated!

Thank You, Adam


P.S. I WILL get some pics up soon!

I'm actually doing the seem ! I had my 14ft mckee craft for 3 months now I'm pretty much done with the cosmetic it looks really good I'll get some pictures up as soon as I can . It's a 1978 there very strong boats I have heard that some can be water log but other than there very good boats as far as the build quality I haven't put mine in the water as yet I'll keep you updated as to what I have learned and how it handles I'm new to the boat but so far I trust the fiberglass build its strong oh the center plank I would add something underneath it for stability . I replaced mine with pvc half inch and I add some little strips to stop it from binding in from the weight of people walking on it .

 

[Bahamas.boy]

Re: Restore Old Mckee Craft 17'

Thanks for the reply. I will definitely check out continuous wave. The only holes are from the previous console (which was huge might i add) and other hardware. I was asking about the gel coat because we would like to gel coat the whole inside after we seal it up, instead of paint. Here are some pictures i took today.

View attachment 176479View attachment 176480View attachment 176481View attachment 176482View attachment 176483

Looks good so far

 

[jbcurt00]

Looks good so far

Poster you quoted is long gone
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