Shoestring Starcraft SS160 Resto-mod - let the long slow road begin

[ShoestringMariner]

Edit; I figured it out

 

[ShoestringMariner]

First splash this year. Motor ran well, and it didn't seem to take on any more water. I forgot to shop vac out the residual rain water (my mooring covers leak) so I couldnt tell if any more came in. I'll shop vac it tomorrow and try again. Speed was pretty good, but I didnt have my phone to check GPS speed.

So things I didnt like. The power tilt may not have enough power to tilt up under heavy speeds. It sounds tired on the upswing to be honest
The motor may be sitting too high as I'm getting spray up the sides of the motor (more interestingly, up the starbord side ispray is worse). The prop als seemed to cavitate easily without much upward travel of the tilt. I set it at 3" higher (1/2" per 1" setback of the motor on the CMC tilt). I think I'll drop it an inch and see.

Lastly, I have lost reverse lock somehow. Any thoughts? (1975 Mercury 650)

I also discovered that the steering wheel is sitting 90 degrees from horizontal when traveling straight. I guess the extra setback of the CMC tilt changed the relationship of the steering wheel. odd

 

[Watermann]

I set my AV plate 1/2" above the bottom and the Merc runs great, I thought the rule of thumb was AV plate 1" up from the bottom of the hull per foot of set back. 6" set back so I set motors AV plate 1/2" up.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

I set my AV plate 1/2" above the bottom and the Merc runs great, I thought the rule of thumb was AV plate 1" up from the bottom of the hull per foot of set back. 6" set back so I set motors AV plate 1/2" up.

You could be right I may have things mixed up. Going to look into it deeper. My brother is going to watch to see if it’s getting enough water. I may just leave it for now. It only cavitates when I tilt too far. Which I probably won’t do ever. It seems to work best with the tilt fully down. I don’t really see or feel a change as the tilt starts to move backwards. I have a lot of things on my plate right now so it’s a non-priority as long as it’s getting water at top end.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

. So I’m planning out the next phase of this resto. Is there any really good stickies or must reads on electrical rewiring? I don’t know what ton about electrical systems. The wiring in this boat was an absolute rats nest. There’s no circuit breakers anywhere at least not hooked up. I did find one hanging with wires cut off. Wondering if battery disconnect switches are a good idea

I will be adding deep cycle batteries upfront for the Troller and a charging system. Looking for info on how to wire this up and the best locations for charging systems, distribution or fuse boxes etc.

I would also like to add a bunch of hidden LED lighting., The stereo, fishfinder, 12v and USB charge ports. Oh and a UHF radio

 

[Michigan Lakes]

"Wondering if battery disconnect switches are a good idea..."

I think a battery disconnect switch is great idea for any boat (or land vehicle for that matter) that does not have any modules or other electrical components that require re-learn cycles. I fully intend to install a battery disconnect on my SS to reduce inevitable parasitic draws and make electrical repairs and upgrades easier to perform.

 

[Watermann]

I have a disconnect on my Chief as it's a very simple set up but my SS is a straight up fishing boat with 4 batteries for all the associated trolling motor, electronics, lights, gauges and a battery just for starting and trim with 2 on board chargers. Adding all the extra connections for disconnects was not feasible. As far as parasite devices go, they all have fused switches that kills power to them. My Ray Marine DrangonFly fish finder does draw power even when not turned on but it's fuse switched so no issue there.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Thanks guys. Watermann, would you have photos in a build thread somewhere? There’s so many build threads here that I can never keep track of who’s done what and where to find it

 

[Watermann]

No I didn't take many pics of the wiring process, everything went pretty fast being a clean slate with only 2 runs of primary wire on each side of the boat. I used 12ga pos and neg for primary to the fuse panel and the switches draw current from the panel that are fused for the appropriate current draw. Just be sure to use an inline fuse on your primary pos run to the fuse panel at the battery for your gauge of wire, for mine it was 12ga so it has a 20 amp inline at the battery. I also made the runs in the plastic corrugated sheating using the gunnel looms the V5 has as standard equipment.

I think about all I took a pic of was the daisy chained gauge cluster. A very simple process but time consuming to get it right.

 

[bchaney]

I found the resources on the blue sea systems website to be helpful when rewiring my boat, see below for some battery wiring diagrams. They also have full system diagrams. You can also search Google images for boat wiring diagram to get some ideas. Blue sea also has a very helpful "circuit wizard" wire gauge calculator.

Check out my thread to see how I wired my boat. I still have a few more things to wire up but I'll post more pictures when I do.

https://www.bluesea.com/resources/17...l_Applications

​​​https://www.bluesea.com/resources/17...l_Applications

 

[PlayD0h]

Thanks guys. Watermann, would you have photos in a build thread somewhere? There’s so many build threads here that I can never keep track of who’s done what and where to find it

I have pictures of my dash from behind, showing where all the wires go. Have a look on AliExpress for your battery disconnect and other electrical misc. same stuff as Princess but a fraction of the price. Pay the $2-$5 for epacket shipping otherwise it will get left in a container for a couple months before Canada post gets around to opening it. Takes about 2 weeks on average.

Also, attn Figmo, check out ‘Metal Supermarkets’. One in Winterpeg and a bunch around GTA. They have off-cut bins where their lackies put the stuff they cut by mistake. It’s 1/2 price or less and there’s loads of everything, of all kinds. Bunch in the states as well, yet I’d guess like everything else, metal is cheap and available down the street. lol.

Nice work Shoe, BTW. Very sharp. If you want I’ll put some 3/16” solids in the mail to you. I have an extra 5 million, lol. That’s if you didn’t get any to replace those 5/16” ones under your transom, and want to. I would if you haven’t painted there yet. Maybe yours do have 5/16”. I’m not sure how important a 16” is but if it was a free and easy job, may as well.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

I have pictures of my dash from behind, showing where all the wires go. Have a look on AliExpress for your battery disconnect and other electrical misc. same stuff as Princess but a fraction of the price. Pay the $2-$5 for epacket shipping otherwise it will get left in a container for a couple months before Canada post gets around to opening it. Takes about 2 weeks on average.

Also, attn Figmo, check out ‘Metal Supermarkets’. One in Winterpeg and a bunch around GTA. They have off-cut bins where their lackies put the stuff they cut by mistake. It’s 1/2 price or less and there’s loads of everything, of all kinds. Bunch in the states as well, yet I’d guess like everything else, metal is cheap and available down the street. lol.

Nice work Shoe, BTW. Very sharp. If you want I’ll put some 3/16” solids in the mail to you. I have an extra 5 million, lol. That’s if you didn’t get any to replace those 5/16” ones under your transom, and want to. I would if you haven’t painted there yet. Maybe yours do have 5/16”. I’m not sure how important a 16” is but if it was a free and easy job, may as well.

Thanks for that kind offer. I think I might be ok though. I picked up a variety at Spaenaur. Thanks for the tips also, I’ll check your pics

i broke the ignition key off flush on the weekend. Oh, there were words. Colourful ones. Thought I was toast so I opened up the controls. Ignition switch connections are all soldered. Fun. Managed to pry out the broken key with an over-sharpened scriber.

Im so glad that I made a spare from the original...I cut a few extra and will strategically place a few around my tackle and in the boat. Thinking about doing on/off switch and a push button starter. I don’t need a key

 

[PlayD0h]

Thanks for that kind offer. I think I might be ok though. I picked up a variety at Spaenaur. Thanks for the tips also, I’ll check your pics

i broke the ignition key off flush on the weekend. Oh, there were words. Colourful ones. Thought I was toast so I opened up the controls. Ignition switch connections are all soldered. Fun. Managed to pry out the broken key with an over-sharpened scriber.

Im so glad that I made a spare from the original...I cut a few extra and will strategically place a few around my tackle and in the boat. Thinking about doing on/off switch and a push button starter. I don’t need a key

Well, could have been worse, lol. My key is stuck in the ignition. One day I’ll get a new tumbler, yet I also thought of a switch. One hidden under the dash, just to keep it safe from a kid or weekend thief.

Glad you got out we’re tactical enough to have a boat to use. I didn’t put those dash or wiring pictures up, but if you want them let me know and I’ll do so. I can take a pic of the rest of the harness also. Yet it’s pretty basic. Battery to panel, and another to the motor. Both I’m guessing 8 gauge, maybe 10.
Mid guess under a dozen wires up to the dash from the panel. 2 go past to bow nav light. 4 go back to nav light and bilge pump. I have a tach wire, but no tach. $150 at Princess would replace it all, panel and wires.
My panel is loose now since I didn’t put the corner pieces under the SW in.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Well, could have been worse, lol. My key is stuck in the ignition. One day I’ll get a new tumbler, yet I also thought of a switch. One hidden under the dash, just to keep it safe from a kid or weekend thief.

Glad you got out we’re tactical enough to have a boat to use. I didn’t put those dash or wiring pictures up, but if you want them let me know and I’ll do so. I can take a pic of the rest of the harness also. Yet it’s pretty basic. Battery to panel, and another to the motor. Both I’m guessing 8 gauge, maybe 10.
Mid guess under a dozen wires up to the dash from the panel. 2 go past to bow nav light. 4 go back to nav light and bilge pump. I have a tach wire, but no tach. $150 at Princess would replace it all, panel and wires.
My panel is loose now since I didn’t put the corner pieces under the SW in.

Which pieces under the SW? The door jambs?
I insulated 12 inches up the hull under the SW and clad with an aluminum panel. I figure this is where I’ll put the disconnect.

Some of the original wiring to the dash was so thin it look like it came out of an old telephone. I don’t want to skimp on wiring quality. I made a set of cables for my front troller from a set of cheap booster cables but the wire quality is junk (likely copper coated aluminum strand) and so soft that my lugs broke off within weeks. I’ve got a bunch of PA wire in various gauges which will be fine for lighter stuff. 12v USB power, bilge pump etc.

I want to add a tach, Speedo, hidden lighting and power for sonar. And better switches

The big thing is, where do I put a fuse block and disconnect out of the rain?

Dont go to any trouble posting pics unless you really want to.

and I’m not worried about theft. Locks are for honest people. If some goof really wants it, there’s not much I can do...hooking things up to 600v is illegal around here.
But good idea about the kids messing around. A hidden toggle or lock is a good idea. I wonder if disconnect switches are lockable or have removable knobs etc

 

[bchaney]

I got some high quality marine wire at a good price from bestboatwire.com

Fuse block under dash/console and disconnect under SW is what I'd do if I wanted to keep everything out of the rain. Most of your accessories and switches are near the dash so it makes the most sense to have it there, and you want the path from the battery to the motor to be as short as possible so rear disconnect makes the most sense. I'm assuming your batteries are in the rear.

 

[ShoestringMariner]

I got some high quality marine wire at a good price from bestboatwire.com

Fuse block under dash/console and disconnect under SW is what I'd do if I wanted to keep everything out of the rain. Most of your accessories and switches are near the dash so it makes the most sense to have it there, and you want the path from the battery to the motor to be as short as possible so rear disconnect makes the most sense. I'm assuming your batteries are in the rear.

Thanks. Starting/main battery is at the rear. I have a deep cycle up front for the bow mount troller. That will be a set up all its own. I'll have an onboard charger for it when I get to that part of the project. I'll likely have 2 batteries up front wired in parallel. I'm assuming no disconnect req'd if its always going to be in a state of charge or in use. (travel and storage excepted)

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Well, woke up to rain and thunderstorms. No fishing today. Decided to do a little bit of wrenching on the boat.

I lowered the motor 1 inch to see if that will help the spray issue I was getting. That’s as low as I can go without major modifications or new holes through the transom which I’m not about to do. Got my fingers crossed I think I installed this motor too high on the misunderstanding of the setback rule.

hoping to try it out tomorrow if the weather is good.

also decided to make a new catch dog the motor cowl. The plastic one broke leaving only one catch working. So I fashioned one up out of a 3/8 bolt. I’m not going to paint it. I’ll see if the fuel oil mist in front of the carbs keeps it from getting rusty...

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Spent the rest of my day making room to shoehorn it into my grarage. I'd like to keep it dry as my mooring covers leak like a sieve. That and I want to leave fuel, tools and all my fishing gear in it so I dont have to load/unload constantly. There's been a lot of vehicle break ins and my gear would be easy pickings.

The OSB overlay I put in it last year didnt last a year before getting soft, so I re-cut a piece of old plywood for the bow floor which seems to be the worst spot. I also removed one bench panel so I could put the front troller battery inside. All just temp as I'm tearing it all out this winter. We're using it hard this september and early october. Holy cow though, black mould between the vinyl to vinyl mating surfaces and in any crevaces. I cant wait to strip it all out

 

[ShoestringMariner]

Anyone know where I can find window glazing material to redo these windows? I’m thinking about removing it all, masking off the glass and using an automotive glass silicone. But I don’t want to do that until I replace the floors this winter. ( I don’t want to reglaze this glass with silicone and have it racked )
Was hoping I could find some sort of glazing rubber and just jam it in temporarily or permanently

it’s falling out all over the place. Touching it gets black soot all over my hands... then all over my new white seats...

 

[Watermann]

Vinyl window glazing would be a better option over silicone on your AL frames. I used the stuff that is barbed where it goes inside the channel. The thing is you have to get the measurements exact for your particular window channel and I'm not sure what yours would be but it looks like this.