Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

[Surfdancer]

Picked up this '76 model off Craigslist for under $700 with a good trailer. The boat has the Mercruiser model 888 (Ford 302) for power. I've had the boat for about 3 1/2 weeks.

Previous (second) owner had redone the interior completely in Hunter green. The boat is missing one side glass from windshield, and has no top, but otherwise seems complete. The hull has a few gel coat scratches from the trailer and docking, but is structurally in good condition. The floor has been recovered, and is sound. The motor was stuck, and the freeze plugs were popped out of the side of the block. I bought it anyway, figuring I could make a planter out of the hull after selling the trailer and the drive bits on Ebay, if I couldn't do anything with it.

I put the boat in my shop, pulled the spark plugs and put Marvel Mystery Oil in the cylinders. After a week, I was able to turn the engine and whatever rust bound up the rings is not noticable when turning it slowly.

With some difficulty I pulled the outdrive and the gimbal bearing came out of the bell housing, I managed to get the gimbal bearing off the input shaft, cleaned and lubed up the u-joints, and installed a new bearing in the bell housing. Ebay is a great place to shop

I yanked the engine, which wasn't easy with the clearance of the manifold risers in the rear. After pulling the bell housing and replacing all the freeze plugs (again, another Ebay purchase), I cleaned it up a bit and started working on the starter. The starter is an old Prestolite job. It's the same as the expensive Arco ones. The armature wiring was pretty nasty, but I cleaned it all up, lubed up the shaft bushings and put it all back together. This starter has what Arco calls a folo thru (or something like that) bendix gear which keeps the gear extended until high rpm is reached.

With the cylinders cleaned out, oil drained from the pan, and a fresh set of plugs, it was time to tip her back into the recently cleaned bilge.

So, with the engine buttoned up, installed, filled with oil and aligned, I installed the drive leg and tried cranking her. Very slow cranking and battery cables heated up quickly Time to buy a starter => hello Ebay (one is en route and should arrive this week - $67 shipped).

So far, I've got about $900 into this project and I hope the new starter will be the last of the pricey bits.

I've still got some electrical wire sorting to straighten out. The previous owner had a shop install a single lever control, with the thumb tilt / trim button. The outdrive comes up, but all I get is solenoid clicks when I try to lower the drive. I've got the Clymer manual on order (Amazon - $19 shipped) which has the wiring color codes for that. With that info, I hope I can straighten it out and put it right.

Anyway, I don't have photos yet, but I'll post some soon.

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Update...

Got it running a while back, but the engine did the dreaded "motor milkshake". I've been pretty busy, but finally got around to pulling the engine with the help of a willing assistant (in pic). He did the wrenching in the bilge to pull the engine. He thought it was "fun".

Time for a complete teardown (and possible longblock)...

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Hi Surfdancer,
You will like that American! I have had three (two 15s and an 18). It is a very good hull design and take wakes and moderate chop very well. Be sure the check the transom and stringers carefully, as most of the 1970s Americans I've come across have had issues there.
Check my sig links for more photos...
- Scott

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Well, I've torn down the engine...

Previous owner didn't drain the block, manifolds and elbows before a hard freeze and one head is cracked. A chunk of the head was pushed towards the valve cover. The part of the casting which holds rockers for cylinder #2 was loose.

I'm going to finish the teardown and determine if I should just do a rering and head replacement job, go for a remanufactured longblock, or just part out the good parts and recover my investment.

I still need to test the exhaust manifolds to make sure they're okay. That may be the deciding factor whether to rebuild or part it out.

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Engine update...

With a busy life, wife and kids, I finally got around to finishing the engine teardown.

Other than the cracked head and questionable cam bearings, the engine looks good. If I can find a junkyard head in good shape, lap the valves and replace the seals then I can rering the engine and get it back in and running for about $350, including oil and filter. Engine rebuild kits (including rings, bearings and a full gasket set) go for under $300 delivered. The cylinders actually look pretty good - a little carbon up top, but not much in the way of wear. I should be able to lightly hone them and knock off the glaze. Pistons are a little dirty, but the sides and tops look sound. A good cleaning and some fresh rings should get them up to par. The original machining marks are very clear, so the wear to the skirts is minimal.

The crank, rods, cam all look okay. I need to tear the lifters apart one at a time and clean them up. I could drop another $75 on a set of lifters, but I don't want to invest unnecessary money into this project - My original goal was to have a beater ski boat for under a grand. Now that target has moved to $1500, but I have decided to get a chunk of tempered glass ordered for the missing side window.

With my schedule, I don't think the boat will be in the water too soon, but I still might splash it this year.

Regarding the hull design on this boat, it is very close in shape to a 1974 Allmand I used to have. There are 4 chines, and the lofting is very similar. That boat would take 1-2 ft chop like it didn't exist, but large rollers and washing machine chop in the inlet were another story. In the rough, this hull design would tend to dig in too much in the bow.

Of course, with a smaller hull and more weight bias towards the stern, this boat may handle the rough stuff better. We'll see...

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

I haven't had any luck finding a cylinder head locally. Anybody got an old Merc 888 engine they are parting out? I need to buy 1 head that matches the original stuff, or a set which will work.

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Yet another update...

While searching for repair parts, I stumbled upon a reasonable deal. I ended up putting a remanufactured Mercruiser 888 engine in the boat. I swapped my tins, mounts, carb, distributor, etc as mine were in much better shape.

While it was apart I serviced the drive (water pump, inspect / lube u-joints, fresh lube and zinc trim tab). I buttoned everything up, got it primed and timed, and she cranked up and ran very nice.

Compared to a previous Mercruiser 888 I had in another boat, the water discharge from the exhaust seems to be diverted too much. By this I mean the water shutters seem to push most of the water out of the gimball housing ports rather than the prop hub.

I also noticed that it likes to run a touch warmer than my previous 888. I'm getting temperatures as high as 170 at the intake manifold when running on the muffs. I've got plenty of water flow and I pulled the exhaust elbows and double checked that the discharges weren't full of rust and crud - they're clear. I pulled the thermostat housing apart and the thermostat is a 143 ?F type and appears to open fully when warm.

She idles good, so I don't think I have the carb adjusted too lean. In a limited run on the lake, she has plenty of get up and go.

I checked head bolt torques and such. Oil is clean. I'm at a bit of a loss here. Any ideas of other things I should / could check? I verified the temperature with independent instrumentation and she's running warm.

Oh yea,

Anybody need a good shortblock and one head from a '76 Mercruiser 888?

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Photos...

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Mo Photos

 

[Joe_the_boatman]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Looks good! Just like me, you got her done just in time for the off-season. I plan on taking mine out this winter a few times though, at least.

Can't help you with the I/O questions, sorry. Maybe try the I/O forum.

 

[Surfdancer]

Re: Starcraft American 18 - 1976 I/O Project

Well, I blasted out the water passages of each exhaust riser, then flushed them out real good (with a fire hose!) and put her back together.

Everything is good now. Temperature got to 145 and stayed there

As soon as the water comes back up in the lake, I'll splash her for the remainder of her break in. A couple more tweaks here and there, some cleaning and waxing, and she'll be ready for the 2009 season!

Tides / schedule permitting, I will take her out on the river a few times before it gets too cool.

Now, I've got to find a bimini top so we can take the baby next year!