The well traveled 1979 Starcraft 18' V5 SS

[GA_Boater]

Why ya putting new decals on? LOL

Funnin', WM.

 

[Watermann]

Guess I could leave the motor de-badged so to speak to give her more of an unknown factor out there on the water.

 

[GA_Boater]

Stealthy! Sneak up on those fish! Ha Ha.

 

[g0nef1sshn]

Looks brand new! Awesome work. Two things i never want do are complete trailer redo's and motor painting!

 

[Patfromny]

Dude, no kidding at all, that is a factory paint job. It isn't even fully cured yet and it is glass. Beautiful work for a non spray booth shoot. I have got to practice with my gun. You put me to shame. Oh, and I hate the no decal look. Noone will mistake that for a Tohatsu 3 hp either. You wouldn't be fooling anyone. :nono: I did have a thought on the decals though. It might be cool to change the face plate top sticker to say "Tower of Power" instead of Thunderbolt ignition. Sorry, I like spending other people's money :behindsofa:

 

[pckeen]

Really nice. Looks like new.

 

[Watermann]

Thanks guys, I almost didn't repaint the old beast since it was such a daunting task but I think it was well worth the effort.

 

[Patfromny]

Well worth the effort. I guess the tank setback helped you make up your mind as well. Glad to here it should be to you soon. That was pretty quick turn around for a custom tank.

 

[BMerr509]

Awesome paint job! i have an old merc you should paint lol i've noticed you guys all run late model 2-strokes- is there any way to tell how many hours are on them? or do you judge by compression?

And while your making your decal decision, what made merc go from red to blue, back to red?

 

[Watermann]

Awesome paint job! i have an old merc you should paint lol i've noticed you guys all run late model 2-strokes- is there any way to tell how many hours are on them? or do you judge by compression?

And while your making your decal decision, what made merc go from red to blue, back to red?

Thanks for stopping by my SS thread. If the old 2 smoker has good compression then it's a good motor for many years to come baring any disasters that is.

The base color of Merc has either been white early years and black later of course. The decals and emblems are all over the place through the years but the 1979 model was the only year for that blue splattered with black.

 

[Watermann]

Got the tank, so excited, man that coal tar epoxy is nice and super protective. Dropped it in the hole and wow does it look nice.

Then I look at the filler neck... oh no they decided to make it over an inch too tall for no reason!!!

 

[Patfromny]

Please tell me it's screwed in? Now that sucks. Get your money back. Not to spec. Wonder if it can be fixed by a local shop at their expense?

 

[budski]

Right on Rob, can't wait to see your progress now.

 

[GA_Boater]

Say it ain't so, Joe....er WM.

Did they miss this?

 

[pckeen]

Where is that filler neck in relation to the structure over the top? Is that something you can just do a mod on, when you put the floor and superstructure in?

 

[StarTed]

Great looking tank and nice fit.

Can the filler neck just be cut off and still work? Hope it's not too hard to make it work.

I think these things are just part of the experiences we have rebuilding these old boats.

You'll figure it out.

 

[Watermann]

No not screwed in, it's all welded up. I've no idea why they made that filler so tall when clearly the tank was supposed to fit in a very narrow space. Guess I should be glad they didn't make the neck 5 inches tall. Not sure how the protective epoxy would like the heat of cutting and welding, my luck it would be a mess.

After drinking 5 mugs of beer and staring at it, I think I've found a work around, a cut out in the deck above the neck should give it room and allow for access. I can't use a screw in deck plate though so maybe a piece of AL, painted in non skid screwed down over it will give the room needed. This really sucks no mater what after the money spent on the custom tank.

 

[jbcurt00]

Dont go too far down the work around road until you talk to the tank maker.

If it was specified for a short filler, it should be a redo on their dime.

Bummer though.....

 

[Watermann]

I sent Moeller an email with the pic above showing the long neck. Not sure why a guy doing the work would think that 2" of neck above the tank would be a good idea on a tank 4.25" high when I sent them a pic of the original tank with a 1/2 long neck under the 90 with a square showing the measurements.

 

[Patfromny]

I would try to have them make this right. The waiting sucks but why put a hole in your floor to accommodate a screw up. This isn't something you picked up off a donor and you are trying to make work with the boat. You spent alot of money on this so that it would fit perfectly.