I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

[DarkeMaster]

Gentlemen,

I have found what what is tantamount to finding a restorable Model "T" (in the boat world anyway).

I lucked into this boat in the back yard of a home in Fremont, CA. (and I bought it instantly without even knowing what it was). Turns out, it is a 1960, model #9001, Sea King boat. Originally manufactured for and sold by Montgomery Ward in 1960. The fiberglass hull is stripped out but in incredible condition for a 47 year old boat. The hull will require absolutely NO REPAIR, she of course, needs new gelcoat/paint and that I can live with.

I was able to get this boat with the original Sea King trailer for only $250.00. I can't believe it. They only made these things in 1958-60 and from what I have been able to ascertain, there are nearly none of them left in existence today. How cool is that????

I am so excited that I just had to post this here and share it with people who know what this means..(my wife who is supposed to share my excitement can care less). I live for every moment I can work on her..

I have also found a perfectly running, 1960 60HP Sea King motor (similar to the one that was shipped with this boats), with all of the original controls that I am arranging to purchase as we speak.

How much do you think I should insure her for???

I AM SO EXCITED !!!!!!!!

D Man

 

[CATransplant]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I'm glad you found a boat you like, and that 60hp Sea King outboard will be a great match for it.

Looks like you have a bunch of work ahead of you, getting the boat re-rigged and making that old outboard purr.

How much to insure it for? Well, maybe a couple thousand, once it's restored. By then, that'll be about what you have invested in it.

 

[DarkeMaster]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I would think that a rare antique would be worth a little more than that. You do not see these things around anymore. I was thinking about $2500 for the insurance that will cover costs plus misc.. gear.

Do you really think she will only be worth $2000 fully restored? I would think at least double that as a classic (obviously to the right buyer)...

Thanks for the help..

D Man

 

[freddyray21]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I don't know how many of them are out there, but imo it is very similar to other boats made by other manufacturers during those years. You really need to get into something like a Meteor before you really start talking any kind of money on these old boats. It is mostly a labor of love.

 

[steelespike]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Those old 60s were slick looking, in my opinion better than their sister Evinrude and Johnsons.A really cool sound and lots of low end grunt.
They are however heavy and really hard on gas.You may find some ignition parts hard to find.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I would think that a rare antique would be worth a little more than that. You do not see these things around anymore. I was thinking about $2500 for the insurance that will cover costs plus misc.. gear.

Do you really think she will only be worth $2000 fully restored? I would think at least double that as a classic (obviously to the right buyer)...

Thanks for the help..

D Man

Some boats from that period have good value. Most are speed boats from famous makers, not cabin cruisers from Mongomery Wards. Go to fiberglassics.com and look around at the boats owned by some of the members there.

Restoring a boat is also a real concern. If, and I stress the word "if," someone wanted your cruiser as a collector's boat, they'd be looking really, really closely at it for authenticity. By that I mean every part should be original, as the boat was equipped when new. Same with the outboard. Go to Google and search for Sea King or Gale 60hp outboards of that vintage. They're not all that expensive, even in good condition. For a collector, the engine, like the boat, has to be perfect.

Restoring a 1960 fiberglass cabin cruiser to as new condition is expensive. No amateur patching is allowed. Finding a new wheel...new instruments...new everything that's worn out or missing, and finding the exact, right replacement for it will be very difficult.

If this were a ChrisCraft or some other boat that collectors covet, then it might...possibly...be worth fixing to sell. It's not, though. It's a Montgomery Wards cabin cruiser. It would be worth fixing to use, and would be a fun boat for you to cruise on.

I think that if you do a great job on restoring it, it might bring $2000 or so from the right buyer, but that's about it, based on my research on boats of that vintage.

Restoring old boats is rarely a money-maker. Do it because you love the boat and want to use a nice old restored cruiser. If this is your first fiberglass boat restoration, then it will be a learning experience for you.

 

[DarkeMaster]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Yeah, I agree with everyone, I want to reassure everyone that this restoration is not about future money or value. I really love the lines of this old boat (It's got baby fins !!). I am restoring it in hopes of having something to pass down for my kids and hopefully their kids to enjoy. I think it's kinda cool that the boat was built and sold the same year I was born.

This little boat is not being done for resale. I want to have something small and affordable to do some coastal fishing (Salmon, Tuna..etc). I am restoring it FOR ME...I want something that looks better than decent and that will turn a few heads as it passes by...That will satisfy me completely.

You can't fault me for hoping it would be worth something though..

D Man

 

[CATransplant]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Good deal! It'll make a fine boat for you and your family. I was just responding about the monetary value. Lots of folks get stars in their eyes about old boats, thinking they'll make out big when they get it fixed up and sell it.

You can think of it in a couple of ways. A 1960 Corvette, in really nice condition, is worths some bucks. A 1960 Studebaker Lark or a 1960 Ford Falcon isn't.

Sea King boats just don't have that glitter about their name, I'm afraid. Never have, and never will.

Now, I'm not sure who made your boat. MW bought their boats from different manufacturers. Somewhere out there is a boat with a different name on it that's identical, though.

I couldn't find the horsepower maximum for your 1960 model, but the 1959 equivalent looks like it was 70 hp. That translates to two 35 hp engines...a very nice look on that boat. Trust me, it'll scoot with that power.

 

[DarkeMaster]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Right now I have a single 55HP Chrysler. I think the brochure for the boat specified that it was shipped with a 60HP. Luckily I have found a Sea King 60HP in good running order that I am working on purchasing. That will marry the boat and motor to the original sales spec if I do it. I calculated the Max power using the CG scale at up to 90HP.

I think a 90 would be a little heavy with this boat though..Not sure. I think the 55 or 60 should get me around nicely for kicked back fishing trips just off the coast around Half Moon Bay or Monterey California. What do you think. I'm not really a speed demon, I will only go out on good days but I want to be able to outrun the unexpected waves if I have to.

I like the paired 35's idea. Just don't like the maintainance on two motors versus one..I'm lazy that way. But it would offer a certain level of security and the likelihood of both going out at the same time would be very remote. Might offer a nice safety feature...Hmmm..I can see that.

You may have just changed my train of thought again. Small motors like that are pretty affordable and fairly plentiful on the market. I might have to look into that. as of yet, I have not even taken it out with the one I have so I have no idea about performance yet.

However, the way I think, it might turn into two 40's. two 50's two 70's etc...

D Man

 

[CATransplant]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Yeah, you should be able to find a couple of Sea King 40 hp outboards pretty reasonably. They're essentially the same as the Johnnyrude 40hps from the same era. You should be able to hunt down a set of dual controls somewhere, too...there were lots of them. Your boat is set up for cable and pulley steering, and there's nothing wrong with that, although it's a little hard to get new stuff, if yours is missing.

It'd be a sweet look and you would have the safety factor of dual engines. You could also think about using Johnnyrudes, too, from the period. It'd be easier to find a pair, and lots of buyers of those boats bought Johnsons or Evinrudes.

Have a blast!

 

[DarkeMaster]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I think I will try for the dual Sea Kings. There does seem to be a few around. There is one on eBay right now for $150.00. If I can find another one then I'll be in tall cotton.

As far as the steering, I already ordered a Uflex NFB steering system (Brand New). Do you think these motors can be adapted to that steering system easily enough? It would really suck if not. I kinda want to stay away from cable pulley steering.

I just saw a dual control set on eBay too...OK, you got me..I'm gonna do it..

D Man

 

[steelespike]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

Those old 60s were slick looking, in my opinion better than their sister Evinrude and Johnsons.A really cool sound and lots of low end grunt.
They are however heavy and really hard on gas.You may find some ignition parts hard to find.

I just did a little research.I found no Gale built 60 hp Sea King up to 63.
McCulloch did make a 60 in 59 and Gale made a 60 in 63.
As far as parts and Reliability you may want to go with the 40 Sea King by Gale
The McCulloch 60 is an odd ball and I think certain parts are nonexsistant.
I'd be interested to know if the Sea king 60 is a 4 cylinder or 3.The 3 would be a McCulloch.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: I Am Soooo Excited !!!!!!

I think I will try for the dual Sea Kings. There does seem to be a few around. There is one on eBay right now for $150.00. If I can find another one then I'll be in tall cotton.

As far as the steering, I already ordered a Uflex NFB steering system (Brand New). Do you think these motors can be adapted to that steering system easily enough? It would really suck if not. I kinda want to stay away from cable pulley steering.

I just saw a dual control set on eBay too...OK, you got me..I'm gonna do it..

D Man

Yeah, you can adapt that steering system, but you'll have to engineer an adapter and link for the engines, I think. Think big ball joint connectors and threaded rod. You'll want the engines to be able to tilt. At one time, such setups were readily available. No longer. In fact, there aren't a lot of twin 40 setups out there any more.

A source for large ball joint connectors is in hatch lids for minivans. The air shock used to hold the hatches open has at least one of these on a neat shaft that can be threaded to make up the other end. Worn out air shocks should be free, but you may have to pay a buck or two at a junkard to get the shock and ball fitting.

Check with aomci.org, too. They have a classified section that's free, and if you ask real nice, someone may dig up a dual OMC steering linkage out of the junk box and sell it to you.

You're doing something that hasn't really been done in years here. Back in the late 50's, a 50hp outboard was about it. If you wanted more, you used two, so there were lots of dual outboard setups.

Another possiblity is a place like tcoutboard.com. They'll have the rig, but it won't be cheap...no, it won't.