18' Starcraft SS Restoration

[GT2010]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

I redrilled for the 3/16 also. Don't have the know how to cut new gunwalls as you are. I jb welded all the unwanted holes (over 70) on mine, sanded, then painted. Not as pretty as brand new, but effective.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Keep in mind I do have to replace the bow wood. I am going to use the deck material that I think EZ used. Man made and will not rot, shrink, decay, etc. I did attach all the metal with a few 3/16" rivets and even the bow piece just for looks. Once I clean up the trim good (polish and buff) I will be installing more rivets to finish the installation. The trim itself has a bunch of rivets too.
I am up for suggestions to clean the trim and make it shine. I will be checking NB and EZ's threads, but feel free to throw me and idea. A few before & after:

[/IMG]

[/IMG]

[/IMG]

[/IMG]

[/IMG]
After I replace the bow structure, I hope to sand & paint the topside, consoles, & splashwell. Another step forward.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

I redrilled for the 3/16 also. Don't have the know how to cut new gunwalls as you are. I jb welded all the unwanted holes (over 70) on mine, sanded, then painted. Not as pretty as brand new, but effective.

Know How??? Heck GT I am new at this stuff too!! I was just lucky enough to get the metal so I figured what the heck. None of the replacement aspect is hard, I did all this in less than a day...and I am lazy. I just thought if I duplicate exactly what I remove, then everything should go back together....I hope.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Don't waste 'yo time lookin' in my thread fo' any shinin' tips I can tell ya that.

I think if I was needlessly dismantling stuff on my boat like so many of you seem wont to do.....I'd replace that bow wood with either 2" wood or 1" of that PVC wood but stiffen it with some aluminum angle or something. Cuz you WILL want to step up there and it ISN'T very strong.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Don't waste 'yo time lookin' in my thread fo' any shinin' tips I can tell ya that.

I think if I was needlessly dismantling stuff on my boat like so many of you seem wont to do.....I'd replace that bow wood with either 2" wood or 1" of that PVC wood but stiffen it with some aluminum angle or something. Cuz you WILL want to step up there and it ISN'T very strong.

Can't help myself EZ. Once I started tearing stuff up I find it hard to stop. I am going to use your idea and use that PVC decking material and some aluminum. I just may have to do the two step on the bow once I launch her...plus mount a trolling motor. The time it took me to replace the metal is less than it would take me to patch all those dang holes (with drying & sanding time) and I get the pleasure of knowing all the rivets are tight & secure too. Sometimes it pays to go the long way around to save time. Thats my story and I'm sticking to it.

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Dale that's some very nice work and I'm impressed, well done.

I've managed not to dismantle the bow on my SS so far. Seeing other guys like you do it makes me want to just tear into it now.

I also plan to add a sheet of foam board under there for flotation and noise reduction.

The rig is looking very good...keep it up!

 

[KellyC]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Dale, just an idea to replace the rubber part of the rub rail. Get a heat gun and warm it up good and start at one end and just work your way which ever way you are going. It should get a lot more pliable when heated. But then that may be a bad idea, was just thinking and that can be a bad thing. Kelly

 

[jasoutside]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Wow, serious progress!! Yah, buddy!

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

In my never ending quest for information and understanding, can ya'll tell me if a 10" jack plate will work for me? If so or if not, please educate me. I want a jack plate but I was thinking of 6-8" so I honestly do not know if 10" would put too much torque on the transom. Help me please.

 

[Teamster]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

How big is your outboard???,..

I would think a 10 inch setback might require some beefing up in the transom,...

When I did my 16 foot Alumacraft I added 2 extra knee braces to the transom along with putting in a much beefier transom, All that for the extra 6 inches the after market trim and tilt added, And I only hung a 40 horse tiller on it,.....

I know a 40 horse tiller isn't big enough Jas,.................But it's all I have!!!!

 

[LonLB]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

In my never ending quest for information and understanding, can ya'll tell me if a 10" jack plate will work for me? If so or if not, please educate me. I want a jack plate but I was thinking of 6-8" so I honestly do not know if 10" would put too much torque on the transom. Help me please.

If you don't mind my asking, why do you think you need one?

I think a 10" would be too much for the aluminum hull and transom setup they have. The ability to adjust on the fly might be nice. By that, I mean a hydraulic unit. (expensive) But I question how much performance you could really gain by adjusting up and down.

Trust me, I understand having to add all the cool stuff. I'm the same way. But I think in this case, it's just not worth the $$.

FWIW a guy on Scream And Fly, overpowered a similar hull. Much smaller, but similar design. I think it was a 14' or 15' Starcraft. Apparently it porpoised bad around 40-45mph, and chine walked dangerously over 50mph.

 

[MAXX40X]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Wow! I had high hopes of my SS being as far along as yours is. My SS has been setting outside in the Ohio weather and it has been to damn cold to do any work on it; hopefully I can get the hull indoors this week and get started; again. Hopefully.
In any event, I just bought a used CMC hydraulic jackplate; (6 inch setback) for my 18 SS. I?m only running a 100hp motor; So I don?t believe there will be any issue with stressing the transom or the hull after the refit. Not only that , I am also hanging a 6hp kicker off the transom as well. I think a 10in setback would be pushing it (structural limits) and again that just depends on the HP / weight of the outboard you?re going to run; and if you have done anything to improve the structural integrity of your transom/hull. Back to the jackplate; you can find them on flebay all day long. The one I bought is like new, and got it for less than ? of a new one. You could spend even less if you buy a manually actuated jackplate. Ant any rate, I think you will be fine as long as keep hp/weight within the limitations of what your working with. I know. What fun is that.

 

[MAXX40X]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

I am an idiot; I just went through your transom rebuild/refit. Again; WOW!! It seams that almost everything I have been thinking of over the winter (cutting the splash well/reinforcing the knee brace etc... you have done. (and I am gonna do it )Way to go. Yeah. Get on fleabay , and get yourself a jackplate. Again, I wouldn?t go over 6 inch, but do it. I don?t want to be the only one with a vintage SC equipped with a hydraulic jackplate. And just a FYI. Bobs jackplates are remote reservoir. CMC are all self contained. And I would stay with either Bobs or CMC due to parts availability. And how do you sleep at night.??? Nice find/trade on the motor. Guess I'll go through the rest of your thread and find out how the belly tank worked out. I need to get with the program, get off the porch and run with the big dogs.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Thanks Gents. I doubt I would go with a 10" because of the extra strain and....probably wouldn't fit the boat in the garage. I still may go with a 5-6" if I can find one cheap. I'm not looking for a hydraulic just a simple one.
Anyway, I have been working on her and have some pics, but I hope to do more this weekend and then I'll post them up. I went fishing last sat & sun ( the HA syndrome) and actually felt guilty I didn't work on the boat. Gotta get off my arse..the family is getting excited and waiting for Papa to take them out.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Well not much to say or show, but I know this group so here goes. As you have seen I stripped the bow area and got it ready for a re-do.

[/IMG]
Now this is where I got angry and you will too. It would seem my pics didn't come out. I will have to explain what I did. After removing all the bow structure, I added two more 'L' angles at the top of the bow, there were three there already. I wanted to make a new brace out of that new man made decking material but it was too expensive. I opted instead to use cedar wood.

[/IMG]
I fabricated the bow and used 1/2" plywood ( the same as my floors) and epoxied it. It was cut to fill the complete area of the bow. Then I applied eurathane caulk very generously around the area and attached the metal over the bow. I let it sit for a couple days and now its very strong.

[/IMG]

[/IMG]

More....

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

Now that the bow is straight, I finally attached the gunwale metal at the top. Now please bear with me as I couldn't help but listen to some guys at the water cooler>>:

Jas" Hear that Dale re did his top gunwales?
EZ Yeah, He is an idiot. Why go through all that work?
Azlo Wonder if he made room for a bilge pump?
Alpheus Bilge pump? Heck, did he paint it green?
CBK Paint it green? What i want to know is where are the lights?
EZ Doesn't matter.. he is still an idiot.
HAMay be an idiot, but he likes to fish...
Jas Must have cost some money...how may rivets did he use anyway?

[/IMG]

[/IMG]
Glad you asked because well yes I did count. 207 rivets at the top so far and still have to attach the trim.
Thanks for the input guys. More to come this weekend I hope. Have a great one my friends.

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

And just for fun, I set the consoles in place and clamped them in for reference.

[/IMG]

[/IMG]
Wow what a difference. It does give me some perspective as to how to lay things out. It also gives me some hope....getting there my friends..slowly but surely.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

but I know this group so...

That was pretty stinkin funny Dale, yah you do know this group

Prolly felt great having those consoles sitting there the end is in sight!

 

[fshngho]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

That was pretty stinkin funny Dale, yah you do know this group

Prolly felt great having those consoles sitting there the end is in sight!

That is what is great about us nuts on here, we can have fun and make others laugh.
The consoles are just a moral booster now but I hope soon to have them installed at last. Thanks Jas. Have a great Saturday.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 18' Starcraft SS Restoration

I feel as though I have been unfairly given a reputation as a negative nancy.

Bummer that your bow structure pics didn't turn out. That is definitely a weak area on our boats and it would have been interesting to see how you addressed it. Metal work looks good. You're making nice progress.