1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

[bkeith66]

HI,
Want to say thanks for all those that gave advice & answered many questions. I didn't know anything about fiberglassing untill coming across this forum. Now the boat has a new transom; stringers & floor. Had it out once so far after the rebuild. Pulled skiers & tubers in crowded rough water. Gave it a good inspection once back in the garage. Held up like a tank. Performance wise, It does porpoise at lower to midrange speeds. I expect that has to do with it being so stern heavy with that 1150 on the back (280#?).
Overall, everything came out great. Hope the link below works. Thanks again for all the help!

http://www.shareaproject.com/pages/projectTut,p,277,00.html

 

[Cptkid570]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Good job! It looks great!

 

[Todd Gerber]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

bkeith66 -

Nice to see a fellow American owner! Great documentary of the rebuild.

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hey Brian! The boat looks great!

I am moving along on my 18 - slowly but steadily of late. I've got my new stringers and keel fabricated, transom is in, old floor and foam are entirely out. Hoping to get the new keel in this weekend, followed by the stringers and floor. I really want this thing to see water before the season is over! I've got a 4-day weekend for Labor Day and will be working on the boat for much of that...

I've got a 90hp Johnson ready to bolt on, but I did pick up a blown 140 Evinrude earlier this summer, which will eventually find its way onto the transom after a wintertime rebuild.

We should form a Starcraft American Owners Group or something. It'd be cool to have a rendezvous somewhere and get a whole bunch of them lined up for pics. My problem is I have two Americans and only one car with a hitch... :/

- Scott

 

[bkeith66]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hi all,
Thanks for the compliments! It took a lot of time & work.
First time out on the water made it all well worth it. This is the 1st fiberglass boat i've owened. The American does seem to be a good solid hull. Not sure if i'm gonna leave the 1150 on it. The boat is definitly stern heavy & borderline violent with that much motor. According to nadaguides.com the motor weighs 290#. I would have to drop down to an 80 hp merc. of same year to shed some motor weight. Curious on wether an 80 hp would still be enough motor for tubing & sking.

Scott,
Looks like your making a lot of progress on the 18. That's gonna be nice boat! She outta move with a 140 on there. Have a feeling you'll get it on the water before the seasons up. Looking forward to seeing more pics & thanks again for all the help!

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hi Brian,
The 80hp, properly rigged with a decent prop, should have no problem popping a skier up or slinging a tuber around. The 75hp Johnson on my 15-footer is plenty for that sort of stuff. My 1974 Starcraft brochure lists 105hp as the maximum for the 16-footer. In my opinion, the 4-cylinder 80hp Mercs of that era are kinda on the doggie side. The weight of the 115 Merc shouldn't really be an issue unless you're carting a lot of other stuff along with you. It weighs virtually the same as the 90hp 6-inline, which is well under the max hp, and both weigh a little less than the OMC v4s (around 300 lbs), which are also in the right horsepower range. Do you have power trim on your motor? Do you tuck it under all the way at start up? Might be a simple set-up issue and not the fault of the motor's weight or power. Also, is the bottom straight? The hull may have developed a rocker or hook while it was apart, which can make for unpredictable handling.

The 18-footer is bigger than my shop, so I am at the mercy of the weather. Got the new keel cut and shaped this weekend, but it was raining so it didn't get installed yet. Hopefully this evening if it stays dry today...

- Scott

 

[studlymandingo]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Looks like you now have a boat that is ready for another 31 years!

As to the 115, what is your WOT RPMs? You may be underpropped which would make it a bit squirrely. Also, a set of tabs would help with porpoising and handling issues. I would think that boat would be mucho fun with the 115 set up properly.

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

If all else fails, only then try the tabs. I've got a lot of seat time on the 15 and 16-foot Americans and I know they will respond nicely to power. A friend has a 15 with a 140 Evinrude. Rock solid to about 50mph, and then gets a little squirrely as it approaches 65. The 115 on the 16-footer ought to be fine if the set-up is correct (angle, prop, height, etc.)
- Scott

 

[Todd Gerber]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Chinewalker -

I like your idea of a Starcraft American group. I'm curious on how many are out there. I know of another about 20 miles from me - a '76 16' with a bad OMC drive unit.

As for your friends 15, you say he's running a 140 on it? I think my plate says 85 is the max. Did some years handle larger OB 's than others?

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hi Todd,
Nope, his has the same 85hp tag as ours do. He's a motor head and builds some of the fastest A-stock 15hp Johnrudes in the country for APBA stock outboard racing. He likes to tinker and experiment with motors - even has a machine shop in his garage! Anyway, he rode in my first 15-footer a few years ago and really liked it, so he found his own. He picked up an older 85hp V4 and started getting into it - then found a blown 140 and started swapping around parts. . Also ported it, decked the heads, played around with the timing, leaned out the jets in the carbs, etc. The motor is an absolute monster! He ran it last summer with the original Teleflex steering and found the torque to be more than he could handle, so he put in a zero-feedback steering this year. He has had trouble finding a prop to keep the RPM down on his engine, as it runs about 6200 RPM at a little over 60mph.
His hull had the same issues as mine did - soft transom, waterlogged foam, rotted stringers. He popped the deck and rebuilt it all with more power in mind by adding gussets, extra members, etc.
Honestly, he runs out of hull above 60mph and the fastest he has had it was about 65 - with a bit more throttle to go, but the boat was chinewalking and the engine RPM were already above 6200. The boat could benefit from having a pad added at the transom, ala a high-performance bass-boat, and he's thinking of getting a V6 propshaft for the unit so he can take advantage of the props available for the V6s.
As it is now, the boat is a rocket-ship, and a real hoot to drive at anywhere below the 60mph range where it starts to get a little nutty. Coming out of the hole is akin to being launched off an aircraft carrier deck - acceleration is amazing!
My own 15 is fun at about 40-41 with my 75hp. I might be able to sneak out a couple more MPH if I found a good prop and messed around with the motor's vertical height on the transom, but it is our family boat so I can't get to crazy with it.
I know of several Americans locally, in all model sizes. If you haven't seen them, I posted two 1970s era Starcraft runabout brochures on the Starcraft Yahoo group files section. They have all the American series models listed, along with various specs, etc.

-Scottt

 

[Todd Gerber]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

...Honestly, he runs out of hull above 60mph and the fastest he has had it was about 65 - with a bit more throttle to go, but the boat was chinewalking and the engine RPM were already above 6200....

Sorry, one more comment then I'll leave this thread alone.

But what's chinewalking?

 

[bkeith66]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hello,

Todd,
I think the chine is where the side of the boat meets the bottom. When a boat falls to one side & flops to the other, it is said to be chinewalking. Ussually at higher speeds? Great looking boat!

Someone over in the mercury forum here helped me get what i think is the origanal tach that came with the boat hooked up. That made my day! unfortunately, it's gonna be a few weeks before i'll get a chance to get it on the water again to check wot rpms.
I did check a few things out in hope to resolve handling issues.
The prop is a 19 pitch. Was dinged up some when i bought the boat, but had it repaired by a prop shop before the trip mentioned above.
-No power trim or tilt.
-I tried different pin holes for motor angle. 1st hole towards transom seemed to give the best ride.
-Put straight edge from bottom center of boat to cavitation plate. The angle from bottom of the boat to prop end of plate is very close to being right in line. That is with the pin is in the 1st hole.
-The cavitation plate is about a 1/2" lower than the bottom of the boat.
-Put a 4' straight edge half way up both sides of transom from back edge of transom forward to check for hooks. Read 1/8" on one & a little under an 1\8" on the other. The one a little under an 1/8" did have a slight hump where i could rock the ruler from end to end.
Hope the info helps. Thanks!

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hi Brian,
Power Trim is a very handy gizmo to have, particularly on a motor that large. I have it on my 75 and the boat really comes alive when it is trimmed out at speed. However, the boat is hard to plane off if the trim is left out. Lacking power trim on yours, finding the best angle for general use will have to do.
The rocker probably isn't much to worry about. If you want to grind it out at some point, it won't hurt, but I'd leave it as is for now.
Sounds like the motor can come up a little bit on the transom. The AV plate being under the boat contributes to drag. Even, or a hair above would be better. You'll probably want your RPM in the upper 5000s when you're running good...

Todd - Chinewalking is what happens when a V-hulled boat "falls" over on one side of the hull, seeking a flat running surface. The boat will do this, falling from side to side, as speed increases and wetted surface decreases. It can be quite violent and can be dangerous depending on the hull and water conditions, and the nerve of the driver at the helm. Some hulls will allow you to drive through it, as speed increases and air lift stabilizes the hull a bit. Propeller design can also help reduce it. I mentioned in a previous post about adding a "pad" to the hull near the transom. This is essentially a flat area on which the boat rides at speed, reducing or eliminating chinewalk. They are common in the bass boat circles, as well as V-hulled racers.

- Scott

 

[bkeith66]

Re: 1975 Starcraft American 16 rebuild success

Hi Scott,
I appreciate all the help. Will post back when i get a chance to take the boat out again after making adjustments.