1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

GA_Boater

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Motor on, fish finder on trolling motor - It must be almost splash time. :D BTW - E-tape is not proper! Duct tape is the official and only way. :)
 

Pmccraney

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Congrats on getting the motor hung... That's a big milestone...

Also, you can buy a real accessory kit to mount the transducer on the trolling motor... I got mine at academy sports for about 14.00. Its basically just a large metal clamping ring with a metal reinforcement to the transducer so it doesn't break it when you tighten/clamp it down...
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Motor on, fish finder on trolling motor - It must be almost splash time. :D BTW - E-tape is not proper! Duct tape is the official and only way. :)

And the list gets shorter, I'm still a month or more from thinking about water. I'm going to have to pick up something a bit more sturdy, the guy I got the trolling motor from is an electrician so that might explain the tape :lol: I'll probably end up splashing this thing around Halloween or maybe even Thanksgiving, and i'll have the winter to fix the oddities.

Congrats on getting the motor hung... That's a big milestone...

Also, you can buy a real accessory kit to mount the transducer on the trolling motor... I got mine at academy sports for about 14.00. Its basically just a large metal clamping ring with a metal reinforcement to the transducer so it doesn't break it when you tighten/clamp it down...

Thanks PMC, I have to peel back the tape to see why it exists (hopefully no reason at all), It would be great to have it setup correctly. the tape bothers me more than you can imagine.
 

ShowMeGuy

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Good work getting the Motor and trim mounts installed... They were kinda a PITA when i did mine as well... mostly because it took me to long to replace the transom... :( lol.. Forgot how it all went back together. WHUPPSY! so there was some trial and error...

Did you pull the trim pump from under the splashwell when you pulled it and clean it up as well? Also where is it mounted? center?

Ted
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Good work getting the Motor and trim mounts installed... They were kinda a PITA when i did mine as well... mostly because it took me to long to replace the transom... :( lol.. Forgot how it all went back together. WHUPPSY! so there was some trial and error...

Did you pull the trim pump from under the splashwell when you pulled it and clean it up as well? Also where is it mounted? center?

Ted

I removed the pump when I took the motor off, it was mounted under the splashwell (right side I believe). I was definitely a bit finicky figuring it out, but I was able to make it work. I haven't done any real "clean up" on the pump it looks pretty good having been in storage for the last year. I would like to change out the fluid and start fresh before installing it back under there.

Last night I was able to get the rams installed and the hydraulic lines attached (sorry no pics). The only problem that I see is they need to be routed properly from the pump in order for it to work. I put the fittings on the rams, and tightened them loosely. They will need to be rotated to accommodate the orientation of the lines entering the pump, so I didn't kill em off yet.

Any thoughts or suggestions on the easiest way to do this would be appreciated. Ideally if I mounted the lines to the pump before putting the lines through the access holes in the trim brackets it might have helped. Except the access ports would then need better access, I would have to take the brackets loose in order to get the lines under them.

All in all everything is working well, it funny how everything is dependent on something else when it comes to putting this back together. I'm pretty sure we looked like a bunch of trained monkeys taking it apart.
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Just trying to formulate a plan for the three day weekend (to keep me honest).

TnT pump maintenance (new fluid, cleaning)
TnT pump hook up and hydraulic line attachment and deck attachement
Steering wheel and cable re-install (fingers crossed)
Motor Control unit re-install (depending on the wiring condition)
Try to figure out the rest of the wiring (lights, gauges, horn)

Let's see how far I can get?
 

strokendiesel002

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

GREAT WORK and PROGRESS!!!!!! I have the Mariner with power trim, and the boat is in my garage... if you'd like, I can take pics for ya
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Thanks S&D, that would be great. I could use a close up of the wiring setup for sure, I have some old pictures but I should have taken MANY more.
 

strokendiesel002

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Cool! I'll get 'em tonight when I get home from work! I sure hope they're helpful, I can't imagine that the setups could be too different.
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

So, I just got a little caught up in the moment and ordered a battery for the boat. Any feedback on this battery would be much appreciated.

Cabela's battery

If I like it, I'll probably buy another one. I'm no expert on Marine batteries, but it seems like a good deal.
 
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ShowMeGuy

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

I'm not an expert battery guy but for that money it's better/ought to be a good one... :cool-new:
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

I thought this was on the cheap side? Cabela's has them from here to $369 for marine deep cycle (I'm honestly not even sure what deep cycle means).

Edit: I was just looking online and I can't find any much cheaper than this... I also now know the difference between deep cycle and cranking batteries. Now the question is: do I need a deep cycle battery for running the boat on the big motor? I see the value of having a deep cycle for the trolling motor, but I thought the 2 stroke motor would charge the battery similarly to a car?
 
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strokendiesel002

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Ram Starboard1.jpg
Splashwell1.jpg
Splashwell2.jpg
Switch.jpg
switch-back.jpg

I'm sorry for the delay, I hope these help. I had a bit of a hectic weekend and my poor boat has started resembling a storage bin more than a pleasure craft. If you would like more detailed pics, it'll give me an excuse to clean her up :)
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Wow this is great to have thanks man!

I was able to get the pump hooked up on Sunday, and then yesterday we rebuilt the wood frame in the bow. It was originally made from 1X4's but we made it with 2x4's and doubled up the bow piece.

I pulled the controls out of the shed and the steering too. The steering looks to be in great shape, but the Merc control wires are hammered. The wire itself is green and the insulation is just falling off on them. I'll need to order a new external wiring harness for the 850, I wonder what that is going to set me back?

I didn't take any pictures and didn't make as much progress as I had hoped. Some of this stuff is pretty fiddly, so slow and steady right now.
 

Pmccraney

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

You didn't get hosed too bad on that battery. The cheapest decent deep cycle you can get us about 80 bucks (wal Mart, academy, etc..)... By the way, deep cycle ( as the name implies) are batteries that can be heavily drained and recharged several times over (regular batteries font like that). So they are good to use as house batteries or trolling motor. A start battery will have more cold cranking amps but will not last very long with deep discharges/recharges (needs to stay mostly charged and simply get "topped off" on recharge). In my boat, I have a start battery for the motor, a dual purpose for the house (in case I need to borrow juice from it to crank) and a deep cycle dedicated to the trolling motor because it gets run down all the way on a Long day fishing... Hope that helps
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Trailer is officially titled and plated. Wooohooo!!

No progress this weekend, has some auto maintenance and a doubleheader for my trusty assistant.

The external wiring harness should come this week, and I can start rewiring the control box. I'm also hoping to get the steering mechanism cleaned up and installed on the dash panel (maybe TnT switch too).
 

850Merc

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

Free kicker, very period specific.

20130913_185615.jpg


I thought it looked pretty cool on a 46 Ford, doubt it would float though.

20130913_185606.jpg


Anyway, the harness showed up and we started working on installing it on the control box. We got all the old solder off the controls and found that one bushing is missing some fins and the ball bearing that clicks when you shift was missing.

20130913_175221.jpg


20130913_171431.jpg
 

GA_Boater

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Re: 1976 Starcraft Supersport 16'

I think the motor is mounted too high on the Ford. :)

I recognize that mess in the control box. You need a part no. for the neutral pin and leaf springs? I don't know if I can find the nylon/plastic bushings P/Ns. While you have it apart, how is the warm-up lever lock pin? It keeps the warm-up lever down when working the gear change/throttle.
 
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