DucatiDave
Seaman Apprentice
- Joined
- May 4, 2010
- Messages
- 35
Hello Group,
I'm starting a new thread for the Islander I bought last week. In the spirit of sharing, I'll be using this thread to convey what I learn about the boat as I go through her.
The boat doesn't appear to need a whole lot of work to get on the water (at least I don't think it does!), so this won't be starting out as a restoration thread. I don't claim to know a lot about boats either, so this isn't really a "how-to" thread. Instead, I'll try to make it an ongoing narrative of what I discover along the way.
I'll try to post as many pictures as I can. I'll certainly pose questions to the group, and hopefully spark some interesting conversation. And because I want this to be educational for everyone, I'll try to be as honest and detailed as I can when I tell you what's going on. For instance, the macho side of me would like to be able to say I got a smokin' deal on this boat. Frankly, I don't know if I did. I paid $2,100 for it. That's certainly a lot more than some people on this board have paid for boats that seem much nicer than mine. Some have probably paid more for boats that needed a lot more work than mine. It seemed about right for what I was getting, so I took the plunge.
Similarly, any methods or techniques I use to address issues I find with the boat are not offered as "best practices" (Whaddya mean I can't use duct tape to seal the outdrive bellows?). I'll just show you what I did and we'll find out together whether or not it worked.
So the point of this thread to provide a documented example of what happens when a guy plunks down about 2 grand for a 32 year old boat. Hope you enjoy the ride!
First, some pix and a few details. 1978 Starcraft Islander Mark IV 22. 165 hp inline six with Mercruiser stern drive. Hour meter says 1,300 hours on the motor. Have no idea if that's a little or a lot, but the motor seems to run fine. Hull has been beat up a bit by Lake Michigan, but stainless screws and sealant have made it watertight (I'm told). Interior looks original. Floor is somewhere in between solid and soft, but no immediate attention is required. Transom looks OK, but has quite a few holes (now sealed) from various attachments over the years. Seats, upholstery, carpet and cushions are old and ugly, but useable for the next year or so I think. Probably the worst thing is the horizontal surface right behind the windshield (dashboard?). It's particle board and has swollen and starting to disintegrate.
While the boat is currently set up for salmon and trout fishing out on Lake Michigan (outriggers and downriggers), I'll probably remove that equipment as I primarily want to use this as a pleasure boat (cruising, fishing, tubing, skiing?) on smaller inland lakes (Pewaukee, Lac la Belle, Okauchee, Geneva) with kids and their friends. Taking it out on the big lake would be exciting though. I might try it once I'm more familiar with the boat.
Here's my first question: Anybody have a good name for this boat? Any good aluminum-referenced names that you've seen?
Thanks,
Dave
I'm starting a new thread for the Islander I bought last week. In the spirit of sharing, I'll be using this thread to convey what I learn about the boat as I go through her.
The boat doesn't appear to need a whole lot of work to get on the water (at least I don't think it does!), so this won't be starting out as a restoration thread. I don't claim to know a lot about boats either, so this isn't really a "how-to" thread. Instead, I'll try to make it an ongoing narrative of what I discover along the way.
I'll try to post as many pictures as I can. I'll certainly pose questions to the group, and hopefully spark some interesting conversation. And because I want this to be educational for everyone, I'll try to be as honest and detailed as I can when I tell you what's going on. For instance, the macho side of me would like to be able to say I got a smokin' deal on this boat. Frankly, I don't know if I did. I paid $2,100 for it. That's certainly a lot more than some people on this board have paid for boats that seem much nicer than mine. Some have probably paid more for boats that needed a lot more work than mine. It seemed about right for what I was getting, so I took the plunge.
Similarly, any methods or techniques I use to address issues I find with the boat are not offered as "best practices" (Whaddya mean I can't use duct tape to seal the outdrive bellows?). I'll just show you what I did and we'll find out together whether or not it worked.
So the point of this thread to provide a documented example of what happens when a guy plunks down about 2 grand for a 32 year old boat. Hope you enjoy the ride!
First, some pix and a few details. 1978 Starcraft Islander Mark IV 22. 165 hp inline six with Mercruiser stern drive. Hour meter says 1,300 hours on the motor. Have no idea if that's a little or a lot, but the motor seems to run fine. Hull has been beat up a bit by Lake Michigan, but stainless screws and sealant have made it watertight (I'm told). Interior looks original. Floor is somewhere in between solid and soft, but no immediate attention is required. Transom looks OK, but has quite a few holes (now sealed) from various attachments over the years. Seats, upholstery, carpet and cushions are old and ugly, but useable for the next year or so I think. Probably the worst thing is the horizontal surface right behind the windshield (dashboard?). It's particle board and has swollen and starting to disintegrate.
While the boat is currently set up for salmon and trout fishing out on Lake Michigan (outriggers and downriggers), I'll probably remove that equipment as I primarily want to use this as a pleasure boat (cruising, fishing, tubing, skiing?) on smaller inland lakes (Pewaukee, Lac la Belle, Okauchee, Geneva) with kids and their friends. Taking it out on the big lake would be exciting though. I might try it once I'm more familiar with the boat.
Here's my first question: Anybody have a good name for this boat? Any good aluminum-referenced names that you've seen?
Thanks,
Dave
