1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

[Bilgecrud]

Hello everyone!

I'm just gonna dive right in here and fire away!

Been lurking for a while reading about some of the amazing work the guys here have been doing and have been sitting here awe inspired by their work!! I am amazed at the rich sources of info there are here! SO any suggestions are very much appreciated, and if I ever get into a bind I'll ask, only after having exhausted the search function, cuz I'm sure its been asked before, if not we'll all learn something new!

Anyway, an intro thread is supposed to be kinda informative so here goes!

I pick up this boat on a trade for an old washer and dryer, a beat up recliner, some baby clothes, and a 4x6 trailer! So seeing how they were wasting space I'm gonna go ahead and call it FREE!

Anyway, story on this boat goes like this...

Picked it from craigslist, fella's son was moving out w/ a new baby on the way and needed some household stuff and baby stuff. Went up to coal mine country and gave her the once over. It had been sitting open for about a year, I raised the ski locker and saw about six inches of water sittin there, and realized he didn't have it tilted back for the bilge to drain proper. He said that he bought it, brought it home, and tried to fire it. Ran for a few minutes and sputtered out. I'm sure it didn't even ears on it then as this guy was clueless about boats. The pros outweighed the cons and I pulled her outta there. The water drained somewhat leaving. Stopped at a gas station and noticed crud hanging out the back of the drain hole, so (pardon the phrase) I fingered it real good and it POURED all over the place finally!

Now to the meat of it.

The paperwork he gave me said it was a 1988 Wellcraft "Galestorm"...whatever...I know WC didn't make such a thing...(if they did, someone correct me)...

I don't have numbers anywhere on this thing bow or stern, so who knows...the HIN is ncz066450388 on the paper...so if any gurus here can decipher that I would appreciate it....need help identifying this boat...

It LOOKS like a wellcraft 170 or 190....still not sure though as old wellcraft brochures dont show all of the variances in design choices...

Anyway, Im planning on restoring it, so bear with me and the length of this text. The motor doesnt run now...I will ask about that in engines....

So here it is....and thanks for the great reading so far!

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Heres more...forgive me if I break some kinda rule!

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

again...I know ya'll love pics!

Notice under the bow seats where the glass used to be...nice hack job there...

Upholstery is faded...but I do upholstery and woodworking in my spare time...so no biggie...

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

more...should be the last for now...

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Welcome to the forum! Looks like a worthwhile project to me. Hows the deck and transom? Rot?

 

[Greg Mrozinski]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Bilge,

Welcome to iboats! I want to know where I can get a pair of shorts like that! That boat appears to be in really good shape. I hope the guts are not rotted or anything. If not should be an easy rehab. If so...well you know what's ahead of you. Good luck and keep us posted on progress. Nice username by the way.

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Hey guys!

Thanx for the welcome!

EZ- The deck really looks good, except further back under the seats, because the cushion simply sits on the frame back there, there is a large square hole on each side under the cushions, which when raining or whatever allows water to flow down around them into the bilge/deck area under the seat. That looks fairly rotted, gonna have to go...transom...havent had a chance to check it yet, did the old screwdriver handle tap and it sounds solid, gotta get that motor off to check er out, I will update when I can! There is also the typical spongyness in the middle that often accompanies ski lockers...

Greg- That would be my little first mate there with his dinosaur jammies...

Im gonna find out soon what its guts are, foam etc. I gotta rip up that deck to get at the fuel tank, its been sitting without a cap on the fill tube so god knows whats in there, I simply just want to have it out so I can clean it good! That will begin the tear down for me...so wish me luck! HA! Thanx! I thought that handle appropriate!

Id still like someone to help ID this boat! By hull shape or whatever, even some clues will help piece the puzzle together!

 

[IES99]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

I have a 1988 170 Classic (sterndrive) and there is some similarity I can see in the hull shot you have from behind. The lower half of the hull may be the same as mine. The 170 Classic was available as an outboard, but it didn't look like yours (at least the cap piece). Veery interesting!

 

[Isaacm1986]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Great looking boat! that boat should restore nicely.

I tried running the HIN for you, and it came back invalid. Take a look on the back of the boat, the HIN number is usually there. to the right or left of the outboard.

Good luck, and don't hesitate to ask any questions!

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Isaac- Hey man I appreciate it! Im guessing the HIN is prob under all that gray paint...what I want to note is the stepped down cap design under ther rear handrails, you can see it in the closeup of the sternlight and handrail...the wellcraft catalogs dont show a boat with that for any year...hmmm

IES- I am deeply suspicious that this boat has been "restored" once before, as evidenced by the broken glass under the bow seating that the wood is screwed to...it may even be a different cap on wellcraft hull, except for the cap shape over the transom is correct. I know a lot of boats were similar in that era, did any other manufacturers have that same beveled rear cap??

 

[petermarcus]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

NCZ would mean it was a home-built boat made in North Carolina, but that doesn't look like a home built boat to me. I'm betting the HIN on the back of the boat ends in C388, not 0388. C388 would be March of 1988.

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

NCZ would mean it was a home-built boat made in North Carolina, but that doesn't look like a home built boat to me. I'm betting the HIN on the back of the boat ends in C388, not 0388. C388 would be March of 1988.

Ive got one bill of sale that consists of two pages, the first is the actual ticket that shows the cost etc. from a watersports dealer round here, it has an ID# showing NCZ....the next page is a as is no waranty paper (like what you see in used car windows) that shows WCZ....they are both handwritten, so it may be lost in the PO interpretation...

Also the dash boards do not look like Wellcraft....keep in mind I am geeting this from the V20 page that has the full catalogs to look thru...http://www.wellcraftv20.com/gallery/history...

I appreciate everyones replies...keep em coming!!

 

[petermarcus]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Here's the manufacturer lookup for the first three letters of your HIN:

http://www.uscgboating.org/recalls/mic1.aspx

WCZ would be Whitecap Canoe, which I think would be a stretch as well

Wellcraft is either PWE or WEL.

By law, the HIN must be on the stern somewhere, but also in a hidden location inside the boat somewhere (in case of theft, the owner or builder can tell the cops where it is). Might get lucky and find it under a seat or under one of the consoles.

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Thanks! I got the whitecap as well...laughed bout it...actually just got off the phone with North Carolina, who stated that it was registered there as a homebuilt...so who knows what it is....I think its a heinz 57 boat...lol!! CAlle dthe boat sales place who sold it to the previous 3rd owner, and they didnt have any info either! I think Ill rebuild it and call it a 2011 Archcraft (from my last name)!!

Now on to tearing stuff up!! Maybe I'll find that other HIN then!

 

[Bilgecrud]

Re: 1st post, 1st resto! 1988 Wellcraft???

Alright guys, been awhile but wanted to update!

Figured out what this boat is and got her running...whoot!

Motor had bad gas and a dirty starter. Drained the tank, cleaned the carb floats, disassembled and cleaned the starter, cleaned the gas lines...fired right up!

And attached below is proof that this boat is in fact....wait for it....a GLASTRON!!!

exhibit A: http://www.classicglastron.com/1986_Glastron_ssv189-187.html

note the design in the back top rail I mentioned earlier...

exhibit B: http://boats.iboats.com/1988-glastron-sv19-with-220hp-mercury/583233.html

right here on our very own iboats....its and inboard, but all else is identical...

I will probably post more on this boat after summer, gonna ride her hard, until winter, then go to work...