made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

[shoestring]

well i have been pondering this for a few years, my ol' 1974 glastron v-186. i say ponder because i have been looking at newer used boats. i don't much care for the trihull but it does have its advantages. my dad was the original owner and now i have it. it has a johnson 135 on it now but i also have a merc 175 that will fit. boat is rated at max 150 and am uncertain about overpowering it. 135 is great except at high elevations 6500' with a load. have to run such a flat prop to plane it out that it takes a while to get anywhere. the johnson needs 4 new coils and the merc is turn key and has power trim that is a major plus. the interior is pretty shot but i know a lady that will redo it for about 1k. i would have to build new seat frames first. the floor has one soft spot about 10" diameter and is just the top layer of the plywood getting delaminated. hopefully an easy fix. hull is in good shape, gel coat has the spiderweb cracks but most of that happened when the boat was a few years old. trailer needs new lights, tires and wheels. dash board plastic has about had it a few chips and cracks and is no longer available. i might try the patch and paint road on them but a few of the pieces are missing. not sure how to fill these sections back in. i made my decision because we are planning a houseboat trip to lake powell in 2010 and i cant afford the trip and a newer boat at the same time. so i decided to restore this one. besides, the thought of seeing this boat leaving my driveway behind a strangers truck, never to be seen by me again kind of chokes me up a bit. after all i have been boating in her since i was 4 years old. alot of memories that i can't seem to part with. i pla on buying the runabout restoration book today. now that my decision is final i am excited and cant wait to get started. looking foreward to giving my dad a ride in it when it is done. i will post pics as soon as one of my kids teaches me how.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

I absolutely would not put a modern 175 on a boat rated for only 150 back when motors were crank-rated. Glastron's were always pretty bleeding edge with their ratings anyway. 150 at the most.

 

[Utahboatnut]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

I agree with the above a 175 might be just enough to get you in big trouble, and not with the CG. I have been houseboating at Lake Powell for 25+ years now and as you probably well know that lake can be very unforgiving. Hate to see you put so much work into a family boat only to trash it due to a too big outboard. Good luck with the resto and put some pics up when you get a minute.

 

[shoestring]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

well, the problem is, the 135 never quite did it. when the boat was new, it came with an 85. my dad upgraded to the 135 before he even brought it home. it always struggled with deep water singles, and i weigh over 200#,i have to use every trick in the book to help it get me up. and it would wear me out so bad that when i did get up i only had about 15 or 20 minutes worth of juice left in me. always had to ski moderately, afraid to go down and have to do a restart. ok so its not a good ski boat. my family combined weighs almost 900# and getting it on plane, well it looks like we are playing twister on the bow. ok so it's not a good family boat either, well not for us, and we can't even diet our way out of this one, we arent over weight 3 of us are 6' or more, one will be 6' soon and the short one (wife) is pretty light. well, i guess newer bigger boat it is. it wasn't hard to talk me out of that one. and the biggest drawback is its a trihull

 

[ezmobee]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

A 135 should push an 18' boat really well. Either that motor was never right or that boat was always waterlogged. Weird.

 

[shoestring]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

A 135 should push an 18' boat really well. Either that motor was never right or that boat was always waterlogged. Weird.

watterlogged for 35 years?

 

[shoestring]

Re: made decision today-restore glastron '74 v186

A 135 should push an 18' boat really well. Either that motor was never right or that boat was always waterlogged. Weird.

2 people + 1500' elevation= 42mph. the motor runs well. still does. problem is in low rpm the motor isn't making enough power to get it on plane with a load. once it planes, it scoots. tried all kinds of props. a prop that planes nice with a load can only be ran about 2/3 throttle after it planes and about 22 mph. not sure on the power curve of this motor. the power really comes on starting at about 4000 below that it's kind of a slug. over the years, pack has been replaced, carbs rebuilt, stator, rectifier, replaced. compression is great. low end torque just isn't there. 2 or 3 people fishing, it's great. load up the family with some food and gear and it struggles. timing is fine.