Re: restoration of 1956 16 ft sea king
Yes, you can.
With enough time, patience, and money you can do pretty much anything you want with a boat. Just check out Oops! hull extension thread for proof of that.
I have toyed with this idea myself (converting to an I/O from OB) myself. Have a look at
This discussion about the topic.
there are really two points of view that you need to think about; does this achieve what I want from a usability point of view, and what needs to be done to technically make it happen.
From usability; OB's are easier to change, take up less deck space, and are cheaper.
From the technical point of view, to change to an I/O chances are the entire deck substructure will need to be torn out, redesigned, and rebuilt to custom specs. depending on the design of the boat, this would include stringer and deck modification, installation and reinforcement of motor mounting points (not the motor mounts themselves, but where the mounts mount on the boat), modification of the cap and splashwell, and changes to the transom itself.
When it comes down to it, you will save a tonne of time and money to simply sell the OB hull and buy a boat with an I/O already installed.
