seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

[seven_magnum]

Re: Well, I did it!

Re: Well, I did it!

I've been making progress but everything is fighting me every step of the way right now!! I have been sanding my hull to get some of the imperfections out and that went really well. I tried to put a final coat of primer over the areas I sanded today but even at 7am it was too warm to want to spray! I have trouble spraying the macropoxy as it is, and with this heat wave it just isn't gong to happen. The tech department told me the paint is really finicky about the temperature you spray it at. They said even having an air hose across a hot parking lot can give you problems because of the heat it picks up. Its a super durable paint from what I can tell, but man is it a pain to work with. I think if I had to do it over, I would either invest in a quality gun that can shoot these thick paints, or just went with the rustolem like I did with my jon boat. In the meantime I have a bit of sanding I can do on the hull until things cool down next week for decent window to finish the paint.

I may have good news on the motor front! I found an old trihull that has some rot problems but is supposed to run great! It has a 165 6cyl. and new bellows and impeller. Im going to take a trip today and see how she runs. They are asking $500 for the whole works. Hopefully its a running son of a gun and it follows me home!

 

[magnumdeke]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

You might be on to something there!, Tinnys giving rotted glasser's hearts a place to go. Perfect

 

[jasoutside]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Hope that I6 is a good one for ya!

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Just got back home with the trihull in tow! She didn't want to start at first, but we got past it. The switch doesn't do much at all, and we found there wasn't any juice going to the solinoid. We ran a jumper to it, hooked up my little fuel tank and poured some gas into the carb to help kick her off. The carb is a bit gummy, and the accelerator pumps don't work, but by golly she came alive!! The boat has 335 hours on the gauge and seems to be in good conditon. (Well, except for the floor being rotted.) The transom assembly and gimble all seem to be in better shape than what my islander had, and the drive looks much better. It came on a nice trailer for an 18' boat, has an extra trim pump, and a new fuel tank. (Maybe 25 or 30 gal? I am unsure. I don't know if it will fit in the islander yet but Im going to try!)

Best news of the day was it towed the 2 hours back home without a problem! I will put pictures up tomorrow and probably change the oil and run it a bit to help clean it up. It has been doing a lot of sitting, and I want to get any crap out of there and problems solved before I drop her in the islander!

 

[sprintst]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Nice score. Always nice picking up some new parts from an old boat. I could use a new tank

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Seven - glad you finally found a good donor. And with extra goodies!! YeeHaw

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Oh man, did I ever do it! I posted about two motors I found in philly that were supposedly good but the heads were taken off? They just followed me home too! They turn over freely, bores look good, no rust inside except for a bit in the water jackets. The one head looks like it's ready to plop on one of the blocks. The other one has a burnt valve. One way or another I will have a good running motor, and hopefully a fresh rebuilt motor as a just in case! (Or that 95 islander hull that I still pass every day on my way to work....... I hate to see where this may go!) I think the engine and drive on the glasser are going to be good to go and I will just drop them right in after I clean the carb up and make sure the manifold and riser are in good shape. If for some reason it doesn't work out, I have some options!

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Man, a lot of the tinny guys have MBS, but you have MMotorS. Of course if you grab that hull from the side of the road you'll have MBS too. LOL

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I haven't logged in for quite a while it appears, but I have been working on the boat! I have it's bottom and sides painted and flipped right side up on it's trailer with new bunks and rollers! The doner boat has since seen the salvage yard and I have the motor half way ripped apart right now making sure it's in good health. I did have a problem with the motor making milky oil if ran for 10 minutes (Not really milky, but you could see it was not right.) I tracked the problem down to a bad manifold! As a precaution I tore the head off and am cleaning it up before reassembly. The block is fine, and the bores look good!

I am trying to solve a problem I am having with picking out a fuel tank. I originally wanted to order this tank
http://www.boatstore.com/ft5299-52-gallon-fuel-tank-60l-x-24w-x-10h.html
but after measuring I found it will not fit because it is too wide. Here is what I have to work with.

The hole in the floor between the steps down into the cuddy and the motor is 60" long, 22 1/2" wide, and 17 inches deep in the center. It is 14 inches deep at each side of this space. I also have another 10" Of forward space until it runs into the bottom part of the step. this area is 10" deep from the first step to the bottom of the boat, and 6 3/4" at each side. I don't know if I can get a tank up into that small area under the step but I am going to keep it as far forward as possible.

After realizing that I cannot fit this tank without changing my stringers in the center of the boat I decided I need to find a different tank. (To make it fit between the two main aluminum stringers they would need cut loose, cut to fit the transom and slid back to clear the bulkhead at the cuddy wall and a bracket fabbed up to hold that in place, and it would make my floor ever so slightly taller in the center) I want at least 50 gallons of capacity and have been leaning toward one tank to save on the cost. Two smaller tanks seem to cost almost as much as two large tanks!

My searching let me to this tank I found here at Iboats.
http://www.iboats.com/58-Gallon-Per...3335011--session_id.427318781--view_id.687068
The problem I am seeing with this tank is it appears to need to be mounted 90 degrees off of how I would have to fit it. The fuel pickup would be in the center of the tank and I can't imagine that would be good. is there any way to get a pickup rigged to one of the ends of the tank? This seems to the the sensible place to me because all the fuel would go toward the stern when the bow is up.

I am at a loss right now and don't feel like forking out 5 or 6 hundred bucks for two small tanks when a large one would suit me perfectly. What do you guys think?

Many Thanks,
Foster

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Well, I just realized the 58 gallon tank will not fit in there either. It's 15 inches to the top of the main part of the tank on the side, not to the top of the molding with the fill neck and breather. I might have to change the stringers for the belly tank but I would rather not!

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I can only feel your pain, seven. Finding tanks to fit a certain space are trying. Would two tanks work and still meet your 50 gallon goal?

EDIT - Glad you only took a break from the forum and have kept at her.

 

[magnumdeke]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I am in the same boat, I have a donor boat tank an its just too wide! good luck on the tank dilemma.

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

A quick update on where I am at today. I am going to glue the transom together and wanted to run this past someone. I have read using the tite-bond waterproof glue should be used between the two pieces of marine plywood. I was thinking I would slather both sides up and put them together then run some screws into it to hold it together and keep pressure on the two pieces until it dries. I bought US composites thin epoxy resin. (A three gallon kit, I hope it will do the transom and floors.) After the transom dries I want to back the screws out and coat it a few times with the epoxy resin. Will this work or does this seem flawed?

Also, the only belly tank I can find to fit right now is the RDS aluminum 40 gallon belly tank. I would like more capacity than that so I have been thinking about a custom tank. I saw a few places that will make custom tanks with tall the certifications needed and have dimensions out for a quote right now. I was wondering what the legal requirements are for fuel tanks and if it would be more cost effective to have a local aluminum welder fabricate one. I know I would want to pressure test it for leaks if I went this way, but I want to make sure that doesn't cause any problems with the water cops. The tank that would fit my space perfectly comes to 65 gallons and change, so that would suit me fine!

Many thanks,
Foster

 

[jasoutside]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Yah, you'll want to hit both sides of the mating pieces in order to have a good bond.

I only drive a few screws in just to keep the two halves from sliding away from each other, then pile a whole bunch of stuff on for weight. Less holes in the wood to seal up but not a biggie really. Coating everything with epoxy will seal up any/all screw holes.

Trim to size after it's cured up

For your custom belly tank, I'd price it out. That number may tell you exactly what to do.

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I found the perfect gas tank for my boat, but I can't seem to find one for sale anywhere! It's and Inca 51 gallon tank, http://www.plasticfueltanks.com/store/productfiles/FO5104.PDF

I will give them a call in the morning and see if I can get one ordered. Im not thrilled about the location of the fuel fill but I think it will work fine for me! If I can't get this tank I will probably order one of the RDS 40 gallon aluminum belly tanks. Any thoughts on this?

I glued the transom together tonight and piled her full of anything heavy I could find. I put a piece of plastic on top and put on 4 heads, intake manifolds, starters and weights from the weight bench. Tomorrow I will cut out the keyhole, drill the holes and start with the epoxy!

Foster

 

[jasoutside]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I'm not so sure what you got going on with the walkway right through the doorway area but...

I elected to eliminate that step down all together and used that space for fuel tanks (fuel fills/vents). I kinda thought that was better use of that square footage ya know.

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

I need some advice for this weekend. I have been reading about anodes and determined Aluminum is what I need due to fresh and salt water usage. I have also seen some people put an anode on the hull of their boat as well as the drives. What should I do for this islander being it will be used in both fresh and salt water? I want to paint the transom this weekend once the patches on the little holes have dried. (JB Weld.) If I need to sand a spot later that will be ok, but I would like to plan for it now.

Also, for a fuel tank I went with a custom one built by SP Tanks out of New Jersey. It will be a 58 gallon belly tank and gives me a bit more clearance on the top of the tank for the fuel inlet. The 65 gallon tank only had an inch, then if I epoxy a board to sit on the ribs and set the tank on UHMW strips that doesn't leave much clearance at all. Now I will have 2" Total.

I also used another can of Gluvit on the inside of the boat and all seems well except I think It blocked the very last limber hole before the plug and possibly the very front one. That stuff ran a lot more than I was realizing. The rear one I don't believe will do any harm because the plug is higher than the rib is anyhow. The front one concerns me a bit. Would there be any merrit to drilling a 1/4" hole or so just above the bend in the rib for the limber hole to provide for drainage? I will be able to check the area easily with the front hatch, but I want to make sure it's right and not a problem I have to deal with later.

Many thanks,
Foster

 

[mark1961]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Cant hurt to add an anode or two.....provided you dont put her away unwashed and wet its not a real biggie for a trailer boat.....moored for any length of time in saltwater is probably a different story. Most important things are to avoid as much as possible having more noble metals in direct contact and NOT to use the hull as a ground for the electrical system.

 

[seven_magnum]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Hey Mark,
Im glad to hear it shouldn't be too big of a deal. I plan on only grounding the fuel tank and nothing else to the boat it's self. For moring, it may get a week in salt water a year. I have been doing this with my little springbok and not had a problem, but this boat is a whole new animal. There is no shore power at the particular marina (At a campground, just a few docks) I guess I should be fine then? What do you mean by keeping more Noble metals from cotact? You mean with the hull of the boat? The only other metal I want touching the boat at any time is stainless steel, and the few places I have this is isolated with 5200 and gluvit. I feel pretty good about not having corrosion from this, but it's still a fear in the back of my mind. Do you think the anodes on the drive should do the job then? Many thanks!

Foster

 

[mark1961]

Re: seven_magnum's 76 Starcraft Islander 221 rebuild

Placement of hull anodes can be tricky.....one or two probably wont hurt.....question is will it be beneficial?

More noble metals are basically more corrosion resistant than aluminium (copper, brass, bronze and the like).....in direct contact with the hull the corrosion will commence on the least noble metal, hence the use of anodes which are less noble than aluminium. Using stainless fasteners is an accepted practice, they are however more corrosion resistant than aluminium.....i would tend to go for 304 over 316 though.

I found this posted by Ranger in a local forum an interesting read, a completely different outlook on the electrical stuff though.....

http://www.strikehook.com/forum/32-boat-motor-trailer-maintenance/64442-dissimilar-metals

Probably best not to change it too much from the way Starcraft set it up.....its lasted this long after all.