Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

[ezmobee]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Good plan. Motors you can't get parts for are no fun. Power TnT is a real nice option.

 

[GLG fishing]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

My old Honda kicker has a similar problem each year. I have to take it apart and blow it out with compressed air. I also spray it with brake cleaner but I?m not sure if that helps. Seems the passages in the carb get clogged up. I don?t know anything about your carbs but on mine the gaskets are made out of some kind of rubber and can be reused many times, just like they were made for reuse. The same goes for the carb gaskets on my Volvo motor. I take those apart ever year also. You may have similar gaskets in your carbs and you might want to pull apart and hit it with compressed air. If it works the resale value on the motor would jump and that would help with your 85HP project. Most of these carbs are low tech and are not hard to work on but like I said I don?t know much about your motor.
GLG

 

[losdinspace]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

No way??? Really? Wow.....should consider myself lucky!


Well here are a couple of starcrafts in MN that JUST came up on CL too help feed the fire. I go to Duluth regularly, so could pick one up for you and tow it back to town free of charge (if it works out with my schedule).


ChucknDiscs

I am going to try and look at one this weekend up that direction actually. I have a three day weekend so maybe Monday I will be on the water. I am looking for a 16' outboard, anything bigger will not fit in my garage. If I do get it we should hit one of the local lakes, used to go to Minnetoka a lot as a kid.

 

[Pugetsound]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

My old Honda kicker has a similar problem each year. I have to take it apart and blow it out with compressed air. I also spray it with brake cleaner but I?m not sure if that helps. Seems the passages in the carb get clogged up. I don?t know anything about your carbs but on mine the gaskets are made out of some kind of rubber and can be reused many times, just like they were made for reuse. The same goes for the carb gaskets on my Volvo motor. I take those apart ever year also. You may have similar gaskets in your carbs and you might want to pull apart and hit it with compressed air. If it works the resale value on the motor would jump and that would help with your 85HP project. Most of these carbs are low tech and are not hard to work on but like I said I don?t know much about your motor.
GLG

Ethanol?????????????? With Gas will do it esp after a year.

 

[fshngho]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Sounds like a good carb cleaning and float adjustment possibly. Easy to do, spray carb cleaner costs about 4 bucks and a hour of work. Worth a try. Good luck on the donor boat.

 

[barato]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

and don't forget to WEAR GOGGLES...carbs have a tendency for the spray to shoot back out at you through one passage or another when you try to play with their orifices, and that stuff burns bad when you get it in your eyes. not too friendly to skin either.

 

[fshngho]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Very good tip Barato, I should have mentioned that. Where the heck were you when I cleaned my carbs........yeah, that stuff burns eyes:redface:

 

[barato]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

i think i was inside, trying to flush the carb spray out of my eyes....

 

[Deadwood]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

And don't use gas on the burn pile.....unless you like the smell of burnt hair.

 

[fshngho]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Eyebrows are overated anyway.

Any older OB motor needs to watch out for ethanol. It does help melt the gasket material in an engine/carburator. It also cleans the lead out of an engine, which is not good for an older engine. The lead buildup actually helps "lube" the internal combustion engine. That is why you have lead additives for marine engines as well as stabilizers. If you have a kicker and don't use it much, put Stabil or something similiar in the gas tank.

 

[chuckndiscs]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

**** Ahhh, aluminum in the morning! ****

HELP!

I am working on a deal for an older glassic boat with a 72 65 HP Johnson on it. The boat has soft floor but works and the motor worked 5 years ago when stored (it was winterized before storage, was in garage for 3 years and outside, covered for last 2). I am at $300.00 for the deal (Silverline Fiber, trailer, and outboard) and need help with two questions:

1. Owner states 72 Johnson 65HP is NOT hydro-electric. Could this be true??? Everything I see or read is that 72 65's were always Hydro-elec... maybe wrong year or wrong statement?

2. Is a 72 Johnson 65HP strong enough to get my 73 SS up on plane with 4 - 6 adults in it? With 2 adults and an adult ski-er?

( FYI - I asked if prior to storage how well the motor ran, could it get 4 adults in the silverline up on plane without too much work? Could it get 2 adults and skiier up on plane? The owner hummed and hawwed quite a bit and then said well most of the time. Hence my question above )

As you know I currently have a 1980 65 HP Spirit that needs carb rebuild at $150.00 and if I buy this boat, the motor works (obviously impeller and tune up need to be done but so does it on my spirit) then I can throw my suzuki on silverline and sell and come out even....hence the deal.

WHAT I NEED TO KNOW IS: Should I get another 65 HP (Do they have enought power for the 73 16' SS) or should I pass on this good deal and wait for the 85 HP to come along?

THANKS FOR THE HELP!!!

ChuckNDiscs

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

It's either a '72 and electric shift, or it's not a '72. Otherwise it should push your boat pretty well. The ideal motor would be a newer 70-75. (well actually the IDEAL motor would be one of those sweet Yamaha 3 cyl 90's but who's got the cash for that).

For $300 I'd sure give it a try.

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

To waterski I think you will want at least a 70hp outboard with the type of weight in the boat you are looking at.

If you are pulling a kid on skis that's one thing but adults need some power to pull up out of the water.

I've not tried skiing on my 16' SS yet, and my Merc 800 is not running well enough to test.

Coincidentally...I was looking at a cheap($300 w/ crappy fiberglass tri-hull) '72 100hp Johnson earlier today and it's probably electric shift so I am going to keep looking for a late 70s Johnnyrude.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Coincidentally...I was looking at a cheap($300 w/ crappy fiberglass tri-hull) '72 100hp Johnson earlier today and it's probably electric shift so I am going to keep looking for a late 70s Johnnyrude.

Mike, I was thinking, if you have $300, I'd put it into professionally fixing up your Merc.

 

[chuckndiscs]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

To waterski I think you will want at least a 70hp outboard with the type of weight in the boat you are looking at.

If you are pulling a kid on skis that's one thing but adults need some power to pull up out of the water.

I've not tried skiing on my 16' SS yet, and my Merc 800 is not running well enough to test.

Coincidentally...I was looking at a cheap($300 w/ crappy fiberglass tri-hull) '72 100hp Johnson earlier today and it's probably electric shift so I am going to keep looking for a late 70s Johnnyrude.

If you buy a Johnson, sell me the Merc for cheap! I LOVE THEM MERCS, man they are SHARP!!!

I am working on buying another crappy glassic with a 90HP Johnson with working tilt and trim on it for $500.00. I wouldn't come out even BUT Id probably get a working tilt and trim 90HP Johnson for $200.00. Of course the 90HP is OVERPOWERED (85 HP is obviously the limit) but its manageale...right?

Such a good deal for motor at $300.00 but for power and longevity sounds like I should wait....will think it over more...

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

the 90 with TnT sounds like a no-brainer.

 

[losdinspace]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

I think that I found your problem.





I just dove right in feet first. I will let you know the outcome. Still have to replace all the rubber and some o-rings. They are Mikuni carbs and I was lucky to have the float bowl gaskets come apart in one piece.

 

[chuckndiscs]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Figured the problem was in the carbs. Man you dove right in, you start taking it apart on the way home? Hope that that does the trick and you get that boat out on the water yet!

ChuckNDiscs

 

[barato]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

Rule 1: whatever else may be right or wrong with any used motor you buy, it WILL need, or at least run far better with, carb clean. i feel like a broken record when i tell people this but it seems to always be true.

and, knowing this, you can use this a negotiating point since sellers often don't realize how many of their motor's issues are due to cruddy carbs...

 

[STARCRAFT16SS]

Re: Surprise! 1973 Starcraft SS Owner

I heard that Losdinspace bought chuckndisc's 1973 Starcraft SS
I wonder if you're getting the LoneStar....