Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Clyde59

Cadet
Joined
May 29, 2009
Messages
7
I acquired 1978 Sylvan 18' Super Sport in May 09. I knew at the time it would require some work but wasn't sure how much.

Since May, I have come up with the following punch list of what I need to do:

The engine, a 1973 Evinrude Starflite 135, runs perfectly, but is missing trim and tilt, which is a real hassle. I am going to add a CMC PT135.

The transom is shot and it cannot hold the weight of the motor (sags). It is rotten where the engine bolts mount. I will have to replace the entire transom and plan on making it a one piece instead of 3 piece unit and I am considering making much stiffer with glass and epoxy.
The transom bracket broke way from the transom and needs minor repair which I think can be accomplished with aluminum angle.

The deck is rotten in places and needs to be replaced. I have removed all the seats and consoles and pulled the decking (1/2" ply) and was able to salvage for patterns everything except the rear most piece. It was too rotten to save but should be the easiest to measure and cut.

I am think of using 3/4" exterior sheathing instead of 1/2".

The aluminum stringers will need to be riveted as alot of the rivets have come loose or popped out completely.

I haven't settled on a seating arrangement as yet. The boat will be used mostly by me for night fishing, but the kids and their friends like to tube. I like to keep the space open for my purposes but I do need to allow for my kids. I'm think about installing some traditional seating with the ability to easily remove the units.

The Hull of the boat is in good shape but could use paint. The painting will be postponed until warmer weather. My garage is attached to the house and the fumes would kill us with the house shut up.

I started work the week before New Year's. Everything is gutted and the old transom has been removed. I will post pictures and commentary in a couple of days.
 
Last edited:

PaulyV

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Sep 7, 2008
Messages
525
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Clyde Welcome...and cant wait to see some pics of the boat..you will find out we love pics! There are several threads detailing all that you need to accomplish. Good luck!
 

tallcanadian

Captain
Joined
Sep 7, 2006
Messages
3,250
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Welcome Clyde. You will get a ton of information on this site for your Starcraft boat. Also check out the Starcraft section on these forums. The guys with Starcrafts here are an awesome bunch with a ton of knowledge. Good luck and can't wait to see the pics.
 

Bondo

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Apr 17, 2002
Messages
71,088
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Ayuh,... Welcome Aboard Clyde,...

I went with 1/2" like I took out,....
You don't need the 3/4"...

Overbuilding the transom abit is a Good idea....
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

I had 1/2" deck and went with 3/4". In my opinion 5/8" minium otherwise it's just too springy for my tastes. Your transom beefing up sounds great. Can't wait to see some pics.
 

Triton II

Commander
Joined
Nov 23, 2004
Messages
2,479
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Cool stuff Clyde.. I love alloy boats and those Starcrafts look great (we got a few over here but they're very rare). As the others have said - we love pix! :D
 

Clyde59

Cadet
Joined
May 29, 2009
Messages
7
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

This is a photo of the knee brace. It snapped off where it attaches to the transom. I think I can repair this with some aluminum angle, bolting to the knee brace and through the transom. I don't think it will be too big of a deal. More pics to follow

knee-brace.jpg
 

Bob_VT

Moderator & Unofficial iBoats Historian
Staff member
Joined
May 19, 2001
Messages
26,065
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

That will work. You can rebuild the top of that knee brace AND use wide backing plates when you rebuild the transom and re-mount the 135 to spread the load.

I plan on backing plates for my motor mounts on my Starcraft SS
 

Clyde59

Cadet
Joined
May 29, 2009
Messages
7
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

The picture below is the transom board removed from the boat. There is a lot of rot on the bottom half which I think indicates leakage where the wood transom board was bolted the aluminum hull. I need to find away to reduce the potential damage if leaking does occur. I read an idea here that oversizing the bolt holes and filling with an epoxy filler would help. any thoughts on that one?

The yellow rope attached to an eye bolt on the transom is the method I used to get the transom board out. I used a long 2X4 to help lift (pry) it out of the hull. It wasn't coming easily and it was all i could think of.

The next foto is a close shot of the transom board laying on the garage floor. I included this shot just to give an indication of the amount of warp due to the rot. It was worse with the motor on it.


transom.jpgwarp.jpg
 

mikastorm

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
Messages
164
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Welcome aboard Clyde. Same boat I have but 2' bigger.lol
Same issues except for the brace. Your as far as I am.
Keep us posted, John
 

Clyde59

Cadet
Joined
May 29, 2009
Messages
7
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

greetings! I working on rebuilding the transom this week and have a couple of questions.

my initial intent is to epoxy and sandwich with transom in CSM to make it stiffer. the plywood core would consist of 2 sheets of bcx sandwiched between a layer of CSM on each side.

CSM seems to be pretty thick stuff and I don't know how to guage final thickness once is it laid up in epoxy.

so if the transom is to be 1 5/8" thick, and I use 23/32" ply, will I have enough room to laminate both sides of transom board with CSM.
 

North Beach

Commander
Joined
Sep 29, 2008
Messages
2,022
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

Clyde, can't offer any opinions on the transom swap cauce I haven't done any but I can say this about the decking:

I went back with 1/2" Douglas Fir marine grade over extruded polystyrene insulation. I did 2 coats of epoxy resin on the underside and two coats on top with glass reinforcement on the first ply and my deck feels like concrete.

No sag or weak spots whatsoever and I go about 265.

3/4" plywood just adds some extra weight you don't really need.
 

erikpn

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 23, 2009
Messages
325
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

I would also recommend going with factory thickness instead of 3/4" for the deck. I did 3/4", not only does it add weight but the factory sideboards won't fit back into their original holes without modification. I am having to regrind the base on a beltsander which adds more time and labor into my project.
 

North Beach

Commander
Joined
Sep 29, 2008
Messages
2,022
Re: Sylvan / Starcraft Super Sport Rebuild 18'

I would also recommend going with factory thickness instead of 3/4" for the deck. I did 3/4", not only does it add weight but the factory sideboards won't fit back into their original holes without modification. I am having to regrind the base on a beltsander which adds more time and labor into my project.

Erik, that's the other problem I figure everyone converting from 1/2" to 3/4" will run into.
 
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