Taking over a 1966 Newport

[66 Newport]

Hi Guys,
I'm new to the forum. I'm just starting to take over care of a family heirloom this past weekend. My girlfriends mother was the last in the line to have possession of it and can't do it any more. She actually was going to give it away to friends but the mechanic at the barn it was stored at scared them away by saying the trailer wasn't safe, and the outdrive and motor needed to be replaced to make it reliable (bunch of BS)

The boat is a 1966 Newport, serial number 66 xxxx. It was bought brand new by my girlfriends grandmother and has been in the family every since. It was kept on willoughby lake at a second summer camp they owned and got very little use. The family estimates that the hours on the boat are somewhere around 180, and it shows. The boat was kept indoors and always had a dock cover on it during the summer. The interior is in near perfect condition, the seats are original and don't have any cracks or dry rot.

The boat had been in storage for 3 years when we pulled it out of the barn. When the friends who decided to walk away (thank god) left, the mechanic put it back in the barn and we decided to get it out of there so it wasn't a temptation to him (he had been offered it, but never came up with what he wanted to pay) to make it his. I got it over to a friends house and after 20 minutes of tinkering she was up and purring. The bellows seem in good shape and I'm going to put a modern high volume bilge pump in it just in case and we're going to take it for a sea trail once we can get it registered. The only hiccup we had was with the propeller and lack of hardware. The proper thrust washer for the 1A was long gone and a modern one for a tapered shaft was in its place. The prop had about 1/4 free play on the shaft and the recessed collar on prop was slid all the way into the lock ring for the lower bearing carrier (ouch). I've sourced a new thrust collar and I think we should be in good shape. The drive shifts smooth and doesn't make any bad noises.

I'd love to hear any information anyone has to share about these old boats, pictures to follow later!

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

where does the battery go from the factory? there are 2 ring tabs under the cover on the port side of the motor. Do those have something to do with what secured the battery? there seems like space to put the battery right next to the engine, but that would have a tendency to cook it from the heat.

 

[Bwana Don]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Newport V

Here's a link to your boat. It looks like the battery sits right next to the motor, under the doghouse. Is there a spot for it there? Is your gas tank below deck? I'm a lot of help eh. My boat had seats next to the doghouse. The gas tank went under one seat and the battery under the other.

I like the boat. I'll bet she rides nice. Welcome to the best Starcraft site ever. Keep posting pictures and asking questions. You'll get answers.

Don

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Thanks for the reply. My gas tank is up under the bow behind the kick panel. I'm not sure how many gallons it is yet, but it has the cool mirror to let you read the mechanical gauge.

There appears to be space for a group 26 battery to fit beside the engine, and then there are 2 eyelets made of wound wire screwed into the deck that are inside the engine box when its down. There aren't any wedges for the battery to sit against though, so it would be at the angle of the hull. I don't know what is suppose to keep it from moving around. Do you tie it to the eyelets? There was a group 22 sitting on the deck when we picked the boat up, it wasn't in a box or anything. I suppose that the battery could sit in that hole, but I wouldn't feel good unless it was in a box too.

This boat started to sink and got beached out once over a failed drive bellows, but it also didn't have an automatic bilge pump so it had a lot of water in it by the time they realized something was wrong. I'm going to remedy that with an automatic 1000 gph pump. The battery would have gotten wet then when the bilge filled up, and might have shorted out so there was no way to start pumping it. I have no problem putting the battery on the deck in a box in the well next to the dog house, but that's not original so I'd rather do it right, and not give up the deck space.

 

[Bwana Don]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Put it under the doghouse then. Tie it down just as it was from the factory. I agree with not wanting to lose deck space. Batteries can take some heat, they are under hoods next to motors in cars all day. Check your bellows and replace at the recommended interval, you should be good.

I'm paranoid because I boat in Lake St. Clair which is a 1/4 million acres. I'd put a spare battery under the bow maybe?? I'll have three batteries and two bilge pumps in the offshore. lol

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

What ever they use to do in the past to secure the battery I think will have to remain a mystery. I got a 750 ca group 24 which is the smallest I would think safe to have and it was too wide to fit under the doghouse and not touch the engine. The battery in a box takes up less space than I thought on deck so there it will live. I am going to get a clamshell to put on the back port trim panel and drill a hole and run the battery cables out from behind there. I'll cover the cables with the clamshell where it comes out from the panel. It should look pretty original and keep everything neat. I found one new problem today with the drive raw water hose being too long. When you turn the drive to port with the hose down, it pinches the hose. I need to pull off the hose and shorten it and it will be all set. It will get a new one this winter when the drive is off. Other than that I think it's ready to throw back in the water, I'm getting excites to go run this thing.

 

[barato2]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

go with a bigger pump than 1000 or add a second one. it's rated at 1000 gpm with no hose attached at no lift. with a foot or 18" lift to the outlet from the bilge, that figure drops a bunch. with corrugated hose, it drops a bunch more. if it's wired with less than necessary gauge wiring, it drops still more. once it's installed, a 1000gpm pump can easily be only pumping 600ish gpm. i'll check the manual for exact figure but you'd be surprised.

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport






Finally got to take some better pics of the old girl. She's not in too bad a shape owing to always being barn stored in the winter and having a dock cover on her in the summer. There is a little bit of spider cracking at the corners of the windshield but not too bad. I've got some 3M Cleaner & Wax waiting for her the next time I get to work on her. I got the situation of the wrong thrust washer resolved so that is ready to go. My friend's house that it's staying at is taking care of changing the drive oil. The only other issue I want to attend to is the cooling hose going from the drive to the transom plate. The last mechanic who had it apart used a piece of hose that was way too long so that it could be connected with the drive off, and when the drive is down and turned to the left it folds over on its self since the hose is now too long. I didn't have 3' worth of 1/4" extension to get to the hose clamp so I could shorten the hose, that's next on my list before it goes into the water. Other than that I'm getting excited to put her in the lake, and I've been picking up all the safety gear and equipment that is missing.

I have a spin on Racor filter coming for it to ditch that silly canister and new fuel line to replace the old stuff that's not uscg spec. I got the bilge pump and float switch combo, and a second float switch to wire into the horn circuit (my friends idea) to sound off the dual trumpets if she starts sinking on us.

 

[Bwana Don]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Good job. Take a video if you get a chance (one she's on the water).

 

[North Beach]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Man I searched for months for one of those glass boat doghouses when I first began the resto on the LL. That thing is way cool!!!!

 

[barato2]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

that doghouse looks like a Mayan pyramid.....

love the idea of the audible signal when the auto bilge pump kicks on (hope you don't mind if i steal idea) but i might use something other than the horn....maybe a cheap buzzer from radio shack, or better yet salvage a disconnected car seat belt buzzer/beeper/bonger?

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

I was going to buy a full bilge alarm kit, but the horn is only 85db and if the dock cover was on it and we're up in the house we might not hear it till it's too late. Those big double trumpets would let everyone know if there was a problem and we'll all come running.

 

[barato2]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

oh. gotcha. didn't realize you meant for when you weren't in the boat. thanks for idea! i may go with something that's not intrusive to nearby boats in marina if it comes on intermittently but will draw some attn if it stays on.

 

[66 Newport]

Re: Taking over a 1966 Newport

Normally a bilge alarm is on its own separate float switch. You would want to mount the switch at a point just a little bit higher than the turn on point for your pump float switch, that way if the pump fails for some reason it doesn't take that much more water to trip the alarm.