Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

[classiccat]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Alright I was at the farm and ranch store today to get a new tank heater for my Koi pond and decided to check out their paint isle.

I found an entire wall of paint for the farm and tractors in particular. A nice selection of "Our Finest Alkyd Formula" and the "Hardener Available for Added Durability." The very same thing minus the name "Topside" and "marine". $26 a gallon and they have the same Alkyd formula in all the same color rattle bombs! I was doing a little happy dance when one of the pests that work there interrupted me and spoiled the moment.

Tractor, Equipment & Industrial Enamel Products | Van Sickle Paint

NOT COOL MAN!!! Never interrupt someone in the middle of their happy dance! Did you tell turn the pest in? :laugh:

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Yup, I researched this company about a year ago. Actually spent about an hour on the phone with their Home Office Paint Techs. This is a very good paint. Just not readily available. If you can get it locally then I'd HIGHLY recommend it. I shot a small 5x10 utility trailer for a friend with their Gloss Black and the hardener and it turned out great. He then pin striped it and brought it back and I shot it with their Clear Coat out of a Rattle Can. That was the summer of 2012 and the trailer still looks like new. I think you'lll really like the paint. They're based out of Lincoln, Nebraska.

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Hey guys Aloha, I found the ultimate restoration project!

Mighty Mo!

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Boy, you're gonna need a bigger tub of Gluvit! :lol: One of our proud Fighting Ladies, for sure!

 

[GT1000000]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Merry Christmas!

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Mele Kalikimaka!

 

[jvanhees]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Hope you are enjoying your trip! I think you could fit her in as #3 resto...

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Thank you for not posting the Waterman in a grass skirt pix :watermelon:

Enjoy the islands. Hanauma snorkeling bay was a great trip. As was taking a glider soar off the north shore.

Is the pipleine running this time of year? That was amazing to watch as well.

Enjoy the weather!

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I'm back to the cold and snow today, tough to beat 70 at night and 80 during the day for temps. Got to go out in a really neat ocean going diesel powered catamaran to see some humpback whales. Funny the stuff on the boats you look at with a different eye than most people.

Time to start working on some tin!

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Went out to the garage and listened to the Seahawks pummel the Rams. While I was there I decided to do some more clean up of aluminum parts and brackets. While digging in my box of goodies rescued from the rot heap I found a neat looking cleat. It's the only one in there and I don't think it was screwed on the boat. Kinda has an art-deco look to it.

Sitting next to the cleat is a piece of aluminum window channel that had been cleaned and primed a couple weeks ago. Today I ran to the Big R and got some of the alkyd VanSickle enamel paint to try out. I wanted to leave the window frames bare but they were in bad shape so I decided to paint them to halt any further corrosion. I picked up a rattle can of the aluminum color and like the way it turned out on the window frames.

Just to give you an idea of what I'm faced with. Below is some dissimilar metal corrosion caused by the chrome plated brass vinyl cover snaps that were on the window channel. There is really no way to repair this damage so I cleaned out all of the corrosion. After painting I will just have to cover the pitting with a large flange rivet in each of the holes and touch up paint over them.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

He WM, Check out some of this stuff...PC-11. Marine Epoxy. Mix it up Fill in the holes and then re-Drill. Paint and it will be smooth as a Baby's behind. Or Plug the holes and just fill the pits. This stuff is really good.

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I was thinking of trying to fill with marine tex epoxy and sand them but take a look at the picture below. The top of the windshield channel there are 8 really bad holes, some clear through becoming a U and then the side window frames have another 6 to fill in the same shape. Just the shear numbers of holes on that narrow channel made me start thinking of covering them rather than filling and sanding 14 holes. First I thought about using pieces of angle aluminum to cover the holes but there are some serious compound angles I'm not wanting to tackle. I won't be putting a vinyl top back on either, just a Bimini so no more snaps. I have also thought about just cutting that channel off the bracket, it's only purpose is actually just for the snaps.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Yeah, I kinda see your Point!!!

 

[sprintst]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I've got a bag of stainless steel snaps sitting in a box that you make me wish I had swapped out by now. I'll have to get at that in the spring.

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I've got a bag of stainless steel snaps sitting in a box that you make me wish I had swapped out by now. I'll have to get at that in the spring.

Be sure to clean any corrosion off after removing the old snaps and bed the new ones in some 3M 4200 or 5200. You may not have any corrosion issues if the boats only been in freshwater.

 

[laurentide]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Just an idea...maybe a dumb one...but that has a very hood-ornament look to it. It could be cool if you were going to go with two separate nav lights in the bow area, with that right where the Starcraft factory light was. I do frequently wish I had one there when I'm yanking the boat onto the trailer by myself. But it could be more flash than function...I dunno :noidea:

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I do like the split nav light idea, not sure this cleat is going to make the final cut since I only have one and can't find another online exactly like it.

More busy work in the garage for this weekend, cutting off the corroded snap channels, more painting the windshield frames, dig the transom cover out and strip the paint off of it and I hope to pull the cabin out. Glass company locally wants $130 for a 5 foot piece of 3/16 polycarb for my lower windshield...

Looking forward a bit to the aluminum transom repairs. I see there's a big hole that needs repaired, I have no idea why it was there but now I need to figure out the best way to repair it. The filler spouts on the transom cover are also in question, not sure I want 2 tanks in the stern area. I would most likely cover them up with a couple vents rather than repair.

Anyone notice all the scuff marks in the old paint on these pictures? There was a huge population of feral cats that lived in the area and evidently they liked trying to get inside the Chief, that's their paw marks trying to skitter inside.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Not sure I've ever seen that pix of the transom before..............

Hard to say what that extra thru hole is for, looks like it had (has) a n exterior mount of some sort (the maroon halo), but next to the kicker bracket, I'd bet it was for the fuel line to the kicker...........

For such a large hull, the trim tabs seem undersized. I also mention them because they are vintage, small & probably worth a few beans to someone rehab'ing a smaller runabout, tin or glass.

I have a very similar set:

but actually have an offer out for the set I'd rather use:

If you think you need trim tabs, I suspect a larger, more modern set would actually serve you better. If they are the Tempo ones I think they are, the last set was on Ebay for about $99........

Silly cats:
Tinny's for dogs~Fiberglass is for cats

Hey, I like cats as much as the next guy:

uke:

 

[classiccat]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

I suppose one of the good things about an I/O is that stray cats can't get in....and the mice can live happily ever after :lol: :fish:

 

[Watermann]

Re: Tin addiction 18' Starcraft Chieftain

Yeah that's a pic of when I first drug the tin bucket home before any work was done. the trim tabs on it were exactly that the Tempo-Curtis and they caused their fair share of corrosion as well, eating right though the paint to get at the aluminum underneath.