1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

[firecat]

hi, im going to look at this boat, its a 75 starcraft capri 17 ft, the owner says the engine mount is broke. how hard is it to fix so the drive dont flex. he says the seats are ok but carpet could use replacing. he had the engine and drive checked over by a dealer and thats all good. just the mount is broke. can get it for $1500.00 is it worth looking at? thanks

 

[erikgreen]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

It may be worth checking out, but a 17 foot boat that old would have to be in very good condition to warrant a $1500 price.

If the motor mounts need replacing, odds are good something else is rotten too, possibly everything... if you're sincerly interested in that model of boat, go check it out. Read the other posts here on the board on how to check for rot, check the motor, etc.

Then post back with what you found out.

Erik

 

[Coors]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

all is rotten, search threads and read up, in order to test.
Spring is here, and boats with problems are for sale.

Read up in here. use search.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

what drive tran does it have, can you get parts for it? then there is the rot problem.
Buying a boat

1st you need to decide what you want to use it for, fishing, cruising, or water sports.

2nd how many people adults, children you want on board of the average outing.

3rd outboard, inboard-outboard, or inboard power plant.

4th Budget, what you want to pay, and what you are willing to pay, when you find
Exactly what you want.

You can hire a marine surveyor, to inspect the boat, or you can do it yourself.

You are mainly looking for soft spots in the deck, transom, cracks, all signs of a rotten, under frame.

The motor should be clean, no spots where the paint is discolored, or pealing from heat, having run hot. Compression should be atleast 100psi, and within 10% of each other,
Spark on all cylinders, good pee stream, check lower unit for water in oil.

The overall condition of the boat will tell you a lot, as to how it has been maintained.

A 30 year old boat motor combo, may be in better condition, than a 3 year old

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

Having rebuilt three mi-1970s fiberglass Starcrafts, I can definitely say that unless the boat has spent its life indoors or under cover, it'll have rot. Get in, get under, etc. - whatever you have to do to inspect it. Use an ice pick or an awl to poke the stringers through the glass. Check the floor, too, particlarly on the outer thirds, as that's where the foam flotation is...
- Scott

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

Also, $1500 is pretty high, particularly with the one known issue. And, as TD noted, the outdrive makes a big difference. MerCruiser is the one you want - still good parts availability and service availability. OMC outdrives have many issues, not the least of which is finding someone to work on them anymore...

- Scott

 

[firecat]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

forgot to say it is a mercruiser drivetrain.

 

[firecat]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

ok so i drive 2 hours to go see this boat. first thing i notice is that it is a omc drive, not mercruiser as i was told. jump inside boat to look around, floor is spongy, seats arnt bad but could use covering, needs new floor covering, remove cover and the motor is not connected by any mounts, they are all broke. so it seems that it needs a complete tear down and new stringers, flooring ,mounts etc etc. so i didnt even offer him anything. now you guys know boats, i dont, would it be worth it if could get for $500.00 or less? or should a guy just forget it and move on. it may be one heck of a restoration progect for a newbie to start. thanks.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

It would be a money sink and time sink.

Really, there are better boats to spend your time on... unless you had an emotional attachment to a boat in that condition for some reason, walk away.

Probably the only re-useable thing there is the hull itself... and maybe not that.

That guy's smoking something if he thinks he can actually get money for a boat in that kind of shape. If the trailer is good, maybe $200 or so for that, but the boat is a pretty big negative value.

Erik

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

I concur. Unless the OMC outdrive was in great shape, the boat isn't worth much at all, even for parts. If you REALLY had a hankering to own a Capri and wanted to rebuild it, you could rebuild it to take a MerCruiser, but that's a project in its own right.

The only way I'd go after it is if you could get it for next to nothing. Then you could keep the trailer, part the outdrive, gauges & hardware out for seed money, and hope you had a friend at the local landfill that would let you dump the boat for cheap (or turn it into a sandbox for the kids/nephews/neighbors/etc.).

- Scott

 

[firecat]

Re: 1975 starcraft inboard motormount repair

lol, thanks guys, greatly appreciated, i will think of it no more. will look elsewhere.