First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

[brokenjack]

I heard this was a Starcraft friendly forum. I just bought me a 14' Starcraft Marlin. I can make out 65 as the first 2 numbers of the serial number on the plate and 66 as the last 2 numbers. Will this tell me the year?

The hull looks like it has been patched before in many places with what looks like JB Weld. Also there were washers imbedded in the JB, and they were very rusty. I was thinking maybe these acted like a sacrificial anode.
Should I remove the JB and clean it all up to bare metal? There are also a number of pinholes that I would need to repair as well.
My head is swimming with options to repair the leaks. I'm going to start prepping the inside of the hull this week, and was wondering what type of wire brush to use. Is it ok to use a non aluminum wire brush? I'm planning on a combination of wire brush and sand paper. I'm also planning to seal the outside of the hull as well. Seems like there are so many I might as well coat the whole inside and outside of the hull. From my research there doesn't seem to be the definitive answer for best approach(kind of like life). I've entertained bedliner for the inside and Gluvit or Steelflex for the outside, gluvit then bedliner on the inside and Steelflex on the outside. I have no idea. I'm a boat noob. I just want to do a thorough job and do the whole hull bottom.

Any advice would be appreciated.
Here are some pics.

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Welcome to TinHead Land, broken.

First, if you have any rusty steel hardware, get rid of it. It doesn't play nice with aluminum. There have been stories about fishhooks eating into the AL.

One of the guys recently posted about using something other than a wire brush in a drill or grinder. He has serious corrosion and whatever he used was easier on the AL. I think it's in BlueFins thread. but not sure.

For sealing the rivets/seams - Gluvit or Coat-it on the inside only. Neither is UV resistant and has to be shielded from the sun. We have definite opinions on bed liner - most of us wouldn't touch the stuff,

When you get down to the guts, snap a few pics. Between all of us you will get some guidance/advice. Good luck. She does look nice on the outside.

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

I almost forgot your year question. Back then the first two numbers of the serial number is for the year. My '66 starts with 66, so I have to go with 1965 for yours.

 

[classiccat]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Welcome to the Starmada brokenjack!!

really cool little boat you have there!!

VA is one of my favorite states for fishing...big bluecats drove me into tin-madness :madgrin:

Nyalox (orange) cupped brush is what I used to remove surface corrosion. I've never used the grey nyalox (course)...the blue (fine) is a little too soft.

If you have really deep pitting, you may need a stainless steel wire brush to get in there.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Welcome to iboats, tin division

1st Marlin I've seen. Search & rescue boat

Paid too much? Probably more then 1 have paid more for less.

Repair the holes & corrosion, Gluvit/Coat-it @seams & rivets on the interior, then PAINT. Not typical spray in/roll on truck bedliner. It's heavy, not inexpensive & is difficult to deal w/.... :blue: Been there.....

I'm guessing you'll put a similar deck back in, once you've made some repairs & etc. If you're looking for non-skid for it there are options there too.

2 pix laden posts right outta the gate, nice work. With that I'm sure Jas will pony up your 1st years dues, so:

Welcome to the Starmada, here's your club hat: :tinfoil3:



Jas will also be of great assistance when 2-foot-itis sets in. From here it might quickly evolve into 4,6 or 8-foot-itis.....



Good luck on your project..

 

[bonz_d]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Looks like a great lil rig and should fish nicely! Those Evinrudes are terrific engines also. Run forever and very user friendly to work on.

 

[brokenjack]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Thanks for all the info.

Not sure if these pictures will help paint a picture of condition. Unfortunately I can't get a Nyalox or Stainless steel brushes at my local hardware. Just ordered some online. First thing I did, was remove the bench wood, and took out the deck. Deck is in really nice shape. I just need to strip it and repaint. If anyone out there needs a template, I'll trace/measure and draft one out. I noticed the rusty washers embedded in what looks like some JB weld or other epoxy stuff. I had enough sense to know that rust and AL don't mix and removed them. Had the boat tilted over and braced. I basically power washed the inside. I think this thing saw a fair amount of salt water on the inside. Noticed a number of pin holes scattered about. I'm sure if I covered a light with the hull I could have a pretty decent planetarium. So the hull is my first challenge. I'd like to coat the whole inside bottom of the hull. Is Gluvit something you can use in a wide area or is it just for repair of just the holes? Do I need to sand after wire brushing? Will the wire brushing produce enough of a bite?

Should I start a separate thread for this project?

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Judging from all the scale, you are probably right, the interior has seen a fair amount of salt.

Not seeing the pin holes in person, it's really a random few spots or more like the planetarium you menitoned?

Gluvit/Coat-it isn't really hole repair, it's more like leak prevention... But I'd leave the interior alone for now, waiting on the nylox anyway....

Since you've gotten the inside pressure washed & the hull tipped over, how's the bottom side look? Salt damage on the inside, probably means some on the exterior too. But again, not being there, it'll be hard to judge from here....

Some areas may need to be skimmed w/ MarineTex or JB Weld to fill in damage & repair pin holes. Many tinny transom's have had a slathering applied to fill/repair similar looking corrosion damage.

Bluefin16 has done quite a bit of corrosion damage & pin hole repair on his SC, and unfortunately found a good # of cracked ribs &/or hull cracks. He's taking great pains to carefully inspect, and repair those areas. I'd suggest you read thru his resto, good info provided & documented....
http://forums.iboats.com/starcraft-b...595947-17.html

 

[Brenn]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Im looking for a starcraft to rebuild,have been for a while off and on.Looks like you scored on yours even if theres work to be done.Good luck.

 

[brokenjack]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Judging from all the scale, you are probably right, the interior has seen a fair amount of salt.

Not seeing the pin holes in person, it's really a random few spots or more like the planetarium you menitoned?

Since you've gotten the inside pressure washed & the hull tipped over, how's the bottom side look? Salt damage on the inside, probably means some on the exterior too. But again, not being there, it'll be hard to judge from here....

It's not swiss cheese. There are pinholes here and there. The bottom exterior looks like it has a hand full of pin hole repairs with some kind of epoxy, but the paint is still good on it, and it doesn't look bad. I'll check out that thread.
Thanks!

 

[jasoutside]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

I heard this was a Starcraft friendly forum.

Iboats hosts the largest collection of Starcraft Metal Head type on the planet!:rockon:


Yur in good company. Welcome to the Drydock and great rig you scored there!:thumb:

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

OH NO, BrokenJack now you've got this guy ^^^ on your thread. If you look at his signature line you can clearly see he knows NOTHING at all about aluminum boats!!! His 11 thousand + posts are severely padded with inane comments about fishing and other nonsensical stuff that would not interest the basic aluminum boat re-builder. Be vewy vewy careful when dealing with this guy!!!!! He is a Tin-Head Deluxe!!!!

Nah...Just kidding. Jas IS the Go To guy round these parts!!!! You're in good hands!!!!

 

[brokenjack]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

OH NO, BrokenJack now you've got this guy ^^^ on your thread.

Nah...Just kidding. Jas IS the Go To guy round these parts!!!! You're in good hands!!!!

I felt the energy in the room. Maybe if I'm good, I'll have a Marlin thread on the Starcraft resto list!
Got to get organized and I'll start posting pictures like mad.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

I felt the energy in the room. Maybe if I'm good, I'll have a Marlin thread on the Starcraft resto list!
Got to get organized and I'll start posting pictures like mad.

All ya gotta do is post a link to your resto in the SC resto thread and ask to be added........ Jas will add ya to the list

 

[IslandGirlTalk]

Re: First Post and Recent Purchase of 65/66? 14' Starcraft Marlin

Congrats on your Starcraft Marlin! I have a 1966 16 foot Marlin. They are really great boats and they do really well in choppy water. Good luck with your project. Looking forward to seeing more pics.