My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

[noppy]

last june is when my project began, i travelled and hour and a half at night to collect it, with a trailor we were given 2 years prior which carried are rubbish wooden dinghy (which is now a garden feature) , my boat was from ebay and cost an ASTONISHING ?5.50 ($11)

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i didnt realize what i had bought until a month or so after i got it, as i had to wait until my exams were over till i could start.

The beginning, we had noticed how heavy it was when we picked it up but having no prior knowledge of speedboats we thought they were all that heavy, but after sitting on my slanted drive i assumed some water would be in the hull so pulled the plug out and loads came out, to cut a long story short i worked out the hull was full of water in the foam so cut it all out and replaced it with marine ply and polystyrene, the boat was half the weight or less.
this is what it looked like:

i did all this between holidays during the summer, then stopped completely for winter having no spare time because of badminton and no daylight. anyway now i back and its gunna get finished. its currently at a blank canvas stage.

hopefully im picking up my engine this weekend, its a 20 hp johnson dont no if it will work straight away, what i know about it is.
+ longshaft
+ turnsover (with compression)
+ comes with fuel tank and line
+ tiller control
+ engages gears

so fingers crossed it'll work straight away he said there didnt appear to be any reason why it wouldnt (he was given it). i getting it for a bargain price of ?60 or $120.

is a 20hp big enough (in the long run?) i aint gettin anything bigger this year

i have water tested it with a 4hp evinrude and it was great fun hahah

there are pics of the inside finished somewhere on my pc but cant find them atmo.
btw my names Gav (Gavan) im 17 live in England. iv done and am going to do everything myself, though i do get guidance from my dad.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

A good bargain, and good for you for taking on this interesting job. The 20hp will push it along, but I think it's designed for a larger outboard. Still, it'll probably plane with the 20 until you get something larger.

Are there any name plates or other identifying writings on the boat? If so, we might be able to tell you for what horsepower engine it was designed.

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

there isnt any identification plates at all iv looked everywhere i can think of. this is only one of my many hobbies, i dont have enough time in the day.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

where do you live, seeing you paid in pounds. that may be why we can identify.

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

south west of england, the only suggestions iv ever had were that it was a fletcher which it isnt iv looked at every possible make and model of fletcher would you say its a classic?

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

small set back the jerk who was selling me the engine sold it to someone else cus he couldnt wait till sunday what an idiot, im on the search for an engine

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

im back on track picking up another 20hp johnson tomo, iv only got to travel 130 miles no problemo so im going camping

 

[Mark42]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

Cool boat. Looks like its going 100mph sitting still.

My guess it was meant to have an outboard over 100hp. It looks a lot like a members boat that hasn't posted in a while. He had a pic of a red boat a lot like it as his avatar. (was his handle "fngscreenname" or something like that?)

Great project. Unless you really need to be conservative with your fuel expenses, look for a 40hp to 60hp motor. A 40hp should get you about 30mph in that hull. A 60 might get it up to 40mph. At those speeds, and practically sitting on the floor, it will seem wicked fast. With that deep V stepped hull, I bet it handles like like a go-kart. The deep V , and large splashwell with steep rise indicates to me that this is a fast boat that takes a big motor. But the drawback to the deep V is that it takes more power to get on plane and keep it there than shallow V boats like my MFG. So a 20hp may not give as good performance in that boat than it might in shallow planing hull boat. Thats why I lean towards powering with a larger motor. At any rate, it should be loads of fun when complete.

Just as a reference, the 14' MFG Niagara (shallow V) in my signature has a 40hp that pushes it to 30mph with just me and 14 gallons of gas. Loaded up it does a max of 27 mph or so.

BTW, that big hunk of aluminum on the transom usually indicates that the transom is rotten and was flexing, so it was reinforced with the aluminum plate. Check out the transom for rot and make the appropriate fix before going forward.

Keep posting and good luck with the motor search.

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

i shall probably look for a 40-60 next year, i picked up a 20hp on sunday needs a damn good cleaning and new coat of paint, i didnt realise 20's were so big, iv gotta wait till next friday to start that when my exams are over

 

[jeff_smith_0423]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

That looks like a "Shakespeare" runabout. I've seen one or two for sale here in the midwest but both ads made statements to the effect that they were made in England and are rare. I think i recall the asking price on one in "like new, always garaged" condition was $4900.

 

[jeff_smith_0423]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

Check out this page - might help you. http://people.dsv.su.se/~klas/Boats/home.html

 

[SnappingTurtle]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

I think Mr. Smith found the needle in the hay stack.

It matches the look right down to the original bow cleats. From the size it could be a Mustang or a Clubman.

Quote from the website Mr. Smith found ...

“History

The classic English Shakespeare speed boats are named after their designer, William Shakespeare. William, or Bill, raced powerboats from 1960 until 1971 when he was tragically killed on Lake Windermere while practicing for the Windermere Grand Prix. The year before, he had set the world speed record of 104 mph (90 knots). Take a look at Bill Shakespeare's original 1962 Wooden Race boat found in the bushes of someone's back garden!

In the beginning of his career, he started his own firm - here's a picture of the Shakespeare boat yard. The boat business didn't do well without his direction, went through several ownerships and oil crises, and finally collapsed around 1978. What happened after 1978 is unclear (to me) but a Shakespeare company must have been resurrected, since many boats were built in the eighties. Later, in 1990, a circuit racer called Francis Whitley, current owner and director of Shakespeare Marine, asked the designer (Lorne Campbell) of his boat to also design new boats for Shakespeare. Besides the name, there does not seem to be any other connection to the original Shakespeare company. In 1995 Francis Whitley let Brunello Acampora and Victory Design do a new range of boats and the 830 was the first outcome of this co-operation. Later a 600, 650 and a 960 have been launched. A company in Essex in England called Waverider, however, continued building the old Shakespeare models with model names such as Summersport, Magna, and Mustang. The company now trades using another name (Maldon/Morlan/Mayland? Boats) having been advised by local "experts" that the name 'Waverider Sports Boats' wasn't an established brand name. They lost the Waverider moulds in a fire around 1997, but can supply spares like trim and windshield etc.”

You have a real nice find. A cool boat, with a interesting history. Should be a lot of fun. Wished it was mine.

P.S. Good luck with your exams!

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

sadly its not any from that link, mine doesnt have the lump/ridge running down the middle of the front, i really have no idea what it is, but i think were getting closer

 

[SnappingTurtle]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

Sorry missed that detail. Some have it, some don't. We'll keep looking.

 

[bonz_d]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

That little white patch on the back right corner, is that a Hull ID number by chance?

If that boat was here in the States I'd guess it to be an early 70's Hustler or Switzer Craft. Both of which were made in McHenry County Illinois and were designed for 75-100hp outboards. And yes, with a 100hp Merc those things would flat *** Fly and were the boats to beat on the Fox Chain of Lakes at the time.

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

nah thats where the previous decals were, they had just painted round it

 

[jennis9]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

Can you tell if it's this like yours? I know Akron, Ohio is a bit far - but maybe this guy can tell you about your craft... craigslisting here. Let me know what you think. Looks like it doesn't have the ridge on the bow...

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/boa/677924548.html

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

no sadly not the one, keep trying

YAY only 2 biology exams and 1 chem stand in my way of starting my boat properly starting it on friday

 

[noppy]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

YAY EXAMS ARE OVER 3 months off

boat time

right my thoughts about the seating layout would be to have a back to back bench seat fitting a max of 6 people, could anyone give feedback as to pro's and cons of the design? i believe it was designed to have the common two single back to back seats sitting a max of 4

here's the state after a day of wire brushing and sanding off paint, its much better now after another day i shall put current pics up tomo

i fitted new plugs and new plug caps, theres a spark but it isnt firing so im taking the carb apart tomo for cleaning

cheers Gav

 

[pduquette]

Re: My Project 14' something (true bargain boat)

Well noppy , as a real loose rule of thumb those similar hull designs listed 40-70 hp as their recomendations----70 hp=