Starting 1978 21' Starcraft Mariner Rebuild

[mncahill]

First off, thanks for this forum for giving me the impetus to rebuild what has always been my dream boat. 21' Starcraft Mariner 1978 hull, with excellent looking aluminum and virtually all the wood rotted. This will be a saltwater boat and it's going to be fished heavily. First up is cleanup and removing decking and console to see what I've got down there. Then rivets...

Anyone see one of those attachments on the console before? Looks like a super console add on of some kind bolted over the seat in from of the console. Not sure if it's custom, or if I even want it...

 

[Watermann]

:welcome: to the Starmada cahill!

I'ts great you found your dream boat SC! So the best way to keep us happy here is photos and of course it's how we can help with the repairs as well. Using photobucket to upload your pics and then paste the IMG code found on the right side of the PB page your photos of that awesome mariner will show up nice and big like this..:thumb:

 

[mncahill]

Thanks for the tip, and thanks for all the great information. I've been reading up on other rebuilds to find what to do and not to do. I've got a few questions but will continue to do my reading for now...since they're basically the same questions everyone else would have at this point.

 

[64osby]

Certainly looks like a project.

Definitely an add on to the CC. The lower portion in front is typically a bench seat with a flip up top.

Looks like someone added a Coon Dog kennel to it.

You are also missing the front platform.

Have fun ripping everything out.

 

[mncahill]

Good ish news. Deck has been replaced previously and screwed down with now rusted drywall screws. That means this is a job for the cats paw since they definitely won't turn ot. So far they just snap right off.

Also, foam replaced with styrofoam.

 

[mncahill]

Here's a better picture. The aluminum stringers were fortified with wood. Styrofoam will come out easy enough. I doubt it will be going back. Foam floatation has already saved my life once.
So I will likely use something more standard.

 

[classiccat]

Belated Welcome mnchill! :welcome:

Most of us use closed-cell foam insulation board...the stuff that's in there right now is an open-cell sponge...so chuck it.

Be sure to get all of those ferrous drywall screw remnants out of the aluminum...especially if you plan on using it in saltwater...great way to corrode a hole clear-through the hull skin.

Expect debris to fall inside of the ribs...you'll want to get that out for 2 reasons...galvanic corrosion as well as blocking the limber holes...which also leads to corrosion from pooled-up, sub-deck saltwater.

First try a strong shop-vac at each rib-end. Follow-up with shooting compressed air into one end...debris should fly-out of the other end. A butter knife works great at freeing-up stuff jammed in the limber holes...with the Admiral's permission of course

 

[mncahill]

Excellent. Thanks a lot. I'm removing it now. And killing the wap nest at the splash well. Speaking of splash wells how does it come out?

 

[mncahill]

Wow. Styro really absorbs the water. Also, I find a nice soup below.

 

[GA_Boater]

Welcome to Starcraft rebuild land. 37 years ago styrofoam was SCs preferred floatation foam. So that is probably the factory foam. And you can see why none if us put it back. Crumbly, nasty, water-sucking stuff. :blue: You will be washing the white(ish) specks for a long time.

I don't know why the wood is tucked beside the stringers. Stringers seem flimsy until the deck is attached. Why do POs use plain steel fasteners in an aluminum, for that matter, any boat.

 

[Candutch]

Nice hull, gonna be an awesome boat when done. Can't wait to see what you do with it.

 

[mncahill]

Thanks....

It looks like he put the wood in behind the console to try to stiffen the floor. He used 1/2 inch regular plywood so maybe he thought that would make up.