What to do.

[viper1]

Well sitting here thinking of trading off my 19.1 1993 Starcraft Holiday. Shes been my dream boat on Erie. But with a 4 cyl i/o its a little under powered. But also bought it for economy. But being a mechanic a long time I do realize that over loading and running a boat all the time to stay on plane, May take more then a v8 taking it easy pulling the same. And with 4-5 ,200 lb men aboard full throttle barely breaks 20MPH on gps.
Now the problem Have a guy offering me a 1984 26 foot Starcraft Islander. It has a 230 hp Omc V-8 I/O with Stringer outdrive. Floor is pretty good a couple soft spots my 230 lbs can feel. Small and most cant tell. Just got painted including bottom fouling paint and new stencils. He's the third owner and has been garage kept mostly. And last two owners basically used it very little. Was on the lake for fall walleye though. He may do a even swap. What is every one elses thought on this? Transom seems great and stringers are all metal. Thinking of restoring it slowly maybe next winter or maybe some this year yet. Seems to be plenty fishable now. Pretty big boat with a 100 gal tank. If run reasonable anyone have an idea on gas usage? Kicker for trolling so that don't matter much. But perching can be 1 mile out or 14 miles. Same with eyes. Just thought id ask the pro for any info. And if it be a good trade.

 

[MNhunter1]

If the condition is satisfactory to you, I'd lean toward the trade, especially fishing the big water that you do. Not sure what sort of shape your current Holiday is in, but a nice 26 Islander would be high on the want list of many fellow tin heads.

 

[Weep'n Willy]

That's a tough decision for sure. The 26's are not easy to come by and the few that I do see available have the old OMC. As you know you will not come close to the gas mileage of a 4 banger. The OMC's, well you know their story. So the question really is do you want the bigger boat or really want to keep what you have. As a mechanic it would not take much to swap out your current power plant/outdrive and install a larger engine or even bore out what you have to achieve more power. With the 26 I would seriously consider removing the OMC and installing a solid merc and outdrive. Yes that would entail some transom work but in the long run well worth it.

I run a 140 mercruiser in my boat and although it is not the fastest boat on the lake it gets me out there and trolls smoothly all day on less than a gallon/hour. I really have no need for speed and speed doesn't help when the water goes from calm to OMG in less than 10 minutes.

 

[64osby]

You would have a lot more room on the dance floor for those 4 or 5 - 200lb + guys.

Run it for a year, source all the replacement parts and then trade out the motor.

 

[Grandad]

Well sitting here thinking of trading off my 19.1 1993 Starcraft Holiday. Shes been my dream boat on Erie. But with a 4 cyl i/o its a little under powered. But also bought it for economy. But being a mechanic a long time I do realize that over loading and running a boat all the time to stay on plane, May take more then a v8 taking it easy pulling the same. And with 4-5 ,200 lb men aboard full throttle barely breaks 20MPH on gps

Hi viper. If you like the 26 footer, I say go for it. If you're able to do the work, I'm sure you'll enjoy accomplishing a rebuild. But, if you're just looking at improving your current boat, I'd start by questioning its performance problems. With a similar load to your boat, my 21' Holiday I/O with a 4 cyl 120 HP gets 30 MPH on GPS. Mine's an older hull, but not likely any more efficient than yours. Perhaps you're carrying around a lot of saturated floatation that's slowing you down. - Grandad

 

[Watermann]

Only down side I can see is the OMC and it's WLOD but that can be switched/converted to Mercruiser with a donor boat.

 

[pckeen]

Those 26's are tough to find, but the soft floors comment means you are looking at a total restoration on it. If you decide not to take it, stick the ad up on the starcrafts on craigslist or ebay site....there are a few of us in the market for that boat.

 

[classiccat]

why not make both your own?? :madgrin:

 

[elkhunter338]

My 21' chieftain sees 28 mph @ wot 4,800 rpms with a 140 merc I/O, 19 pitch prop. Its loaded with fishing gear and typically 3-4 people plus dog. 15hp kicker, 38 gallons gas, 2 batteries, I run at sea level.
20 seems slow, I cruise at 20-22 mph @ about 3,800 to 4,000 rpms. Get decent fuel economy.
I want a 26' but can't find one on the west coast. If I find one I plan to convert it to OB get rid of the OMC unit right away. Was one in Idaho that had the merc. 6 cyl. he wanted too much $.
good luck.

 

[viper1]

Sorry so late getting back. For some reason Im not being notified by mail when i get a reply. any way turned down the 26 footer. Was pretty rough cosmetically, engine had signs of abuse and so did the boat. Found a couple gel coat scrapes into the wood below water line. Shook his hand and thanked him for his time. But wasn't what i was looking for. Now stopping in ashtabula Sunday to look at a 1987 V. 221 with a 4 cyl i/o. He says. From what he says its in excellent condition even cosmetically. Dealer boat 2 years ago. I will say i hope hes wrong and it has a six cyl. But said he went out 10 miles cruising speed with 2 large adults and two normal. He said large was 225 plus lbs. Hmmm Should i be insulted? Says it will do 30mph by gps loaded with the 4 of them and all fishing gear. Which is the same as my 19ft starcraft with a 4 does. Any way 10 miles out cruising 30mph and 4-5 hours trolling then approx 12 miles back at 30mph 5 times on one 42 gallon tank. Sounds like a little bragging even for a 4 cyl. It is heavier being a cuddy. Should i expect a better ride in a 221 then a 191? How about some info or experiences.

 

[Weep'n Willy]

Well I had owned a new late 80's Islander 221. It had the 120hp cobra i/o. Very economical on gas and yes at throttle it would do in the low 30's trimmed up and fairly calm water. It had a 50 gal tank. I ran it out of Frankfort MI running 15-17 miles out at a cruising speed of around 25 to get to the scum lines to troll. We would troll for up to 6 hours then head back in. It usually resulted in about 20 gal for the trip. I also ran that boat from Houghton, MI out to Isle Royale again with approx 25 mph cruising speed which was over a 60 mile trip one way. We would refill once we got to Rock Harbor but still had plenty gas in the tank. The key is to run it up on plane then throttle back to cruise and your gas mileage is greatly improved, even with a loaded boat. I have a glass 19' with a 120 that I have averaged less than a gallon an hour trolling with a little more for the run in and back to port of around 10-18 mile round trip on plane. So an average day with the glass boat was 10-12 gallons and the glass boat is way heavier than the Islander was. Now with the Chieftain I have a 140 mercruiser and it is extremely similar in fuel usage. Again, WOT it will move right along over 32 sog but I again prefer to run around 25 cruising out.
No need to beat the motor and waste gas running at full throttle, ease it down a bit and let it cruise along and the Islander will give you all the performance and fuel economy you need. My buddy has a 22' Islander with the V-6 and he uses over half again what I use for a day.

 

[cj8mule]

Hmmm..... 110 miles @ 30 mph and about 25 hours of trolling on 42 gallons of fuel? I think it's do-able.

I'll go 20 to 30 miles total run out/in @ 20 mph and spend 5 to 6 hours trolling which will use around 7 gallons. That's on a 21' Chief with a 165 mercruiser running at around 3000 rpm and trolling at idle.

Hope this helps Viper

 

[64osby]

Viper, not trying to hijack here. Saw the pics you posted.

How does your cover attach to the windshield? Snaps, Velcro or other?

What would you call the cover? To me it's a blend of a Bimini and a Convertible.

Awesome pics of your catch. You could feed the Starmada.:joyous:

 

[jbcurt00]

Now stopping in ashtabula Sunday to look at a 1987 V. 221 with a 4 cyl i/o. He says. From what he says its in excellent condition even cosmetically. Dealer boat 2 years ago............

Not sure you'd see this over in the post a pix of your SC Topic:

Viper, you might get lucky and the seller would be willing to send you a cellphone pix/scan TODAY, if you buy the brochure:
Vintage-Starcraft-1987-pleasure-boats-catalog-brochure

 

[viper1]

Well mines called a cockpit cover. It only covers the cockpit. A mooring cover covers the whole boat. It can be made of canvas or any material. My buddy just got a new one for his larson for about 700.00 It is great and feels like vinyl. It won't let anything in. Canvas keeps the worst out and is plenty good. But also rots quicker i think. He got a long warranty on this one. 7 years i believe. Mine fastened the whole perimeter with good snaps. The only good way to go. The Pic you seen is actually a Bimini top. Some actually have sides that fasten in with windows. I believe mine does too. But never used them.Actually the ones like this form a sort of cabin. And they're great in bad weather. Kept me dry many days.

 

[viper1]

Sounds good. Any one ever figure a rough estimate on gas use at crusing 25-30 mph and trolling 1-3 mph. Be great for planning. As to get gas where im docking might be 20+ miles.