Will's Starcraft V Hull Bass-Jon Project

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skyline223

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Location
Memphis, TN
Hello to all!!

I recently purchased this 12' 1986 Starcraft v hull jon boat for $200. I plan to clean her up cosmetically and make modifications along the way to suit her best for bass fishing here in West Tennessee. I have done a few restorations of some 1950's Chevrolets and am also restoring a 1957 Glasspar del Mar 16' cabin cruiser.

For the Starcraft, I plan to move this project along as quickly as possible. Being a big fan of vintage cars and boats, I am going to aim for a vintage look on the rebuild. That being said, I will not sacrifice any practicality because this boat should be a functional fishing boat first and foremost.

The first decision I need to make is what I am going to do about the hull cosmetically. The aluminum is in generally good shape but is pretty dented and has some deep scratches in a few select areas. I am debating on whether or not to attempt to polish the aluminum, or simply paint the entire boat. The obvious advantage to painting would be being able to sand out the scratches and fill some of the dents with body filler.

As of now my current plan is to leave the lower section of the hull bare and paint an accent stripe along the gunwale. Color TBD. I also will most likely treat the interior to a fresh coat of paint.

A casting deck may be in it's future, but for now I will leave that up for down the road. Powerplant for the time being will be a 40 lb trolling motor on the transom.

Here she is as of today. Happy to be on board here!
 
Already moving this ole gal along...

Just bought a new Minn Kota Endura Max 45 as well as a pretty sweet little MK battery box with two 12v outlets and a battery charge gauge.

This brings up the topic of electronics. We do lots of night fishing around here so I'll be fitting her up with bow/stern lights as well as forward flood lights and perhaps some others as I go along. I'll also be installing a fish finder as well. Those items will probably come along after the majority of the work is done thought.

Here's a shot of the new motor


I'm going to hit it early tomorrow and see how much work I can get done. Stay tuned...
 
I would be careful running lights at night when your main power is running on the same battery.That being said led lights wont put a dent on your battery draw.
 
[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=361232#p361232 said:
Timtactical » 27 Jul 2014, 23:26[/url]"]I would be careful running lights at night when your main power is running on the same battery.That being said led lights wont put a dent on your battery draw.

Yes sir, one of the main reasons that lights and electronics would be a bit down the road is the need to add a second battery. I definitely want my rear trolling battery to be for the motor only.
 
With an old manual start outboard motor, I can run my battery dead. Fire up the motor and be home before dinner. What are the stats on your battery? Look for the amp hours, so if you figure your 45 will pull 45 amps you might get 2 hours on a single charge from a 100 amp hour battery.
 
On my canoe and jon boat I use the portable LED bow and stern light sets that clamp on and use 4AA batteries and the batteries last for like years at a time. I am not kidding, I have owned and used those lights for three years and on the same original batteries. I have an older version of these, but they are similar: https://www.cabelas.com/product/Boating/Boat-Lighting/Navigation-Cabin-Lights|/pc/104794380/c/104704380/sc/104462280/Attwood-Portable-Camo-Bow-and-Stern-Combo/1390542.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fnavigation-cabin-lights%2F_%2FN-1100632%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104462280%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104794380%253Bcat104704380&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104794380%3Bcat104704380%3Bcat104462280
 
https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=32289&start=135

Check out what Dr. Nip did with led lights in his hull. I plan on doing the same to keep the amp load down.

https://www.oznium.com/led-bolt
 
Thanks for all of the advice guys. The LEDs are a must when it comes to lighting. Those LED bolts are sweet. May have to try those out.

I made quite a bit of progress on the boat today. Hit it early this morning and got the aluminum all cleaned up and ready for paint. First was zinc chromate primer, and then followed up with BASF urethane topcoat in GM Ocean Green. This is the same color as my '56 Chevy pickup, so it should look really sweet in tow!

She's a fishing boat.. so I didn't sweat the scratches and dents too much. Just wanted to get her in some color. I'm waiting on the TWRA to assign me my registration number. And I'm also going to get some retro Starcraft emblems for the rear.


Next up was to put together my new trailer that I bought at Northern Tool. I consider myself mechanically inclined and it took a solid three hours. But it was worth it, I am really happy with it!


Then it was time to take her out to the lake for her first voyage (under my ownership). She did great! The little Minn Kota scooted her right along and I really enjoyed the boat all together. As far as the fishing went.. it was a slow afternoon, but I had the most fun in my new boat!


So next up will be building my casting deck, installing fighting seats, and starting on electronics. But for now she is lake ready!
 
It was a good day of progress for the project!

I built the front casting deck and installed the forward fighting chair. I really enjoy this kind of work.. lots of fun! Next free day that I have I will build the rear deck.


For any curious minds.. here she is in tow behind her matching tow truck! (And there's my Glasspar project back behind)


I took her out on the lake this afternoon and really enjoyed the open space of the casting deck. With that.. here's the first bass caught on the boat!


More exciting news.. tonight I scored a 1961 Mercury "Merc 100" 9.8 hp outboard. It will be a restoration project but will be fantastic power for this little boat, and add to the retro looks as well! Pics coming soon!...
 
[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=361831#p361831 said:
typed by ben » 01 Aug 2014, 06:08[/url]"]man youre gonna look like a regular mark trail headed to the ramp!

LOL! That is fine by me!

Here is a shot of my newly aquired Merc 100 9.8. She ain't pretty right now, but we can fix that. She also isn't running right now either... but I bet we can fix that, too.
 
My new Starcraft decals came in the mail today! I am super happy with how they look, but after gazing at it for a bit it struck me that the boat needed a white accent to compliment the white decal. So a quick mask-n-spray and we have a white accent stripe on both sides! I really think that it brings the paint job together!
 
Got some time to work on the boat today...

Got the rear deck built with two hatches in the corners for gas tanks and gear, and also installed the seat on a quick detach. I'm running Old Glory during the day and have my stern light clipped in below the seat waiting for the night.


Then it was time to start the final phase of the project and that is electronics. First I installed my new Humminbird 195c. I have one of these units on my fishing kayak and have loved it, should be great on this boat as well!


You'll notice I've started to install my four gang switch panel and horn footswitch...

Next up was to start on the lighting. I got my bow and stern light wired in!


As recommended I am running all electronics on a separate battery from the trolling motor. The battery boxes fit nicely in the forward hatch. You'll notice the electronic horn mounted in there as well.


Tomorrow I should be getting a package with my LED docking lights and LED deck lights. Stay tuned!
 
[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=362386#p362386 said:
jethro » 05 Aug 2014, 12:46[/url]"]I was gonna say... to heck with the thread on the tin... make one on that bad mofo of a truck!

LOL! Well for those who are interested here is a link to the build thread on my '56 Chevy pickup.

https://www.trifive.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81682

Well I just about have the boat finished up! (minus the old Merc)

Yesterday I was able to finish up all of the lighting and get her out on the water.

I installed some generic waterproof LED strips along the gunwale from front to back on both sides. Really lights up the deck at night, and can't be beat for $19. Here's the night view from the front fighting chair.


Finally, I installed some LED docking lights. I got these on Amazon for $38.50 a pair. They are SUPER bright!
Here's a link to them: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00G620ZVU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


No problem finding the shoreline!


The final thing I want to do is add an onboard dual battery charger so that I don't have to continuously take the batteries in and out to charge them.

And with that.. time to start on the restoration of the old Mercury 9.8!
 
This project is just too fun.. I can't stay away! Hard to believe I've only owned this boat for a week and a half.

I got out and starting the work on my 1961 Mercury 9.8 hp Merc 100.

Before tearing into it, I couldn't help but do some cosmetic work (my favorite).

With a little elbow grease I got the cowling all stripped to bare metal and in fresh paint. I also topped her off with some new decals!

BEFORE


DURING


AFTER
 

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