TOPIC: Intro - I may be a bit out of place here but...

I've been a fan of Fiberglassics, having found the site many years ago. They helped me ID a number of old, odd little runabouts that I came across in my travels, although I never did get one of them.

These days we are working on and cruising a 1978 Silveron 31 (80% working, 20% cruising). These old fiberglass cabin boats are a bit of an orphan as far as support forums - too big for Fiberglassics, not woody enough for the vintage boat scene, and looked own upon by the late-model cabin boat guys who care mostly about what kind of air conditioning and LED underwater lighting you have.
But I love the '70's style. It runs a pair of Chrysler Marine 318's, which can be expensive and probably not the most reliable. But we dig it nonetheless.

I would be quite happy with a rig like that. Pretty sharp looking. I thought a marine 318 small block was a pretty dependable engine?? I don’t have marine history with them, but my 39 year old 318 in my car is original and still running fine. Aren’t the older marine engines rated about 255hp each? Just curious what makes the engines expensive? I still see small block and big block Mopar marine engines in rigs from the 70’s. With 2 Great Lakes not so far away, I would dig that boat too! It’s fiberglass and has engines, so welcome. The expert advice here by others still applies. Thanks for jumping in and sharing the picture.

I like it!
Ditto Dr. Go. If I had the space and dock area I'd have one of those but unfortunately I'm hamstrung to trailer boating. No one is looking down at anyone here. Air conditioning to me is open air running with the wind blowing through my hair....inside joke, I'm a cue ball.
Underwater lights happened when I accidently dropped a flashlight overboard, stayed lit for hours while I was fishing.
Those 318's are workhorses and have been around for years. If you're at all handy with a wrench there simplicity makes easy to maintain. If it's fuel economy you're talking about......well it is what it is.
Don't be a stranger to the forum. Chime in anytime.

Thanx, folks!

I did do quite a bite of trailer boating, mostly in the 90's with a string of trailerable sailboats from a 22' Chrysler and Catalina up to a 25' McGregor and a 26' Chrysler. All dry-docked at home and launched every time we sailed. I got really good at rigging and unrigging, and engineered some creative quick mast-stepping devices.

As far as the twin 318s, I guess they are no more or less reliable than any marine gas engine, and very dependent on good maintenance. My boat's engines have relatively low hours according to the logs and notes I found aboard. But the P.O. was getting quite elderly and relied on his son to do maintenance and repair, and it looks like he tried to spend as little as possible. So I'm discovering alot of gaff repairs and I'm playing catch-up. I do all my own work and have done quite a bit of wrenching in my day, but learning about marinized motors and Vee drives as I go.
So far our trips have been just down the river and into the protected waters of upper Narragansett Bay. My goal is to get things sorted so it can be trusted to make the trip out to Cape Cod and the islands. We'll see!

Sounds like you have the talent and drive to reach your dependability goal. Don’t hesitate to throw any good questions into the inboard/direct drive forum as there is plenty of talent and experience over there. I read it just to learn in case I ever get a direct or V- drive. Also lots of safety tips to ensure your previous owner didn’t start putting car parts on it that could end up a fire hazard. Simple things like removing spark arrestor from a carb or who knows. Have fun. 63 Sabre ... I am sure your Jeep could launch and retrieve a big rig like that on a triple axle trailer... but I might have to park mine on it’s hood for added traction weight. Always more pictures are welcome. Saw twin 440 mopar big blocks in about a 25 foot woody... it sounded amazing. Sure it could empty a gas tank pretty well.

Love those old Silvertons.

Hey, they let me hang out here.
Larry

'69 Owens Concorde 27

sailor58 wrote: Hey, they let me hang out here.
Larry

'69 Owens Concorde 27

Great Owens there Larry! I'd have rather had a express like yours rather than a flybridge. My first choice was a Chris Craft Catalina 25 or 28, but the Silverton just sort of fell into our lap (besides, my wife fell in love with it), so here we are. As my pic shows, the flybridge is fully enclosed, so it makes for a nice penthouse.