TOPIC: 17ft Starcraft ..........

The description (17' Starcraft) is the all the info I have on this boat I just picked up FOR FREE yesterday. A buddy of mine was looking for a trailer for a 14' aluminum. It just so happens that a member of another board I frequent was giving away a boat and trailer. The price was right so I went and picked it up.

When I got there, I was intrigued by the boat that sat atop the trailer. It was an old Starcraft with great layout and lines and fantastic old-school chrome. My mind started convincing me that this girl has some serious "pimp-my-boat" potential.

The boat has been left outside and was full of wet debris. That raises a primary concern: has the wood infrastructure been compromised the sustained presence of water? I cleaned out all the debris and power washed as much as I could. I'm letting the boat dry out for a few days and then I'll take it to a lake to see if it floats/stays dry.

IF it passes that test, I'd like to do some work on the glass (both inside and out). I can't spend a lot of money on this thing...not right now, anyway. But is there something I can spray onto the existing fiberglass that will improve the finish AND add structural integrity (make it a little "stiffer")?

Also, does anyone have any info on this boat? Year? Model? What motor came with it? I posted some pics in my gallery.

Thanks
Due

Thanks to the impressive library on this forum, I THINK I found some info on this boat.

My best guess is this is a 1960 Starcraft Commander.

if it had water inside for a long period of time chances are that water has got to to transom and stringers, may want to check those.
As far as appearance, you can buff the gelcoat out some to make it shine. it looks pretty good in the pics.

if it had water inside for a long period of time chances are that water has got to to transom and stringers

That would be my guess too. However, it seems to me the floor and side walls are all one piece. There's no seam around the edges of the floor. I think I'll have to cut the floor out to get a look at the stringers.

I'm going to take another look today.

Generally if the stringers are shot you will know when you walk on the floor. I wouldn't cut the floor unless you suspect a problem. The transom you can tap with a hammer and dull thuds are bad. If you pull on the motor and the transom flexes is also another bad sign. Others have explained it much better than I can so hopefully they will add on here. Everything is fixable but you don't what to make extra work that you didn't have to do. There are always plenty of things that need fixing.

The floors seem pretty solid. I walked around while vacuuming and didn't feel any soft spots (surprisingly). I tapped around on the transom, and except for a small spot on the upper right corner, things seemed pretty good.