1976 overnighter

[077tango]

Hello!
I live in Houston and thinking about finding a fixer-upper and taking advantage of having the Gulf so close. Mostly casual cruising, some fishing and maybe a few excursions offshore a few miles or so. Even thinking about taking icw's to Florida and the keys.
A good part of the fun would be the renovation, I am well aware of the cost inefficiencies and no return on my investment. I found a 1976 204-c Hatteras overnighter not too far away, almost being given away because of the condition. Comes with a trailer and a 200 hp johnson the owner says may be salvageable (probably not). For sure we're talking transom, stringers, deck, gas tank, wiring etc., which I would do myself at a leisurely pace. Other than gaping holes in the hull what do I look for? Is this a wood cored hull? Do you think this boat would serve my recreation purposes? I would appreciate your thoughts. By the way, other major consideration is a Wellcraft deep V.
Thanks

 

[suzukidave]

hey there. that's an early to mid 1990s johnson 200. i own the evinrude verstion of that exact motor and it is a solid hard to kill motor once it is set up right.

my main concern is that looks to be an xl motor (25" leg) fitted to a long leg (20") transom. photos can be deceiving so you can confirm by measuring that transom vertically at centre from keel up to the ledge and also checking the model number on the vin plate on the side of the motor. an xl motor will have a "X" in the model code and a long leg motor will have an "L". if it is a mismatched motor then it will perform horribly with the leg being way too long which might explain why the owner is nearly giving it away. you can raise the engine with a 5" riser jack plate but that's not a great idea if the transom is not 100% solid to handle the extra leverage which looks doubtful from the phoro. more likely you would replace and at the same time raise the transom to a 25" height.

as for the motor, if i were you i would do a compression test on all 6 cylinders first, check by turning the prop by hand and working the shifter that it goes in and out of forward and reverse gear and remove the bottom gear oil plug (magnetic) to check for metal shards. i would also confirm the power tilt works up and down. then i would check for blue spark on all 6 cylinders. that requires a compression tester, battery, rubber handled pliers and a big flathead screwdriver and someone to turn the key for you and half an hour of your time. if it passes those tests it is worth putting some time into it. i would do an immediate carb rebuild.

if the owner says it is lacking power or running rough, do not actually run it until you have pulled and cleaned the carbs. a 2 stroke depends on oil in the fuel to lube the cylinder. there are 6 carbs on that motor and if one carb is gummed up that cylinder is starved of lubrication and can be damaged quickly. that motor will run on 4 or 5 cylinders and you can't tell at idle and the boat will even plane and get to 4000 rpm or more. hence the importance of a compression test as the first thing you do. if any cylinder is more than 10& out of wack with others i would pass.

 

[077tango]

Thanks for you input, any thoughts about the boat?

 

[suzukidave]

Thanks for you input, any thoughts about the boat?

it seems the old lapstrake styled boats will never be worth much even if perfect, but if you have time it could be a decent boat. for now it's a project of unknown extent.

the various rust stains on the transom suggest water has gotten into the transom. so i'd assume it needs a new transom. you can test this best if the owner lets you by drilling small shallow holes from inside the transom with a 1/8 drill bit and inspecting the wood tailings, but i doubt the owner would let you do that. you can tap the transom from the outside with a wrench and listen to the sound differences to spot rot but it is hard to reliably test the area around the motor this way. you can tilt the motor all the way up and have someone heavy hang onto the leg and bounce and watch carefully from the side to see if the transom flexes. for me with a transom looking like that i would just assume the worst.

a new transom can be done somewhat cheaply if you diy and you can also fix a foot or two of rotten stringer at the stern. call it a big deal but doable.

but a rotten floor or waterlogged hull or rotted stringer system is a really big deal and i would pass on that. walk around the floor feeling for soft spots, and even jumping, especially near where there are holes in the deck to mount things. you can also tap the hull and floor with a wrench or mallet and listen to differences in sound. you could maybe weigh the boat on a highway scale to be sure the foam is not waterlogged. you could use an awl to probe the central stringers from where you can access them in the bilge to see if they are rotten.

 

[Doc Stressor]

You will find that the old Overnighter hull will be very wet and pound a good bit in the typical GOM short chop. But it will be solid as a rock if you do all of the restoration work you described. It will all be needed for sure.

The Wellcraft V20 is a much better riding hull for the Gulf, but not as useful a layout or as stable a fishing platform.

 

[077tango]

You will find that the old Overnighter hull will be very wet and pound a good bit in the typical GOM short chop. But it will be solid as a rock if you do all of the restoration work you described. It will all be needed for sure.

The Wellcraft V20 is a much better riding hull for the Gulf, but not as useful a layout or as stable a fishing platform.

Very informative, thank you

 

[seasick]

I started to write a long response to the pros and cons of restoring that hull and after reviewing it, I decided to just stay quiet. Of course that is hard for me to do.
My opinion, I wouldn't do it.

 

[077tango]

Have come to the same conclusion, thanks.