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Sam
01-12-2004, 04:25 PM
I was going through some of my old pictures last night and came across a few shots of my little hydro and runabout that I built in the early 70s. I thought it might be a fun to see some pics of our first boats. I for one might need some help in posting the pics. I always seem to screw it up somehow......go figure. I'll need to scann mine at work since my scanner dosen't like XP.

Sam :cool:

Trueser
01-12-2004, 04:43 PM
Not only the first boat but how about the best pictures from last summer.

something to get rid of the winter blues.


Except you southern boys and Gals.

MOP
01-12-2004, 05:47 PM
Poodle we are happy you had a chance to photo our wonderful scenery! Brrrrrr! :D

Jack Frost
01-12-2004, 07:37 PM
weather was sunny and the water was like glass,
I know it's a blow boat but it does 70 mph
http://www.donzi.net/photos/jfrost02.jpg

Jack

FlatRacer, aka BarrelBack
01-12-2004, 08:55 PM
Here's my first boat:

http://www.donzi.net/photos/ACF900.jpg

Pretty cool for a 15 year old kid, huh?

FR :p

Sam
01-12-2004, 09:08 PM
Flat Racer, now that's what I'm talking about.

Sam

JimG
01-13-2004, 10:38 AM
Here's mine... http://www.donzi.net/photos/conq.jpg

olredalert
01-13-2004, 10:51 AM
--------First boat; 6ft. pram. Still sitting in my fathers garage. Its gotten a little decrepit(sp)as it now sinks like a rock with nothing even in it!
--------Second; 13ft. Boston Whaler. First with 18 Johnson 18. Then Johnson 40. Second year of production for Whalers. What a hot sh** I thought I was. In reality drop the "hot" and replace it with "little"!........Bill S

Dr. Dan
01-13-2004, 10:58 AM
:D JimG that Top Photo looks like "Ted Nugent" stealin someones boat...probably with their daughter in there! :p

Our little 22 is our first boat...Hmmmmmmmm? wink

Doc

boldts
01-13-2004, 12:19 PM
I like Doc, bought a Donzi first. Mine was just an 18' 1969 H/M Classic though. Found it in Northern Ohio and owned it for 14 years before I really understood what I had after finding this Donzi Registry website.

http://www.donzi.net/ubb/Avatars/sboldt.gif

mattyboy
01-13-2004, 01:31 PM
My first boat was a 16 foot 1962 starcraft aluminuim runabout with a 40hp west bend motor given to me at 8th grade graduation (1976) by my
Uncle.
http://www.donzi.net/photos/firstboat.jpg

Hey Jack Frost I heard your so old your first boat was the ark eek! :p eek! :p


Matty

KISSaholic4life
01-13-2004, 04:36 PM
My first boat was and still is a 2004 Donzi Sweet 16. :D

HyperDonzi
01-13-2004, 05:50 PM
None yet, but am hoping to start off with the right one. Anyone know of any Donzis for sale for under 8k? haha :D wink :p :D

Greg
01-13-2004, 06:04 PM
In the mid 60's, the first boat I was ever involved with was actually my fathers. It was a 15 1/2ft. wooden Thompson with a 35hp. Johnson ob. at 24mph I thought I was king. Till I saw my first Donzi.

Speed-Racer
01-13-2004, 06:09 PM
1996 Sweet 16'....a lttle slow, but what a hand full to drive in rough water, which is why it makes it such an awesome boat! Even if I have another boat be it a 22' or 38' the 16' will always be there next to it :cool:

MOP
01-13-2004, 06:52 PM
I have been putting off fessing up! My first boat I built when I was 11, to copying pictures from a magazine about the Tahitian islands hence it was a canvas covered lath affair with a rain pipe leader for its alma which I managed to bend up similar to the ones in the magazine. I made a paddle out of knotty pine which I broke before sea trials, new one had no knots. After two coats of roof tar my hardy vessel was ready. Off to Guggenheim Lake about a mile ride with my contraption tied to my bike which I am sure was a sight to see and a ride in hell. I launched her at the beach got in and paddled off, maybe 300 foot from shore It was starting to get tipsy damn my alma was sinking try as I may I could not keep it right side up, it did a sudden flip I came up covered with mud and weeds. Swam back to shore, I would every few days go to visit my creation to see if it had finally gone to the bottom. My dad had the best laugh but was real nice to me to Mitchell fields salvage yard and bought me a belly tank off a fighter which he helped cut open for a cockpit and to stuff in about 50 lbs. of cork in case I decides to do my roll over trick again. It worked great especialy when paddled backwards.

Oh well boat 1 and 2 :D The list got nuts after that went to power!

chucknoonan
01-13-2004, 08:35 PM
Still don't have my first boat yet, but I was thinking along the lines of a 38ZR with staggered 1200 Sterlings...

Might be a little much for a first boat though.....


May have to go with just 1000s :)

Ed Donnelly
01-13-2004, 09:01 PM
My first boat was a 16 Donzi. I had it for over 20 yrs.The last 15 yrs was experimenting with turbos,pads,steps,drives,etc.etc.
http://www.donzi.net/photos/EDonnelly_16donzi.jpg.jpg

http://www.donzi.net/photos/EDonnelly_16donzi_bottom.jpg.jpg

anotherScott
01-14-2004, 07:58 AM
First boat at 7 years old was a 10' wooden rowboat with a 3hp johnson that you would have to turn it around backwards to go in reverse. Second boat at 11 years old was a 1968 McKee Craft with a 20 horse johnson. I would sit on the floor and drive because it felt like you were going faster.

Scott

olredalert
01-14-2004, 08:53 AM
-------Ed,you are an animal. Just exactly where is that 16 today,and how fast did you get it to go with that pad built into the hull? Enquiring minds want to know. Man,that thing looks BBBBAAAADDDD!!!!!!!!!........Bill S
-------You would also probably win the award for largest engine-hatch scoop. Got a picture of it?

Rootsy
01-14-2004, 09:48 AM
heck yeah... ROOT wants to know ed... i want ALL of the gory details.. every last one... :)

Jamie

mattyboy
01-14-2004, 12:10 PM
Hey Jack Frost if you were on the ark didn't Noah have 2 of everything????
so who was the other Jerk?????? wink :D :D wink

hehehe

Matty
LMAO

Jack Frost
01-14-2004, 12:14 PM
You !!! nimrod wink :D wink :D


Jack

mattyboy
01-14-2004, 01:53 PM
no I don't think so :rolleyes:

Matty

ToonaFish
01-14-2004, 03:52 PM
Am I the only one who has noticed that Matty and Jack have BiPolar syndrome?

Wildfire
01-14-2004, 08:10 PM
First was a 14' Sears jon boat that my Grandpa gave me. Had a 5hp Gamefisher, direct drive. Upgraded to a 9.9hp Johnson. Got her up on plane with that motor - Big stuff for 14 years old.

Second boat was the 1967 SkiSporter, yellow with a white stripe. That boat was sold to someone through the board and is now somewhere out east.

RickR
01-14-2004, 08:59 PM
1972 Correct Craft Separator 16' w/Merc 888 (Ford 302 188hp)
Bought her in 1979 right after I got married (we were engaged and had our honeymoon camping at the lake :D
Skied about a million miles.
Boat is now back with the original owner in Texas.
http://www.donzi.net/photos/rryan54correct.jpg

Ed Donnelly
01-15-2004, 12:19 AM
Olredalert and Rootsy. I never got around to building a hatch. In my foolish youth, I thought the engine looked too cool to cover up.The engine was a chevy 350 stroked, 7 to 1 compression, studs and o-ringed. I ran a Gale Banks twin turbo with a stage 3 intercooler.It ran 28 lbs of boost at 28 degrees.(1,000 hp) The drive was a Volvo 270T with speedmaster lower unit. I extended the cavitation plate on the E, as it would cavitate like crazy coming out of the hole. I ran Bennetts with lexan extentions. The pad and step were done around 1980 or so. The chine walk was so bad above 80 mph that you had to steer slightly left all the time. We clocked over 90 several times(no GPS in those days) but I am afraid I never had the BALLS a certain X18 owner has. ( His vidios scare the s**t out of me). The gentleman I sold the 16 to had the imron paint stripped and put back to the original yellow gell. He tore out the engine and drive and put a 260 with an Eaton outdrive on it. Seems his Dad had a yellow 16 and he wanted to surprise him on his 70th birthday. I started to do the same thing to the Criterion(twin turbo Gale Banks) but I am getting to old for this. She has a nice big block, no turbos,supercharger,Fuel injection(took that off last summer) Time to just enjoy her. BIG BREATH Hope that answers most of your questions..Ed

olredalert
01-15-2004, 09:45 AM
------Thanks,Ed! That thing must have been a sight to see. Although I never went to those extremes on the water,I did it way too many times on the street,and know exactly where you are coming from. 70/75 seems plenty enough for me to enjoy DONZIitis anymore. Thats if I can get my old Corsican up there. Going to at least make a stab at that this coming summer.
------I do like to see the young guys(Todd,Ted,Rootsy,all the others,and of course George)doing thier thing though. The envelope has to be pushed. Thats just the way it is!!!!!!!........Bill S

Cuda
01-15-2004, 10:18 AM
My first boat was a 1972 23 foot Jon Allmand that I bought with a frozen 155 OMC for $975. It took a couple months of every kind of penetrating oil and bumping it with the starter to get it to turn over. God bless Marvel Mystery Oil! :D

http://www.donzi.net/photos/jgriffallmand.jpg

Rootsy
01-15-2004, 11:32 AM
wow ed... wow... thats just awesome... i am more interested in the charactaristics of the pad and the notch and the before and after effects of them... if you could elaborate on that i'd be all ears... at the speeds i am running, with the alpha SS and hydromotive, chinewalk isn't an issue unless i blatently overtrim in which case i lose speed and it gets loose cause i am off the strake... i still have a stock bottom but, well, i have about a million ideas scrambling around in my noggin to change that... i am not after ultimate speed... if she sees 80 to 82 and is drivable without taking your life into your hands.. and it stays reliable i'll have seen the top of the mountain i set out to climb...

THANKS! for the infoi :)

Rodger
01-15-2004, 02:28 PM
Ed,
Do you still have that BB Gale Banks Turbo setup that you tried on the Criterion? If you do, is it for sale?

Ed Donnelly
01-15-2004, 11:02 PM
Roger; No, I sold the system to a friend who has done nothing with it. I will see him in the next week or so, and I will ask him if he is interested in selling. If your system is shot, I have a 1,000 cfm tunnel ram electronic fuel injection for sale...Ed

Rodger
01-16-2004, 08:10 AM
Ed,
My system is in good condition still. I'm just thinking of spare parts. Let me know please what you friend says, if you get a chance to ask him.

Hotspare
01-16-2004, 02:42 PM
Our first was a 17ft Ragazza, but realized very quickly that I needed more Donzi ..... Our second was an 87 Minx 350 mag alfa drive .... Now we're talkin ...... But I couldn't stop till we had the Ultimate Classic (my opinion only) Which is the one we currently own .... Third one's been the charm alright .... 98, 22 Classic 454 MAG MPI Bravo1 ...... Now we're really Talkin ..........LOL.. It's Been Donzi's all the way Dude ......... :D

oldLenny
01-18-2004, 05:31 PM
http://www.donzi.net/photos/speedboat.jpg

This was me at age 7. My first boat was a Glen "L" Squirt built by my father (and me) for me. I have pics somewhere of me "glassing" it with him and fairing the hull. This was glass over ply and then "cello finished". Note the bench seat. :rolleyes: I used to run it around the Gulf Islands all day, everyday as a kid. I had it for about 4 years. It had a 7.5hp Evinrude on it. I remember saving up $40 from my paper route back then and it bought gas for the whole summer. ($.34 a gallon then and a 3 gallon tank) They were very similar in looks to a tiny Formula Junior except for the low deadrise on this boat.

This also explains I think, why I so obsesssed about the bench seat 18...Obviously it was burnt in a long time ago, just had to wait till now to make it happen.

Here are some others I found on the net.

http://www.acbs.org/ClearLake/scoop/uway1.jpg

http://users.wirelessfrontier.net/~moose/builder001.jpg

http://users.wirelessfrontier.net/~moose/wood1.jpg

http://users.wirelessfrontier.net/~moose/shady1.JPG

http://users.wirelessfrontier.net/~moose/fisher2.jpg

BUIZILLA
01-18-2004, 07:57 PM
Now that i've seen Lenny's pictures,... I gotta little chuckle to tell.

My first boat was a 1967 15' Cobia with a 55hp 3cyl Johnson. Brand new for my 14th birthday. Boy, I learned a LOT about life in that boat. But thats not the funny part...

Friend of mine on the next street in Miami Shores, Doug Coyner, built a Glen L (or something) boat in his garage, like the first or second one in Lenny's pictures. I can not remember the model name for the life of me. He used mahogany, and other good woods. Came out absolutely awesome. BEAUTIFUL homebuilt. First engine was an 18 Johnson... not fast enough and used to porpoise... installed 4" stainless adjustable trim plate across the transom like a GN boat.... cool stuff.. then we got a 25 Johnson off a friends Whaler... no big difference.... then we took the 33 Johnson off his Challenger.... now we're getting somewhere... remember now, we only had 1/4" ss cable, pulleys and tension springs :D :rolleyes: for steering. Then one day we got buzzed or something :D :cool: and took the 40 Johnson off his 13 Whaler. Now all of these engines so far we just clamped them on, twist 2 knobs and your good to go, all were pull cord start... you can see where this is going eek! we used to run it up and down the 104st canal or over by Indian Creek Country Club, Jockey Club, then Interama channel, then Maule Lake. What a blast. With 2 people in it, and the tabs set, it would flat haul ass with the 40.
So... :D one day we decide to add a skeg on the bottom to help it turn, we tried pulling a skier one day and as soon as I cut outside the wake, the boat turned sideways with me pulling against it. Since it was a flat bottom, it would just skid around turns :p we got a twin skeg from a jersey skiff racer across the street and bolted it on... we go try it out and WOW this is cool now, so.... we set up our water ski tournament buoys and start doing runs like a slalom course, but in the boat... about the third or fourth hard turn the engine decides to leave the transom... cables and all.... damn good thing it didn't come in the baot with us..... glub-glub... eek! to the bottom it went. We got back home somehow, got his dad's 22' Aquasport with the glass viewing ports in the bottom of the hull, went back out and found the engine, and using our Evinrude diving hooka rig, got the engine, hauled ass back home, flushed the engine out and got it running and back on the boat before his dad came home that night. What a day that was, I wouldn't trade my youth for a million $$$. The stuff we did......

J

CLASSIC 22 WITH A 502
01-20-2004, 11:18 AM
My first boat was 1979 16 foot cutter with 80 hp. on it. It was my old mans. got great use out of the back bench if ya know what I mean. Thats all the boat was good for. Then I got a 17 1/2 foot hydrostream (v-king) it had a 115 merc then a 150 merc and finally I threw on a 225 3 leter merc three years ago. WOW!! what a ride, at 70 you were ok at 80 shi..ing your pants and over 90 well if you didn't fart, blink or breath you had a chance ha! ha! After driveing one of thoes things at that kind of speed you can pretty much handel anything. After the hydro came the 22 and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

tamburello
01-20-2004, 11:44 AM
I think I may have the record for the most underpowered first boat. My dad built me a cold molded 8 foot mahogany tender for me when I was 7. It was propelled by a one Jeff power twin oar system until I was 10. For my tenth birthday I got a fire-breathing 1.5 H.P. outboard. No reverse on it just swivel it 180 degrees to go backwards. I logged hundreds of hours on it exploring every port that my family cruised into on lake Michigan. I overhauled it every winter and treated it with TLC.

Twenty years later it still starts on the first pull and runs like a champ, albeit a very slow champ. I don't think that I'll strap it on the Donzi though.

- Jeff

Team Jefe
01-20-2004, 09:28 PM
Tracker Pontoon boat, 18' MFG tri-hull, 21' Lone Star CC, 20' Chaparelle, 22' four winns bow-rider, 14' river boat tiller steer 25 HP, 24' Cobia, 31' Oceanmaster, 28' Parker, 36' Contender...operated them all but the only one that has belonged to me is this bad boy :cool:

http://www.donzi.net/photos/DJReid56.jpg

I figure why mess with rest when you can have the best :D

Barry Phillips
01-24-2004, 10:28 AM
My first boat, an 8th grade graduation gift from my parents at 14, was an 11' Sid Craft racing run about call SO-SLO. The first motor I ran on it was 1958 Evinrude with a homemade transom jack. The boat clocked 37mph against a stopwatch on a closed course. I latter build up a 25hp Johnson that was in boxes and my little 150lb skiff became insane. The big 3 blade prop, not great for WOT made the thing stand up on end, I had to stand on the transom when I launch it hard, what whole shot. My last motor was a 25hp 4 cylinder Merc Thunderbolt a full bore 8000-rpm race motor that I could not find a magneto for to make it run. There is a nice story on antique race boats in the January issue of Hot Boat and there is a picture of my little Sid Craft on page 94 lower left. A guy in PA is building Sid Crafts again in both runabout and hydroplane versions. My model was called the bathtub. Maybe some day I have new one made after I get the Triumph TR6 I’ve always wanted. www.donzi.net/photos/ACF2CA.jpg

Chris-007
02-01-2004, 01:33 AM
Had two great years before moving up to the 28ZX last year. :D

Formula Jr
02-01-2004, 03:30 AM
You mean I have to wait five more years before there are any Donzis?!!!

olredalert
02-01-2004, 11:01 AM
Jim,

-----When you said we would know where you were going with that story I was sure you were going to tell us you tore the transom off!
-----There were four of us hanging around one day in 1960-61 sort of doing an early version of bench racing. A real what-if deal with four 13 year-old screwballs who thought we knew everything. Two of us were sure you could strap a 75hp Johnson(the big,heavy early 4 cylinder version)to an old 14 foot Penn-Yan. The other two(I was in this group)wernt so sure but were enthusiastic participants.
-----At my buddies floating dock in North Bay,Osterville Cape Cod,we took the 35 Johnson off and jerry-rigged the 75 to our unsuspecting P-Y. Took awhile but with everything basicly thrown in the boat,battery,gas-tank,etc.,we were ready to try out the monstrosity. I sort of knew how Frankenstein felt as my two buddies cruised away from the dock. Me and the last nutcase followed along in my Boston Whaler with a speed-prop equipped 40 Johnson spoiling for a race.
-----P-Y sat really low in the back(that Johnson was some heavy) and that only got worse as Al tried to plane off. We saw Bob and Al scramble forward and it briefly looked like things were going swimmingly. I was right along side Al as he put the hammer down,and thats when swim became the optimum word as all of a sudden the motor,transom,fuel tank,battery,throttle cables and throttle/shifter all took a leave of absence and exited the rest of
the boat,heading straight for the bottom.It was lucky all the steering cables went down one side,because when the engine headed south they all pulled exteremly tight and then snapped off at the motor.
-----I stopped quickly and went back to do a rescue as the remains of the Penn-Yan came slowly to a stop. Bob had exited over the side,but Al was still kind of taking in the whole panarama in as I pulled up next to him. He calmly stepped over the side into my boat looking very much like Washington crossing the Delaware as we towed the remains into the beach. Once things had settled into our little pea-brains a bit we all laughed till we cried. Never did find the remains.
-----Luckily,Als dad was a real wealthy,very cool guy and the aftermath wasnt too painful for Al. A week later he had a brand new 18ft P-Y with a brand new 75. I wasnt privy to the conversation but Im pretty sure that a lot of promises were made in regard to that new boat,as we didnt trash that boat for a couple of years. By the way,Al was the first guy I ever knew with a DONZI.
-----Humbly submitted...............Bill S

Cuda
02-01-2004, 11:29 AM
Great story Red! I am familiar with those 75 horsers. My dad had a 1958 19 foot Squall King boat. It had a 75 Evinrude on it. I swear that thing must have had about a 3 foot diameter on it! :biggrin.:

Rootsy
02-01-2004, 11:41 AM
my god i'm going to get tarred and feathered for this... believe it or not i began life as none other than... A RAG BAGGER!

my very own first boat was a brandless flat bottom wooden sailboat that i was given by my parent's friends... with a rotted deck, a hole in the side and a colony of dark brown fork tailed bugs (the name eludes me at the moment)... after spending 2 weeks of my summer vacation and nearly all of my summer savings on fiberglass, resin, plywood and other assorted hardware and supplies i had the hole patched, the deck replaced and molding on... revarnished and painted... all the rigging polished to a high luster and i was ready to go... i would spend my weekends at the cabin sailing to and fro... zig zagging back and forth on the lake cussing all of the powerboaters sending wakes my way :rolleyes: ... man she'd fly with a mast that was 10 feet long, a ton of sail area... the pivoting dagger board was a piece of 1/4 inch plate steel... this thing was a tank and in a good breeze she'd sail sideways more than forward... ahhh to be young again...


not long after i continued on my trail of sin by buying a little sears sunfish sailboat.. the molded and foam filled plastic ones... now that was fun... i've never rolled a sailboat so many times!

Then my father brought home a 1964 Clyde... locally built in detroit... with a 100 hp johnson... i remember being as high as a kite after the application of the 10th coat of varnish... as much as i love antique wood boats... i really detest sanding, painting and varnishing! this thing was beautiful though... planked hull, all mahogony... SS hardware and powered Thunderbird bucket seats... she served us well for a dozen years unil a tree landed on her in a storm :(

then there was teh 1973 invader.. no not the little outboard powered ones... this is a 19 foot V-Drive model... whatever that may be,.... a good trade i thought at the time for a worn out fax machine... a toy in my teens... a 360 chrysler on a paragon V-drive.. thru-hulls... i thought i was gonna build a bad ass machine... yeah ok... that takes money... something i didn't have for boats... the 64 mercury cyclone possessed all of that... so i fiddled and got it running... then the oil pump plate decided to loosen itself and though i fixed it and it still ran... i never had much confidence in winding her out anymore :(

Forrest
02-02-2004, 04:59 PM
1963 15' Sears Elgin runabout with a 1963 45 HP Elgin outboard. That little boat went everywhere. Out of Lynnhaven Inlet in Virginia Beach and over to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel fourth island and high-rise bridge more than once, and from North Landing (Virginia Beach/Chesapeake, VA) to Elizabeth City, NC via the Currituck Sound though Coinjock, NC and the Albemarle Sound and then back through the Dismal Swamp Canal. It's a wonder that we all didn't drowned!

Sam
02-03-2004, 06:06 PM
10' B Hydro,had several engines but my trusty Merc Mark 20 was the first one. My dad and I built the frame in the basement during the winter and then skined it in the garage. Since my dad was an engineer for Chevrolet at the time...... well let's just say I had many non stock parts made at various job shops. Check out the steering wheel on the hydro, it was out of a 1971 Firebird. After the Hydro I built a B runabout that was a blast in the rougher water, I'll have to find a pic of that one. From there I bought a 16' tunnel with a 65hp Johnson.

Sam

smoothie
02-04-2004, 10:50 AM
Lookin good Sam,
I had a few mini hydro's myself,all the pics that I have are on slides,and I havent found a good way to copy them but I did find a some pics like what I had,the first one was two 8ft pcs of plywood screwed together with a merc super 10 hurricane,the motor said 10 on the side but was rated 15 hp,still a hot motor to find today,about the only place I could open it up was in the 6 mph zones when the lake patrol wasnt around,my second one was a 8ft 3 pointer, also used the super 10 on this one,till I hit a wave from an old christ chaft and flipped,losted the motor to the bottom of the lake,Like you I went with a class B hull that was 10ft and handle the waves alittle better,then on to a 14ft checkmate and the 16 Donzi ski sporter.Sure was alot of fun,may have to do one for my son next winter.

Heres a website with plans to build these hydros:
Hydro Plans (http://www.glen-l.com/designs/outboard/outboards.html)