Made my purchase.....

[john445]

I have been gathering info on this forum for about 6 months. I inquired on a few Donzi Classic 18's and 22's. I had a deal on a 22 that fell thru. I then stumbled on Checkmate. I remembered these boats from my younger years. I ended up purchasing a Pulsare 1850. The hull has great lines and the gel work is sweet, much like Donzi. The similarities end there. It is a padded hull with not as much deadrise, still handles small chop well. It has a small walk thu windscreen which leads to seating for 2 up front. With a Merc 175 Optimax (outboard) I have reached 65 mph (GPS). The construction techniques on the interior leave something to be desired, exposed screws, staples, and non-removable carpet. The windscreen is held in place with wood screws sticking out below decks. The hull/deck joint is pop-riveted. How are the Donzi 18's held together? Is everything thrubolted to the deck? Every boat has it's Achilles heal, but other than that, it has outperformed my wildest expectations and looks incredible. If anyone is interested in a non-donzi I will post pictures. Thanks for all the info and I hope to continue to be a regular here, if I'm welcome.

John

[txtaz]

Hi John and welcome to the board. I never had a Checkmate but drove a few. I found they corner flater than a V hull. I think the deck and hull are glassed together on the 18c. As solid as these boats are, it would have to be. I bounced off the foredeck and broke my chin (still have stitches) so they are SOLID.
On the windshield you can replace the screws with bolts and nuts. You can redo the interior, I got some seats from Overtons and re did the back bench on another boat. I also built side panels out of wood and vinyl. What makes any boat great is the effort you put into it.
As far as your deck and hull being riveted, I have a hard time thinking that is true. The deck supplies a lot of the structural integrity of the boat. Glassing is much stronger than rivets. Besides glassing is seemless, no rivit heads.
Hope this helps, Enjoy your boat.
Wes

[Dr. Dan]

:wavey: John Congrats...Checkmates can be fun...I had alot of hours in a 256 Convincor...alot of fun in that Puppy.

Eventually who knows...you might stumble on a Donzi when the Timing is right!

Enjoy the New Boat

Doc

[onesubdrvr]

I have been gathering info on this forum for about 6 months. I inquired on a few Donzi Classic 18's and 22's. I had a deal on a 22 that fell thru........ If anyone is interested in a non-donzi I will post pictures. Thanks for all the info and I hope to continue to be a regular here, if I'm welcome.

John

John,

I think I speak for many when I say you are still welcome here, and hey, that's one reason for the "Other Boats" Section.

Like Dr. Dan said, you may stumble on a 18 or 22 when the time is right, the big thing is, you like donzi's!!

Anyways, I'd love to see some pics of your new boat :biggrin.:

Wayne

[mattyboy]

I remember the 16 foot checkmate a friend had with a 150 johnrude gt
it was always great to see a new rider get in the wobbly front seat with big hole in the dash where the grab rail use to be :eek: the interior didn't hold up well but the hull took a real beating

[Fish boy]

John,
congrats on the new ride, and you are always welcome here. Come to think of it, some folks here consider my outboatd fishboat a "non-donzi" too.LOL We all love boats... any kind of boat.

What is your setup? You running a standard or surface piercing lower unit? Prop, RPM's? Who knows, there may be a few mph here or there depending on how it is setup if you want to chase them. Checkmates are definitely cool boats and LOTS of fun, enjoy!!!

Fish,

PS, yes post pics of ya got em.

[john445]

Setup as follows:

Laser II prop turning 5800 rpmWOT. 5.5" jackplate (manual). Center of hub is 5.5" below pad. Merc 175 Optimax w/ 16hrs.

I set the engine up to serve dual purposes, towing kids around on water stuff and the best speed possible. So far, this setup seems to be a happy medium. I've been told I can go hub even with pad to pickup more speed but I would lose some handling and pulling power. Right now, the 65mph is plenty fast enough. At this speed it is hard to keep the boat balanced on the pad, but this is half the fun.

Thanks for the replys, I will post some pictures soon.

John]

[RedDog]

The deck on a Donzi is mating to the hull with screws - it is not glassed

[Fish boy]

Setup as follows:

Laser II prop turning 5800 rpmWOT. 5.5" jackplate (manual). Center of hub is 5.5" below pad. Merc 175 Optimax w/ 16hrs.

I set the engine up to serve dual purposes, towing kids around on water stuff and the best speed possible. So far, this setup seems to be a happy medium. I've been told I can go hub even with pad to pickup more speed but I would lose some handling and pulling power. Right now, the 65mph is plenty fast enough. At this speed it is hard to keep the boat balanced on the pad, but this is half the fun.

Thanks for the replys, I will post some pictures soon.

John]

If you are turning 5800, it sounds pretty good to me. That setup is a good middle ground. You can get more speed going higher, but you will lose some of the family boating aspect and might not be able to get out of th hole for skiing. Plus, I am not sure if it is a standard lower unit or a surface piercing, but that would limit you in height if it is standard due to where the water inlets are on the LU. Know what you mean about balancing on the pad being the fun part, you cant just steer it, you have to "drive" it. Congrats again!!

looking fwd to the pics.

fish

[john445]

Fish


It is a standard lower unit. I will be getting some action shots soon. I thought I read somewhere that your boat will do 90mph, any truth to that?

John

[Fish boy]

Fish


It is a standard lower unit. I will be getting some action shots soon. I thought I read somewhere that your boat will do 90mph, any truth to that?

John

Yeeuup, but that is no where near the feat that GEOO has accomplished with his 18classic pushing 130mph. That is truly one of the most exceptional boats ever to touch water. Never done before, and I seriously doubt anyone will be able to do it again.

If you are not going to raise the motor up, no need or benefit from going to a cone or other surface piercing LU. SOunds like you got it right were you need it for the type of boating you do. Looking forward to the pics.

see ya,
fish

[Fish boy]

Just occured to me that there may be some confusion above. The wife will not go over 90, but the mistress will!!! :biggrin.: :biggrin.:
http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=9640

[john445]

Just occured to me that there may be some confusion above. The wife will not go over 90, but the mistress will!!! :biggrin.: :biggrin.:


SCHWEEEEEEET!!!! Hey Fish, does that thing have a hemi?

Here are some shots of my Checkmate.

John