FlatRacer, aka BarrelBack
12-15-2007, 10:27 PM
DonziFreak and I have been trying to figure out when Donzi installed the painted recessed type shifter in lieu of the much more common flush mounted type. We're trying to see if the presence of this type of shifter, or of the cutout left behind if it was replaced, could possibly be a clue to a boat's approximate build date.
In pouring over the pics of vintage Donzis on this site and eBay, I have seen this recessed shifter on 16' and 18' models, and even in Donzi sales literature. In addition, I've seen many boats, including my own, that are fitted with the flush mounted Morse type on either a stainless or a wooden plate (approximately the same size as the hole left by the recessed shifter) rather than being mounted directly to the ****pit side. Having owned Donzis with both types of shifters, I can attest, at least in my case, to the balkiness of the recessed shifter. I wonder if it could be that customers complained about these shifters, and dealers would then retrofit the flush mounted shifter on a plate to cover the hole as a warranty repair? Perhaps Brownie could shed some light on this (?)
Could those of you who have either this shifter, or the flush mounted type on a plate or a board, and know the build date and/or hull#, please reply to this post so we can get a better idea of when this shifter was being installed?
Thanks,
Eric
In pouring over the pics of vintage Donzis on this site and eBay, I have seen this recessed shifter on 16' and 18' models, and even in Donzi sales literature. In addition, I've seen many boats, including my own, that are fitted with the flush mounted Morse type on either a stainless or a wooden plate (approximately the same size as the hole left by the recessed shifter) rather than being mounted directly to the ****pit side. Having owned Donzis with both types of shifters, I can attest, at least in my case, to the balkiness of the recessed shifter. I wonder if it could be that customers complained about these shifters, and dealers would then retrofit the flush mounted shifter on a plate to cover the hole as a warranty repair? Perhaps Brownie could shed some light on this (?)
Could those of you who have either this shifter, or the flush mounted type on a plate or a board, and know the build date and/or hull#, please reply to this post so we can get a better idea of when this shifter was being installed?
Thanks,
Eric