Bought a bench seat Hornet

[Zedaker]

Finally found one after years of looking. A 66 with a Holman and Moody FE 390 or 427. Picked it up in South Carolina where it has been sitting dorment.I flew out from Northern California, bought a tow vehicle and loaded it up Apparently a fresh water boat all its life. Has all the v drive stuff in good shape. Major things missing are the windshield, gauges and seat pad. Some fiberglass work has already been done but there are some soft spots and waves still.The ski locker is still intact. No hull number known but some research might pull one up. If anyone knows anything about this boat I would love to hear it, good or bad. I know I will need advise and reference from other Bench seat owners. Still need to make the trip back to California from SC.

Thanks
-PeteHornet_Bow.jpgHornet Transom.jpgHornet_Cockpit.jpgHornet_Engine.jpgForward_deck_super_structure.jpg

[mario]

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looks nice good luck post some more pic what vdive is in it looks like some one did some wild wood work under the deck glade some one pic that one up

[Greg Guimond]

Quad high beam headlights? That hull may have been a drug runner!

[Zedaker]

V-drive.jpgStuffing box.jpgSteering, etc. (1).jpgShifter.jpgProp and shaft.jpgDonzi emblems.jpgTransom_lifting_eye.jpg

[Zedaker]

I was wondering if the headlights were factory or period correct. That would be cool if this thing was a coke boat! I was thinking of naming her HELLS BELLS.

[mario]

looks like you have most off the hardware to good score inside hull looks nice and it a crusader 4500 vdrive

[duckhunter]

Nice find! What kind of condition is the FE Ford in? Are you going to run with that or go to something else? I know that on the automotive side of things it is getting pretty difficult to find FE parts (at least for reasonable $$) and I imagine it's a much bigger challenge for marine stuff. Very cool Hornet.

[mattyboy]

congrats

the seat and the deck are areas of concern if i can help let me know with any questions or info

that is an early boat with the raised engine room vents it's a pre 68 boat

the docking lights in a pair(not 4) were a common option on the benchseat hornets usually more towards the cockpit but they did move them up front on ocassion like mine


we have 6 members in the LGDCC with benchseats in I/O and Vdrive form, so ask away we can see if we can help ya

[Zedaker]

The engine is in awesome shape from the looks of it. Looks like it never touched salt water. I have fantasies of a twin turbo small block with an Arneson drive but I should just put the boat together and see how I like it. I have never driven a v-drive so I dont know how they handle. The hull has an added fin in the middle I suppose for better cornering, again I don't know if it needs it until I get in on the water. Is the windshield on hornets glass or plexy? Were they the same for Hornet Is and IIs? I will definitely want one as the boat looks naked without it. If anyone can help me source one I would be grateful. If anyone is having a seat redone I would gladly go in on having a second one done.

Thanks for the responses so far

[mattyboy]

here's a pic of my docking lights more up front and the docking lights on " the ultimate" which are more towards the back.

[Ghost]

Congrats, very cool!!

Having had a boat with twins smallblocks and v-drives, I'm happier having an I/O. But it's a bigger deal on gas with a heavy boat and twins. And some folks have said the Hornets actually do remarkably well on both gas and performance, so maybe the wider turning radius will be the biggest difference from an I/O. That, and docking.

As for the coke thing, that was my first thought when I saw the lights.

I believe that's the same model v-drive I had in my Nova, Crusader 4500 I think. I got to know mine very well (long story, they are reversible and mine had been set-up and installed backwards before I bought the boat, so the effective gear ratio was wrong). I'd offer one piece of advice if it's in a hard-to-reach spot/angle. You might do some testing now, with things disassembled and easy to control, to figure out how much fluid it wants. Depending on how it sits in the boat and the angle she sits in the water or elsewhere, might be hard to get a decent reading off the dipstick. Even with good access to the top of the drive, I concluded that it was FAR easier to sort out the right amount in my basement, and then measure it out and just pour it in the boat.

Regards, looking forward to your progress.

[Just Say N20]

For some reason, the Truck/Hornet pictures were of the Spiderman variety when I tried to view them; hanging upside down.

[CHACHI]

Does the motor have screw in "freeze plugs" ?

If so it is a 427.

Ken

[mattyboy]

if you have any serial numbers on the motor, vdrive or hull it might help id what you have.

[Morgan's Cloud]

Wowsa ! Another bomb of a find .
Please keep this thread active with all of your work and updates. A lot of us feed on this stuff.. lol

Did you say 'fin' .... ? what a concidence ..

Have you determined if any of the previous work included the gas tank too ?

I'm surprised no ones mentioned it yet but if there is a number it should be on the back of the dash . Handwritten in black marker . I believe it will be under a layer or so of glass and might be mistaken for random scribble if you've never seen one before.

I wish Bill would have been able to warn me that he had reposted the pic of it on the trailer. It took me 15 minutes to stick all the keys back on the keyboard after I turned the computer upside down and half of them dropped out !