1971 18' 2+3 - getting started

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Since buying back my old 18' last weekend, I have assessed what I want to do. Among many projects, I will be painting it with Imron since the gelcoat is no longer holding its color and there are quite a few places which need repair. I pulled the engine yesterday - notice the Magnaflow cam driven water pump and and it has an oversize oil pan. Tonight I will be using a trick I thought I would pass along. There are two bubbles in the gelcoat on the deck about the sizes of oblong baseballs. If I just air file the deck to straighten it out, those bubbles will have very little strength and they will probably continue to grow in size so they need to be filled. I drill a small hole in the center and a few very small holes at the outside perimeter of the bubbles only as far as it takes to get to the air gap. I then use a plastic squeeze bottle which I use to force the catalyzed polyester resin into the center hole until it comes out of all the smaller holes. I have some squares of wax paper ready with tape on them to place over the holes until it has hardened. Bingo - bubbles are filled and ready to be sanded for paint. I will be using the same color red and white that it came with originally - no more compounding! Bill

[gcarter]

Good luck Bill.

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Good luck Bill.

I look forward to lots of sweat! Actually, I almost bought a 27' Magnum sport a few weeks ago on ebay that was a bare naked hull - it needed everything. I held off thinking I really did not want to take that on. This will be a walk in the park comparatively. I already bought the drive shaft which was the only thing really broken on this boat. Thanks for the good wishes. Bill

[jl1962]

Great thread! LOVE these old Donzis.

Our old 16 may still be around somewhere.....anyone ever find a light blue '67 Ski Sporter.....Let me know

[BigGrizzly]

Bill thanks for the bubble tip. I have those on both my boats. They haven't grown yet, I measure them every year. Its due so thanks.

[samjannarone]

Real nice looking 18, looks like a smart buy over the magnum. What kind of drive is that? Pretty cool w/ the nosecone, but do you think the shape of the skeg is original?
Good luck with the project, looks good already!!
Sam

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Great thread! LOVE these old Donzis.

Our old 16 may still be around somewhere.....anyone ever find a light blue '67 Ski Sporter.....Let me know

If you hold off, a friend of mine might be selling his 1967 light blue 16'. He bought it brand new, but he does not seem to find the time to restore it. I wouldn't doubt that he decides to sell it soon. We have lunch together almost every Monday, so I will ask if he has made any decision. He usually sells his stuff cheap. Here is a picture of it when he was still using it. Bill

http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachme...7&d=1195150592

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Bill thanks for the bubble tip. I have those on both my boats. They haven't grown yet, I measure them every year. Its due so thanks.

You're welcome. I first tried that trick on a slightly delaminated transom on an outboard fishing boat. I drilled on each side of the section that had delaminated and pumped resin in until it came out the other hole. It held from that day forward with no problem. If it had been a rotten transom, it would have been replaced. Bill

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Real nice looking 18, looks like a smart buy over the magnum. What kind of drive is that? Pretty cool w/ the nosecone, but do you think the shape of the skeg is original?
Good luck with the project, looks good already!!
Sam

Sam,
That is a Volvo Penta speedmaster drive (E drive) that I first installed in about 1976. It is the way they were made. They are about 1" less diameter than a conventional lower unit and usually add around 9MPH to the top speed of the boat. I had a good one for sale in the parts for sale section of this site, but I decided to hold on to it now. Bill

[samjannarone]

Thanks for setting me straight on the drive. 9 mph is a ton. I have a trs on my x-18 and it looks huge compared to the volvo. Btw that cigarette you had was real nice.
Sam

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Thanks for setting me straight on the drive. 9 mph is a ton. I have a trs on my x-18 and it looks huge compared to the volvo. Btw that cigarette you had was real nice.
Sam

Sam,
My old 20' Cigarette had a TRS drive. I installed a nose cone and a BBC engine that I built up to about 425 HP. It ran about 68MPH when I sold it. I once pulled up 6 guys barefooting. On the third or fourth pull, 4 of them made it up barefooting - I sure wish I had a picture of that! I sold it to a friend who still stores it at my boat storage facility. Bill

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Sam,
My old 20' Cigarette had a TRS drive. I installed a nose cone and a BBC engine that I built up to about 425 HP. It ran about 68MPH when I sold it. I once pulled up 6 guys barefooting. On the third or fourth pull, 4 of them made it up barefooting - I sure wish I had a picture of that! I sold it to a friend who still stores it at my boat storage facility. Bill

I should have added that I first bought the Cigarette in around 1984 at a used car lot in Killeen, TX. It was advertised as a 20' offshore boat with a custom paint job. It originally had a SBC. If memory serves me right, I only gave $7500 for it back then!! You rarely see 20' Cigarettes around here in north Texas. I used to run into Ross Perot at our boat ramp on Lake Texoma back in the mid 80s before he had to be so sequestered. He trailered the only other 20' Cigarette I have ever seen around here. He was always giving me compliments at the boat ramp on my 1953 18' Chris Craft Riviera that I had restored, so one day I offered to trade boats with him. He did not take me up on that - lol. Bill

[jl1962]

If you hold off, a friend of mine might be selling his 1967 light blue 16'. He bought it brand new, but he does not seem to find the time to restore it. I wouldn't doubt that he decides to sell it soon. We have lunch together almost every Monday, so I will ask if he has made any decision. He usually sells his stuff cheap. Here is a picture of it when he was still using it. Bill

http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachme...7&d=1195150592

Close, but not the same one. Our old boat had a white deck/blue stripe and solid blue hull, no boot stripe.

My dad owned the boat from 1968 - 1971. It was on Lake George into the early '80's then supposedly went to FL.

It may be gone but at least Old Red is taking pretty good care of me these days!

[Bob]

If you hold off, a friend of mine might be selling his 1967 light blue 16'. He bought it brand new, but he does not seem to find the time to restore it. I wouldn't doubt that he decides to sell it soon. We have lunch together almost every Monday, so I will ask if he has made any decision. He usually sells his stuff cheap. Here is a picture of it when he was still using it. Bill
http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachme...7&d=1195150592

If you friend ever decides to sell the 16, please contact me. This would make a great project to do with my son.

[Conquistador_del_mar]

If you friend ever decides to sell the 16, please contact me. This would make a great project to do with my son.

Will do. Bill