1970 Seafari conversion to CC

[afishin82]

I got this boat for a great deal and am lookin forward to make this boat like new! I jumped in head first and have already ran into something I am unsure about I got the cap and floor off and noticed that the stringers are hollow except for a single 1x3 running the length of the stringers. I want to cut the tops off, raise the sides of the stringers, foam fill them, and then reglass them. Not sure if there is a better solution that will be less work, but if there is I would love to know! So im just gettin started and hope you guys will chime in if you see something that doesnt look right. Thanks!!

[afishin82]

I want to put a flotation bracket on the boat and raise the floor to make this boat a self bailing cockpit. Im unsure about putting a bracket and 4stroke 150 on a boat this small as far as how the boat will run. Also if anyone knows how high the floor needs to be raised to be at least an inch above the waterlinewould be great. Or do i have to load the boat down with 50gal drums to find out!

[Islandtrader]

You can do some searches b4 the guys chime in...also beware that when bushwacker see this post he will go nuts...LOL

He loves his 20 Seafari and when someone cuts one up he starts to cry...

[Terry England]

Originally Posted by Islandtrader

He loves his 20 Seafari and when someone cuts one up he starts to cry...

Amen Brother, Along with Dave, Conner, Gillie, and me. Padre Frank says "forgive them, for they know not what they do!"

[FishStretcher]

I agree. If he had posted before breaking out the saw, the consensus would have been sell it and buy a CC. Lots cheaper and easier.

That said, I REALLY hope you complete this and it looks nice in the end. Read the sticky post about a bracket on a 20. You would have been happier with a Seafari with a bracket. You have to be VERY careful with a 4 stroke bracketed 20. ESPECIALLY a center console. I researched it, bought a bracket and then didn't install it. And I have a lighter 4 stroke on a 20 with a forward mounted tank and batteries.

I think you would be much better served with a light 90 or 115 on a notched transom with a splashwell gate.

[kmoose]

Put the lid back on before Pandora gets out! Seriously, most every Seafari owner has had CCs in their past and would never go back.

[pianewman]

Originally Posted by Terry England

Amen Brother, Along with Dave, Conner, Gillie, and me. Padre Frank says "forgive them, for they know not what they do!"

Add pianewman to this list...

[flyingfrizzle]

Yea agree, it is much easier to start with a cc and seafari's are rare and all but it's not like you cut up a 25' seafari or a 27 seamaster. There are more models out there more rare that need not be cut but if your hearts in it and you don't mind all the extra work it will make a nice boat. If you planned on having a 3 piece boat with out a liner it wont be too bad vs doing a cc the same way. The main thing is having to build the gunnels back from nothing. You will have to spend a lot more time in that area but all the rest will be basically the same once cut up. Check out Calibougue on here he had a cc 20 but tossed the cap and built it back from scratch with a custom cap made from core cell. Yours done this way would be about the same process. His was a real nice 20 cc with bracket, all composite and built with out a liner.

Here is the link: http://www.classicseacraft.com/commu...t=22551&page=8

[Bushwacker]

I saw this post yesterday but decided to hold off on a reply to avoid saying something I might regret later!

As others have said, you are definitely making a CC the hard way! You would have expended much less time, sweat and $ if you had just bought a CC in the first place, as they are relatively common, having been been built by Moesly, Potter, SeaCraft Industries, and Tracker, as late as 2005 or so. Only Moesly and Potter built the Seafari 20, and they only built 349 OB models over 10 years starting in 1969. During the same time they built over 2600 CC models, counting the 18 and 20 SF/MA models. I'm sure thousands more were built by SCI and Tracker. However they only built 80 Seafari 25's, so they are even rarer than the original Moesly 21, although many of the 21's were raced and probably did not survive!

I do see a couple of problems with your plans. The worst is hull stiffness, or lack thereof. By removing the cap, bulkhead, and inner liner you've significantly reduced the structural stiffness of the hull. The Seafari had the stiffest hull of all the 20' models because of those features and cuts through big seas like a tank because of it! Most guys put 2x4's across top of hull when they remove the cap to keep hull from distorting. Note that the original CC models do not have openings in the inner liner below the gunnell at the rear . . . I believe that was an attempt to retain some of the stiffness that's created by that shelf and high coaming of the Seafari cap. I hope you're planning to core the hull sides to restore some of that stiffness to the hull!

The other problem is that the Seafari has more weight forward than any other 20' model, so it's the best suited for a bracket. Plus it has a much higher coaming, so you could raise the deck more in it without having the gunell down around your ankles! Unless you mount the CC and fuel tank fairly far forward, you'll be stern heavy with a bracket, especially with a 500 lb 4-stroke motor on it. If you're dead set on a 4-stroke, the only one I'd consider is the 140 Zuke, but a 150 Opti (or an E-TEC if you want quiet) will have much more mid-range torque for planing with heavy loads. Or a 115 2-stroke would about match the Zuke for mid-range torque, but be about 50 lbs lighter!

As for deck height and the scupper issue, it looks like you may have a Moesly hull with the scuppers out the transom. If so, I'd leave 'em there, install the Raybud ping pong ball check valves, and cross the drain lines below the deck like Moesly did, i.e., port scupper drains out stbd side, etc. If you do that you probably won't have to raise the deck more than a couple inches to keep your feet dry if you keep motor weight under 400 lbs. For reference, my boat, which has the highest flotation bracket available, is still self bailing at the dock, but just barely, with no one aboard. And of course I have more weight forward than most CC's, and I don't have a 500 lb motor on the bracket. You might also want to reconsider the bracket. It's main advantage is the solid transom and more room in the boat, but the performance benefits are over-rated! A good friend of mine has the same boat and motor but a transom mount, and his boat is 4-5 mph faster than mine, which is compromised by the 4B prop and Doelfin required to compensate for the heavy stern!

I wish you well with your project, but I'd suggest that it needs more thought. Also, did your boat have the galley seat and if so what did you do with it? Some other Seafari owners might want it. Also do you still have the windshield and bow rail? That's a beefier Moesly style bow rail if it has 4 stanchions/side instead of the 3/side on Potter rails. That windshield also looks better than mine, so I might be interested! Where are you located?

[pianewman]

Did somebody say "windshield"? If the OP hasn't dumped it yet, I might be interested, as well, assuming Denny doesn't grab it first!

Ditto for the galley seat! I see a hole in the inner hull, next to where the companion seat was...

Denny: Very thoughtful post, as usual.