# 1984 Starcraft SF-1616T Conversion



## GalacticJello (Mar 21, 2015)

A little over 5 years ago, my oldest brother died unexpectedly (46, a year older than I am today), and my wife and I decided to buy his "Warrior" from his widow to keep as a kind of memento. 

It is a 16' Starcraft with a split seat in the middle, and a flat floor throughout except for the bow (he put one in up there).



Here's the mods I did before (add new seats, wired it up for electronics front and back, small stuff):




It should be noted that my "fishing buddy" is my best friend,who happens to be my wife... she fishes off the very tip of the boat an only sits in the nice seat I purchased for her when we are underway.




We have had many, many good times with this boat, and have dragged all over the state, and even into Canada. It's a great boat. But...

I stay in the back ALWAYS running the old '84 Merc 25HP backtrolling most of the time, or using the trolling motor when it is calm (me and the buddy fish walleyes with live bait rigs trolling almost exclusively here in central Minnesota because no matter what lake you are on in the state, you will catch several dozen fish in a couple of hours and a few will be walleyes).

I have a small transistor radio that I use to drown out the putt-putt-sputt-sputt from the Merc, but the backbreaking bench seat sitting just kills me after a couple of hours. I fished with a buddy with a newer tiller model that just had a pedestal seat in the back, and that got me wondering... I'd love to remove this bench and put in a nice seat like I did for my fishing buddy (which she doesn't use). 

So after trolling around the web a while, I kept coming back to some of the other projects that you guys undertook, and I listened and learned.

What I learned was: 

It is going to be a great bit of fun to undertake
It is going to be a pain in the A**
It is going to be cheaper to just buy the boat I want with the features that I want and probably a way better power plant

What trumps it is that it is my brother's boat, and I am going to be working on it with my second oldest son, (a 15 year old, who I already bequeathed my very first boat once he gets established : 1958 14' Starcraft deep-V aluminum ).

So... here goes! First step is the demo. Ripping everything out.


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## GalacticJello (Mar 21, 2015)

All righty then...

Here's the before (profile):




Rear:




Front:




Thanks jasper60103 for the picture formatting tip, no more off kilter pics from me, hopefully!


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## jasper60103 (Mar 21, 2015)

I rotated it 90 degrees in paint then uploaded it.
Also works from my photobucket account.

Btw, nice project. Big Bro would be proud.
Keep the pics coming. Thanks for sharing.

-jasper


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## GalacticJello (Mar 21, 2015)

Teardown...

Here's the boat with all the extraneous junk removed.




Next, we took on removing the split seats and the benches, which were screwed to the floor and riveted to the sides. I read somewhere on this forum about using a punch to mark the center of the rivet, and then use a drill bit one size smaller than the rivet and drill straight in to about the depth of the rivet head. You should then be able to wiggle the bit and the head should snap off. That didn't work for me, as the rivets were painted on, I had to use a nail punch after I drilled them all.

Here we have the split seats taken out, the trolling motor mount removed from the tip, and the very front seat removed.




Next came the rear bench. I was anxious to see what was under the floor to see what I would be working with in terms of structure and hopefully leaving the bench out.




My pops (who has owned/modded/sank more boats over the years than everyone I know combined), is worried about the transom integrity, especially when I mentioned my desire to upgrade to a 4-stroke to save my remaining brain cells from inhaling Merc flatulance. The transom is rated to a 40HP, I currently have a 25HP. I was thinking of tying the sides together with 1 inch aluminum tubing, and possibly doing something similar to this:




Anyone remove their rear bench? I'd love to hear any thoughts...


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## derekdiruz1 (Mar 21, 2015)

I love the boat, keep up the hard work. I do think that the story behind it as well as the work put in will make that boat far better than any boat you'd ever buy. I feel like you could pop out the seats so long as you rebraced the hull. You have taken out small split benches that probably braced the walls more than one may think, and removing the back seat may too hurt that.


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## derekdiruz1 (Mar 21, 2015)

I love the boat, keep up the hard work. I do think that the story behind it as well as the work put in will make that boat far better than any boat you'd ever buy. I feel like you could pop out the seats so long as you rebraced the hull. You have taken out small split benches that probably braced the walls more than one may think, and removing the back seat may too hurt that.


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## GalacticJello (Mar 21, 2015)

Thanks for the comments, derekdiruz1! My wife and I agree with your thinking on "the better boat" completely! To stiffen the sides, I was planning on replacing the split seats with storage running up both sides, and tying the sides to the storage, the storage to the floor, and the floor to the bottom of the boat.

Possibly something like this (in my dreams):




Do you think that would help replace the strength that the split seats provided?


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## GalacticJello (Mar 21, 2015)

Ok, here's what she looks like "with her kimono open":




I was happy to see the aluminum "beam" that I am going to reuse for the new floor. I was expecting to see some rotted wood.


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## derekdiruz (Mar 21, 2015)

I can't see why it wouldn't stiffen the walls so long as you had L brackets of such, rather than just bolting it up creating seams rather for the weak points on the build... if im making sense


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## GalacticJello (Mar 22, 2015)

Time for some paint removal... I was shopping at the "Man Mall" (Fleet Farm in MN) for some paint stripper that I could use in the garage, as it is still in the 30's here (it even snowed today). The pickings were slim. I settled on an orange bottle of "Citristrip" because it was in a gloopy gel-like form factor so it would theoretically stick to the sides well. I did not have high hopes for this stuff, how good of a job could it do if it didn't come with a ton of death warnings that all the other "big boy" strippers had?

So I tried it out on a small section of the transom, and let it sit for a couple of hours. I used a plastic scraper to see how much paint I could get off, and was pleasantly surprised!


So now it was off to the races. I covered the rest of the transom with this glop, and then moved onto the sides. After a couple of hours, we went along in small sections and removed most of the paint with the plastic scraper, and finished up removing the (I assume) green primer underneath with a wire brush.


Here's the transom and one side afterwards:




I am pretty pleased with the Citristrip, I'll have to remember that stuff when I do the trailer...


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## gillhunter (Mar 22, 2015)

Looks like it did a great job!


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## 25yamaha (Mar 22, 2015)

hi i have the same boat but a 14 and was wanting to put a pedestale in the middle but i dont want to hit the beam when i drill the bottom, looking towards the bow is the beam on the left side of the boat slightly, and how wide is the top of it?


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## GalacticJello (Mar 25, 2015)

25yamaha, the top of the beam is about an inch wide, and is offset from the center to the port side. 

Thanks for bringing that up, you probably saved me from hitting the beam as well!


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## 25yamaha (Mar 26, 2015)

thank you very much! :lol:


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## GalacticJello (May 4, 2015)

Well, it's been a while since an update, we had some pretty crappy weather between April and now.




With the last couple of decent weekends we were able to clean up the bottom of the hull and coat the seams with Goop Cover-It just for good measure.




Then, we bought the wood, and made some templates out of cardboard to make a deck cutout. I bought some aluminum angle 1" x 1" x 1/8" online at grainger.com for about 1/3 the price you could buy it in a big box store ($9 vs. $32 for 8 foot lengths). I saw some interesting work on this forum and others on using the angle to frame up the structure for the deck, so I decided to give it a try. I'm really liking playing with the adult tinker toys! The rivets hold the structure very well. Once we had a decent weekend, we could finally apply a few coats of spar urethane to the flooring and the deck. Stinky stuff.




For the sides, I decided to do a grey bedliner rather than black (thought it would get too hot). Of course, no local store has any colors, just black, so I ordered it off of Amazon.com. I really like how it turned out.




I was on the fence on what to put on the flooring. I know I don't want carpet (have that on my pontoon and the adults track in more crap on their feet than the kids do). I was considering a rubberized paint or even bedliner. I settled on some marine vinyl from Cabela's after I saw and felt what looked to be a similar brand on a boat on display at Fleet Farm. I am very happy with the vinyl.




We put in a total of 4 pin-hole seat bases, 3 on the floor and one on the deck. I have to go around and secure the flooring to the stringers and then I can begin to assemble the storage running along the sides. I ran some sump pump tubing under the floor and threaded a transducer through it before laying down the floor. It should make running a different transducer quite a bit easier in the future. 

As you can see, I am considering putting the split benches back in, but I'm still not 100% sold on the idea. They would be carpeted on the sides and top if I did put them back. 

Next up: framing in all the storage along the sides, making a door for under the casting deck, and a shelf across the back of the transom. Also installing cup holders galore!


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## GalacticJello (Jul 9, 2015)

All right, here's some final updates... 

Here's the front construction progress:




Framing in the gas tank enclosure and integrated tackle box holders took me a while, if I were you, I would plan it on paper rather than do it in your head and wing it.  It worked out in the end, though, and I am happy about the results.




Next up was the paint. We primed it with Interlux Pre-cote, 2 coats with plenty of drying time between. I read that if you don't let it dry enough, it is hard to sand it down smooth between coats (using 220 grit sandpaper).




Once primed and sanded, we used the "roll and tip" method for the paint using Interlux Briteside Black yacht paint. I was nervous that only one quart would be needed, but we got 2 great coats, and probably could have put on a third. I decided to save the rest to repair any scratches and dings that will happen (and have!) in the future.

If you want to know about the "roll and tip" method, start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-SGcSlNmoo

Look at the comments and go to that guy's blog, it was very informative, especially about using the correct brush thinner (Interlux 333, order online or go to your nearest West Marine like I did). The video gave me and the fishing buddy the confidence to do this on our own, and we think it turned out great.




Next up were the decals. I found some cool Starcraft replacement decals on ebay, and some updated ones for the old sputtering Merc. My fishing buddy gently scraped off the old decals on the Merc and all we had to do was apply the new ones. What a difference! It looks 20 years newer! (still runs the same, but looks cooler)




After that, it was finishing up the storage, carpeting, and installing the wiring (bus bars, control panel switches, stereo, downscan sonars, etc.).

Here's some shots of the final product:










The boat is done! I think my brother would be happy with the results. It definitely was a lot of work, but it was worth it working on it with my son and wife. My wife and I took it out the other day and fished for 4 or 5 hours, and I really like it. She actually sat in the seat I bought her, but she still likes to sit on the decks I built too. Whatever works. I have a stereo, a comfortable seat, and plenty of storage. Plus it looks pretty kick ass, if I do say so myself. 

As I was launching it on 4th of July weekend, I helped the County Sheriff land his big enforcement boat. He commented that he liked my "new" boat, and I had to explain several times that it really was over 30 years old, motor and all! Have had lots of compliments for the neighbors since then as well.

We are still thinking about the lettering for the back to honor my brother in some way, so I guess it isn't "quite" done... stay tuned!


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## g0nef1sshn (Jul 9, 2015)

=D> That is an amazing transformation of a a boat. Well done! I think you have shown me the layout I will use in mine now. My searching, googling, and sketching are over \/


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## jasper60103 (Jul 9, 2015)

^ +1

Very nice restoration. Thanks for sharing. Enjoy!

jasper


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## IT_Guy (Jul 9, 2015)

WOW! Kevin would love what you have done.

Now you have me thinking about my old Sears in the shed.

Bill


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## ADIBOO (Jul 10, 2015)

That's looks amazing, I especially like the wrap around storage and how the benches in the rear look. Great job on a perfect way to honor your brother.


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## GYPSY400 (Jul 10, 2015)

Good job on the Resto! That Starcraft looks very similar to my Legend Prosport16 ( which is built in the Starcraft factory)








Except your monthly payments are Wayy less!


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## GalacticJello (Jul 12, 2015)

Wow, thanks for the nice words, g0nef1sshn, jasper60103, IT_Guy, ADIBOO, and GYPSY400. I really do appreciated them!

The process was a deliberate step for me, I have been watching sites like these for years, some projects peter out, but a bunch go into so much detail that it makes you wonder if you could really do the same thing...

I am here to tell you that you can. The most mods I have done in the previous decades were to add decking ON TOP of existing benches, sloppily drilling into the transom to add transducers and filling with goop, that type of thing. This time I seriously looked at what the rest you you awesome folks were doing with you boats, and it gave me a spark...

Back to the deliberate step... I knew that if I publicly started this project, I would HAVE to finish it. I have a track record of starting big projects and just letting them linger. Not this one. 

I wanted to finish it before the fishing opener, but life got in the way. But, my wife supported me and pushed me every spare weekend I had, which was really nice, even though she couldn't see the plans in my head translated to what eventually ended up in the boat. As stuff got more "finished", she got more and more excited as the vision (constantly changing) came about. I have to say I like the end result vs. what I had planned. 

Before, I planned some minimal stuff: floor, deck on the front, open all the way back and a simple pedestal seat for the back. You guys showed me stuff that really made me think I could do more, and so I did, little by little.

It is not the best worksmanship by far (not by a long shot) but it turned out FAR better than my even MINIMAL plan. I learned that I can learn at 45, and now I am going to use the stuff I learned on other projects that I never would have thought to take on before...

Again, thanks for the comments, I appreciate them!


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## k2sno070 (Jul 15, 2015)

I am currently in the process of restoring my 96 sea nymph and am trying to figure out what pedestal bases and seat systems to use. What did you use on your boat and do you like the performance so far? My boat is a 14 footer and I also had the two large bench seats fore and aft, with the two storage containers on the sides. I had originally planned to keep the large bench seats in place and just build a casting deck over them, but after looking at your build I am considering a design similar to yours. How did you brace the sides of your boat? Did you use some brackets or did you just install the storage. Also, how did you fill in the voids of the previous rivet holes? I was planning on using some structural pop rivets with 5200 to seal them. The main reason I want to remove the benches is because I am having difficulty designing a place to store my rods with the limited length of my boat. Thanks for any advice! I really love your project. It turned out great!


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## GalacticJello (Jul 30, 2015)

k2sno070:

First, thanks for the compliements! Lots of questions, I'll go through them in order:

>> What pedestal bases and seat systems to use. What did you use on your boat and do you like the performance so far? 

I used a "pin base" type of system. This system was in use when I started my first mods on my first boat when I was in my 20's (a 59 14' Starcraft that I still own). It was all I knew so I chose it for this project. I went "on the cheap" because the bases were pretty damn spendy, as well as the posts. The expensive ones have brass inserts for the pins, and thus, do not flex or shift very much. The ones I have use plastic fittings, and will eventually wear out, and definitely flex far more than the brass inserts. This is not a big deal on the shorter bases (like on the front deck for my fishing buddy) but when you get a longer base (like mine in the back, I am 6'3" and over 2 bills) the torque I can place on it is definitely not supportable. I bought a chair-like mount for a boat seat, thinking I would use it for the middle seat that could be removed easily and left on the dock for people to sit on (shown in the pictures). I ended up using that in the back instead of the cool angled pin base seat that I was planning on using to allow me to swivel from one side of the boat to another, and not have to offset the pin base for when I was underway and need to be driving. The torque was FAR too much for the pin base. I would eventually rip out the flooring, even though it was anchored to the underside of the wood with aluminum strips, and bolted to the aluminum I-frame center beam.

Instead, I would go for the taper-lock style system (really wide pin base, basically). The benefit to this is that you can buy a ton of accessories that fit that system like a table top like you find in many pontoons, or a grill stand, whatever... nothing is made to fit a pin base for accessories like this.

>> How did you brace the sides of your boat? Did you use some brackets or did you just install the storage. 

First was the flooring. I ran structural supports from the I-beam to the tips of the stringers and riveted them down. The flooring is over that, and screwed to the supports in the middle, and to the tips of the stringers at the edges.

Next, the framing for the storage is fastened to the flooring and the sides of the boat. I used aluminum angle and cut off 2" sections and riveted them to the sites for support. Those were tied to aluminum that ran the length of the boat that were anchored on structure like the split seats or the casting deck. To support the runs, I ran vertical posts that were fastened to the flooring. I then ran cross-beams connecting the runs to give everything rigidity. I can easily stand and jump on everything with no worries of anything breaking. I did extensive research on other folks doing the same thing, so the takeaways are: use non-big-box aluminum (6061 for strength). All I did was google stuff like "6061 aluminum boat deck" and watched and learned and refined my searches for more specific details. I reused the seat brackets on the front for support, but I also framed in what I believe is a pretty damn sturdy foundation for the casting deck (you can see it in the pics). No flex anywhere on that deck.


>> How did you fill in the voids of the previous rivet holes?

I used rivets! I coated them with 5200 and then popped them in place. For under the waterline holes, I used closed end blind rivets. It worked great, and looks natural, as there were rivets there in the first place. For the huge holes in the top of the aluminum in the front of the boat where I removed the original carpeted trolling motor mount (at least 3/8" holes) I used 1/4" rivets with over-sized heads, it worked awesome, and those holes look like they are factory rivet bumps. On the sides where I replaced all the removed benches and added brackets, you don't notice them at all with the paint job. They blend in just like it was a new boat.


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## GalacticJello (Jul 30, 2015)

Forgot... I added the original aluminum straps back and riveted them to the sides, and screwed them into the newly installed storage. There is no flex in the sides at all if you pull on them, there was considerable flex when everything was pulled out!


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## Coolvtfly (Aug 8, 2015)

Have the same boat, just a 1985 with a 91 30 hp Evinrude for power. Pulled everything out and used aluminum stock gunwale to gunwale riveted to the top of the ribs. Put the same layout back in, I stand on the bench seats to flyfish. I've used the boat in the ocean for stripers and Lake Champlain for bass and pike. Every now and then I get the urge to "upgrade", but every time the versatility and simplicity of the boat win out. Was very happy to finally see another SF1616T out there. Very nice work.


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## Plumbcrazy (Aug 9, 2015)

Very nice work. 
You make me wish I had gone with the vinyl, but I'm not about to turn back and start over now.


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## Johnny (Aug 9, 2015)

Jello, great work.... great craftsmanship

:WELCOME: to Tin Boats.
Please complete your profile when you have time.
Knowing what part of the country you hail from helps 
us give you more accurate information.


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