TOPIC: New G3 Owner and New Member

Just drove 2,000 miles round trip in two days last weekend to pick up a 1960 G3 with a 1965 65 hp Mercury. I think I got a good deal, at least I hope so! Transom will need rebuilt at sometime cause there are a couple of soft spots on it but I plan to repair it temporarily and use it first. Windshield also is cracked, don't have any idea where I can find one of those. All in all, it's not bad for a 50 year old boat. I plan to completely rebuild the whole boat in the near future. When I do, I'm sure I'll be on here asking lots of questions!!!!

Congratulations on your G3 and Welcome to the club!
Your boat looks very pretty and the 650 is a great motor for it, I used to run a merc 650 on mine. What prop are you running on there now?
And lets see some more pics please!
-Ben

All g3's are pretty:) Looks real clean also and perfect motor for it. That bow trim is a '61 one piece, '59 and '60 were three piece. Do you have a 'speed bump' a hump for a foot rest under bow will be '61, unless someone changed the trim piece? Yes, more pic's will be cool, interior of dash and stern shot of motor and transom are good shots also? I like the tilt trailer but would convert in the future to bunks, thats what I need to do. B..

Springdale, Arkansas (72762) Conditions & Forecast : Weather ...
Springdale, AR. 2:23 PM CDT on September 02, 2011 (GMT -0500). Elev: 1258 ft . Lon: 94.2° W. Lat: 36.2° N.

Very nice, lets see some more pics!!!! where are you, reg seems to say WY....? Wyoming?

Don't know exactly what prop it is. I've been to busy to even mess with the boat since I brought it back.
I wasn't exactly sure on the year model and from what I've read, it does have a little foot rest across the floor in front, so I figured it was a 1960. I know very little about these boats except I really like them. When i was growing up in the 70's, we all had inboard ski boats like the stars and stripes Mastercrafts and the red, white, and blue Ski Nautiques. Back then we wouldn't even hardly look at an outboard, but I've always liked the G3's, and now I finally have one.
I live in Arkansas, so it was a pretty good drive to go get it. 16 hours last Sunday, bought it Sunday night, and 17 hours back home.

I haven't figured out to add more than one pic at a time, but I'm working on it. It's basically a fixer upper, but it's in pretty sound shape. I plan on putting bigger tires and wheels on the trailer and to add some bunks with carpet.

One more thing, the windshield is cracked pretty good. I don't have any idea what I'm going to do about that. Those are probably next to impossible to find.

Welcome to the Glasspar G-3 world!! You have chosen the best of the best for show and play!!

If your boat has the small footrest on the floor under the dash, it is a 1961 (the only year with that piece on the floor).

Show us more pics like it running on the lake, etc.

Welcome rdaled,

Great looking boat! I am also a center deck owner. So you are from Arkansas and picked it up in Wyoming? Wowee... i thought I went a long way for my boat (400 miles), but yours is in much better shape than mine was.

Is the motor a '63 or '64? I cant tell without its front plate.

BTW... to enter multiple photos on a single post.. enter the first, post it, then hit the "edit" button and add the next one... and so on.

Again, welcome and congratulations on your new boat!

Dean

BTW rdaled,

Bill is going to bust your chops on the boat's year. He has an eagle eye for details and knows the smallest details about each of the model years. He is a great guy, but we are still going around as to whether mine is a '59 or might be a '60...heh.

And, one tip... wait until you meet NUT! he is from the OMC G3 camp and he loves to hate Mercs... all in good fun. My point is that this G3 crowd is a good community, you will enjoy everyone... welcome aboard.

Dean

LOL, your right Dean. Ark, well we can't tell yet if you have a '63/'64 650 but not a '65 for sure, '65 had the control hook-ups inside the cowl making it a bit wider. 650 Merc Serial numbers 1646983 thru 1766053 were 1964 models. windshield, dont scrap it, there too hard to find, Later you may need it to make a one off copy. For me, I wouldn't change the trailer tires if there good and the high rating, you only have under a thousand pounds including trailer there, i'd grease the bearings first though if not yet done. I like the rope tie thing on the bow deck, pretty smart idea. What a long trip you took to get it, but looks worth it!

If you haven't read this page, its a very good idea for it has lots of info on the g3.(Scroll down) archives.fiberglassics.com/g3/glassparg3.html

Dean did you miss it, the trims missing in the transom area, L&R castings and the transom must have been worked on or replaced...

Your pic's are very high res , could that be causing you problems posting pic's perhaps?

I've been thinking about the tires an wheels, I think I'll leave them alone. After all, they just made a 1,000 mile trip from Wyoming to Arkansas ok. However, I stopped about every 200 miles to grease the bearings just to make sure they didn't burn up. When you pick up a boat, motor, and trailer this old, you never know what kind of shape the bearings are in. They seemed to take quite a bit of grease every time I greased them. Looks like it was slinging grease from the inside of the wheel. That's on my list, to take the bearings out and probably go ahead and replace them.

The paper work says it's a 1965 motor, but I believe you guys more than the papers. Every thing else has been wrong on the dates on the papers.

That rope coming out of the middle of the front cleat is pretty neat. I guess that's early 60's technology. That's the first one I've ever seen like that.

Like I said, it's a fixer upper, but at least it's in decent shape to start with! Thanks for all the info so far!

I know it's hard to tell from pictures, but do you guys think I got a decent deal for $775?

Was wondering how the motor runs? make sure its pumping water:)

My guess is the engine is a 63, looking at the pics I did notice the lower left transom plate rust stain. not a good sign. rusty bolt = leak, But Im sure you will go over it before you launch. I dont know how much you know about these boats or have read about them but If I may I would suggest you ck all screws on the sponson moulding and any other through hull bolts-screws above and below the water line, many of us have had unusual leaks from these ol G3s. I also would sugest you float it before just going out with a load of freinds&family coolers etc until you have located all or any leaks, How long has it been since the engine has been used? It is a mag style ign. and usuly need the points cleaned etc. But all in all I think ya did well ,price wize. Its a real good looking G3.

Good point! you can check the sponsons for water buy laying inside, looking from the inside at sponson and shake the boat a bit to see if theres a wave,lol. well mine was like that when I got it... Saw mine in bright sun but suppose a flood light will work, not sure if its a color. At the very corner next to transom there was a 1/4" hole to drain the sponsons, guess the preowner did that and plugged it with a dowel. I removed the sponson trim screws and put a bit of silicone in each and inserted the screws , no problem after that. IMO I would also check the over looked keel as it curves up from about where your missing a roller, if it were beached alot it could have rubbed off enough glass to cause a leak, Mine did,

Rdaled, I think you got a good deal! I paid $500 for my boat, trailer and a 1985 40 hp Mariner that wasnt even connected to the steering or controls... I just gave away the motor and ripped into the boat...

Yours that is complete and useable with a working Merc 650 and windshield seems like a very good deal. You need some trim pieces around the transom, so start looking now... it will take a while to find them.

Bill, the sponson should have an open drain hole, they should not collect water. I think its 1/4" at the aft end... any water collecting in the sponson should drain out into the boat.

Dean, You have a great looking boat! Hope mine looks that good someday! I have a long ways to go!

Thanks!

The guys on this site provided a lot of help and inspiration to see it through. I got a lot of enjoyment out of the project, which kept me busy from December to July... but now I'm using it, and its great fun!

When you decide to tear into it, keep us posted with progress photos and dont hesitate to ask questions.

["Bill, the sponson should have an open drain hole, they should not collect water. I think its 1/4" at the aft end... any water collecting in the sponson should drain out into the boat."]
Dean I wonder if those holes were original, was never sure as I think many dont have the holes?

the motor is a 63 merc 650

rdaled wrote:

Don't know exactly what prop it is. I've been to busy to even mess with the boat since I brought it back.
I wasn't exactly sure on the year model and from what I've read, it does have a little foot rest across the floor in front, so I figured it was a 1960. I know very little about these boats except I really like them. When i was growing up in the 70's, we all had inboard ski boats like the stars and stripes Mastercrafts and the red, white, and blue Ski Nautiques. Back then we wouldn't even hardly look at an outboard, but I've always liked the G3's, and now I finally have one.
I live in Arkansas, so it was a pretty good drive to go get it. 16 hours last Sunday, bought it Sunday night, and 17 hours back home.

Helloooooo "RD", and welcome to our world! First, never mind Deans comment about ol' NUT..... in fact, my best G3 boating buddy, Greg D has a motor on his G3 just like YOURS!!! too bad it hasn't run at all this summer since it overheated in the middle of a lake last year, and had to be (GASP!) TOWED IN!!!
Your BOAT looks good, and obviously appears to have been extensively worked on or maybe even restored at some point, hopefully recently? The missing transom trim might mean someone already replaced the transom wood, and since the seat has obviously been re-done, maybe they replaced the stringers and floorboards at the same time? Maybe, hopefully, you don't have as much work ahead of you as you suspect, and if I am right, you got a GREAT deal for $700.00!
HOWEVER, looking at the pictures you posted, I couldn't help but think how much NICER it would look with the simple addition of a BIG FAT WHITE JOHNSON, or BLUE EVINRUDE hanging on the transom. Certainly would go better with the color scheme of your boat, and would give you a top speed advantage over that little Merc to boot! Besides, growing up with Ski Nautiques, I'm sure you can appreciate low end torque and ski pulling power that a nice V4 OMC would provide!

Well, again welcome, and keep us posted on your new love affair!!
HA!
NUT

Hey rdaled, Nice G-3....

that merc will do yea just fine I think if you are just going out on the lake to have fun right?

It not like your going to go fishing or anything which then you would need a Johnson like glassparnut has suggested and some out riggers ....

ya know, FWIW...

H.