TOPIC: Looking for parts for Custom Craft

Hello everyone,

I am a newbie to this Fiberglass Boat community. I pulled this old Custom Craft boat out of the weeds and just starting the processes of making it sea (Lake) worthy again. So far I pulled all of the weeds and mud out, pulled out the carpet, took off the motor and instruments. The reason I am posting is because I am so new to this that I do not know where to find and buy any of the bits and pieces I need to make it complete. I need a windscreen for sure. I also need the rubber strip that goes around the boat which I understand is called gunwale moulding. Is there any company that makes it similar to the original? Can you recommend a good company to buy from? My next question is about all of the steel around the boat. It is naturally weathered and pitted. So do I simply buy new fixtures/lights or is there a way to recondition these. Can I "send them out" to a place that will return them good as new?

Well thank you for taking the time to read this and hopefully soon I will be posting in the "Member Project Forum!"

Michael

I'm sorry everyone...I have no clue how/why it posted twice

As far as the windhield goes you have a few options. 1) have a new one molded from your old one, which is pricey, I was quoted $600 for mine.
2) get some lexan and make your own from the original that you have (you can Google it for some tutorials)
3) fill the cracks in that you have with some expoxy, then use rubbing compound and a buffer to bring back the rest of the plexiglass.

As far as the shiny bits go, if they are pitted real bad they are probably pot metal and the effort to restore them is probably not worth it. You can buy chocks, cleats, ski poles, and running lights on ebay that look very vintage and should suit your needs fine.

If they are stainless pieces or aluminum you can Sand and Buff them, finishing with some steel wool for a nice shine.

Post some more pics and you can probably get some better advice than this amateur.

Tyson

Thats an interesting idea regarding lexan, I have never heard of that. I will have to take some closer pictures of the hardware to see what people think. Thank you!

Flyingscott1962 wrote:

As far as the windhield goes you have a few options. 1) have a new one molded from your old one, which is pricey, I was quoted $600 for mine.
2) get some lexan and make your own from the original that you have (you can Google it for some tutorials)
3) fill the cracks in that you have with some expoxy, then use rubbing compound and a buffer to bring back the rest of the plexiglass.

As far as the shiny bits go, if they are pitted real bad they are probably pot metal and the effort to restore them is probably not worth it. You can buy chocks, cleats, ski poles, and running lights on ebay that look very vintage and should suit your needs fine.

If they are stainless pieces or aluminum you can Sand and Buff them, finishing with some steel wool for a nice shine.

Post some more pics and you can probably get some better advice than this amateur.

Tyson

Tyson,

You forgot the fourth option, which is buy a New Old Stock one or good used one.

I have "NOS" Custom Craft windshields, and I know where to get at least one of the smaller ones, which is probably the one he needs.

I believe the smaller one for this boat is 54" tip to tip? That's what is available from a fellow down in FLA.

Anyway, Welcome to the group!!



P.S. Wefco has the die for the rub rail you need, just tell them it's for a Custom Craft, or send them a sample piece.

Check out more Custom Crafts Here: www.nicklecityclassics.com/customcraftboats.htm

Thank you i's nice to be here! And thanks for all the info! I'll take one of those windshields! email or message me. I submitted a request to NCClassics last night

mpmitri,

WELCOME ABOARD. - NICE "finny", too.

yours, satx

Welcome aboard, nice find!!!!!!!!! Yes the piece your looking for that goes around the boat is called rub rail. Like CC1000 said, Wefco has it.

Bob

Thank you, It is great to be aboard! Perfect Wefco has just what I was looking for! Ok so here is a more pressing issue. I have discovered that the hull is filled with water. Feels (and sounds) like over 100lbs. of water in the area I have pictures below. As I mentioned I pulled this out of the weeds and the boat was filled with water. I drained all the water and pulled up all the carpet to reveal the drain holes, however, obviously something is clogged. I used a pressure washer on the highest nozzle but it didn't work. The water from the hose does shoot out the back but it doesn't release anything from the hull. Is my only option to cut a hole and drain the water somewhere in that picture I posted? Has anyone had this problem before? Thank you in advance!

mike,,, first of all welcome to FG and a customcraft owner. i hope you have some hands on experience because your boat is going to need a lot of work. the boat being outside and not properly covered has been suckin up water into the wood floor and transom like a sump pump. you will need a whole new floor and transom. if your able to do this kind of work its not a big thing, but if your not , a few thousand dollars to an outside repair shop,will get you started before you add in the re-chroming of the hardware, windshield, side trim (if you can find it)and upholstery work. then on to paint. then you have to get power unless you want to paddle.if you have the bucks, fine. i know from experience on my customcraft. i'm over 10k documented into it. let me add i did nothing, all outside labor. hope it works out for you because they are great boats designed by a man who was ahead of his time in boat design. good luck, ron

That's a bit of unfortunate news. I still don't understand how to get the water out though. There is not a seem to open. So am I correct about having to drill or cut a hole to release the water? From the newbie I am the boat seems like it's entirely fiberglass with some wood reinforcements. Or are you saying I need to get an angle grinder and cut up the floor? I'll do whatever it takes that makes it right

i have no experience in what you want to do. like i said i had all my work done by various repair shops. in my boat which is a catamaran tunnel hull, the hull is the floor. no sub-floor of wood. i'm just tryin to prepare you for what lies ahead. if i knew when i purchased the boat, how much money i was lookin at to restore it, i would of passed on it and bought a new pontoon boat. you will get many replies here to your question, by a lot of experienced people who have done this. ron

Thanks Ron! You are the voice of reason and you are right I do not want to get I over my head with this boat. If by the knowledgeable people FC I learn it's going to be 10k+ then I am definitely going to simply sell it. Thanks again for replying and stay tuned to this adventure!

2 or 3 years ago I bought a shell lake rocket, 16 ft . if you want too see what you will be getting into go to the members project pages and page back a few or quite a few pages and my postings are there. they should be under 1958 shell lake rocket, I posted some pictures of what I have done. then my health went south so I put it on hold and am trying to give it away. with no takers so far. look at it and see if you want to go thru all that work and the cash outlay that you will have, or shop around and find a better boat to start with. I wish I had some one tell me that when I bought mine. just my 2 cents, what ever you do I wish you luck. greg (frog) I just checked and my posting is on page 6 about half way down. greg

mpmitri wrote:

Thank you, It is great to be aboard! Perfect Wefco has just what I was looking for! Ok so here is a more pressing issue. I have discovered that the hull is filled with water. Feels (and sounds) like over 100lbs. of water in the area I have pictures below. As I mentioned I pulled this out of the weeds and the boat was filled with water. I drained all the water and pulled up all the carpet to reveal the drain holes, however, obviously something is clogged. I used a pressure washer on the highest nozzle but it didn't work. The water from the hose does shoot out the back but it doesn't release anything from the hull. Is my only option to cut a hole and drain the water somewhere in that picture I posted? Has anyone had this problem before? Thank you in advance!

That boat is pretty easy to replace the floor/sole. The stepped part (looking from the outside) is the only part you need to worry about, it's about 3' wide and filled with solid balsa wood, (unless it's been replaced). measure in and score the inside glass and it will pop right out. I filled mine in with solid 1 1/2" closed cell foam and a thin (1/4") piece of plywood sandwiched in mat and topped with cloth. Nice and solid and very quiet riding!

I got your request for info on Nickle City, but not much to add, let me know how wide your windshield is (tip to tip) and I'll put you in touch with the guy in FLA if it fits!

I like this style with the big fins, quite desirable once restored, and not too big a project if you don't mind getting a little dirty (and itchy ).

dave, i don't see a step in that hull..not like mine anyway.

Thanks Dave! But I am still a bit confused. In my laymen terms are you saying that I can score and pop out the red part. kinda like cutting out a half moon? Bare with me this is the first boat I have ever bought

Thanks!

That is right no step on the "outside"

Thank you!

OK, you're talking about the front part, and I'm talking about the back part, lol...

The front is just an air chamber, you can drill a hole to release the water and dry it out with a fan or some acetone, they very rarely get water in them unless the boat has been stored with the bow down, even then it's tough to get water in there...

If your floor/sole is wet, that would need to be cut out.

Here is the "step" I was talking about:



"Tredonic" hull.

Yes the front part and you nailed it exactly it was "Stored" in the weeds bow down. I will get on draining and inspecting it today.

As for the windshield, the broken one I have measured 65 1/2" from tip to tip. I hope I can buy one for it.

Thanks for everyones help, I will keep you posted. Buy the way I could use some parts off of the boat you have pictured. Is there any fat chance that would be possible? Or did you simply find that image.

Well thanks again Dave and everybody, I will keep you posted.

Michael

Drill the hole and drain it. Drill as close as you can to the bottom, but not all the way. drain what you can by gravity and try to get some kind of small pump (drill attachemtn?) to get the rest. You can either seal it back up or put a drain plug from a dinghy. it's not a big deal.

I have probably the most original CC out there, although a completely different model. Feel free to ask for pictures of specific things. Any idea of a year?

That picture is from Nickle City Classics, the boat belongs to one of our members.

If you have all of the hardware, you can just have it rechromed. SteveG knows a guy who is very reasonable. If the hardware is deeply pitted, you may want to fix it a little first, I believe sanding and filling with solder is the preferred way to do that.

I did drill a hole and drain the water out! Regarding the hardware, I will sand them and try my best with polishing them up. I will keep you posted. Now that I was able to drain that water I think it's time to move this discussion over to "Member Projects"!

My Cutter had a very similar compartment up in the bow, which was FULL of rancid water. Made the boat very bow heavy, so I installed a 4" inspection port and sucked all the water out with a vacuum. (wet-dry vac). Later read that some boat builders put it in there to help with the handling characteristics of the boat? May not actually be the case, she handled fine without it.

I know it handles much better around my yard and driveway.....lifting it up by and moving it around It has to be at least 100lbs. lighter.

mpmitri wrote:

I did drill a hole and drain the water out! Regarding the hardware, I will sand them and try my best with polishing them up. I will keep you posted. Now that I was able to drain that water I think it's time to move this discussion over to "Member Projects"!

Mine has the very same interior paint job as yours, any idea what year?

There should be a tag on the inside of the transom/splash well.

I searched all over for a tag but found nothing. However, on the NYS Registration is says 1957 for what thats worth.