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RESTORATION of the Fiberglass Chris Craft Commander.........

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Paul P
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RESTORATION of the Fiberglass Chris Craft Commander.........

Post by Paul P » Wed Aug 15, 2012 12:13 pm

Here is a great example of what can be done with a bare hull with no motor. This is my friend Jim Peters, from Seattle.


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Project completed, let the fun begin! This happens to be Commander SS Transdrive serial NUMBER ONE. The neighborhood was just treated to a THUNDERING motor test right here in the driveway, by the way.

best,

Paul
Last edited by Paul P on Tue Nov 03, 2015 10:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
1956 17' CC Sportsman, 300-hp
1957 17' CC Sportsman, 95-hp
1966 20' CC fiberglass Sea Skiff, 210-hp+
1973 23' CC Lancer inboard project, 427/375-hp.
1966 38' CC Commander Express, 427/300-hp(2)

So many boats.........so little time.....but what a way to go!!

dustoff135
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Post by dustoff135 » Thu Aug 16, 2012 3:42 am

Wow, I would love to see more pics of this boat and the restoration process.
Is there anything available online?
Patrick

Previous projects: 1940 17' Barrelback, #71572
1971 XK19, ORCZ19-2016V

New project: Looking???

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Paul P
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Post by Paul P » Thu Aug 16, 2012 11:13 am

Interesting thing about the Corsair Sport Boat Division; the shoebox construction method allowed CC to use this same hull for the 19' Lancer, and they just changed the box top and interior. Jim did a full disassembly and rebuild of everything, and since the motor was gone when he found the hull, he had to basically start from scratch.

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Here is progress to date.........literally a few days ago.

Engine test fire: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdHqoQCGAU8

Regards,

Paul
1956 17' CC Sportsman, 300-hp
1957 17' CC Sportsman, 95-hp
1966 20' CC fiberglass Sea Skiff, 210-hp+
1973 23' CC Lancer inboard project, 427/375-hp.
1966 38' CC Commander Express, 427/300-hp(2)

So many boats.........so little time.....but what a way to go!!

Ollon
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Post by Ollon » Thu Aug 16, 2012 12:24 pm

Make sure you tell him to keep the motor all the way down when hes running it or the u joint cuts a hole in the bellows, water gets in and you know the rest of the story...especially bad if hes running it in salt water.

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quitchabitchin
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Post by quitchabitchin » Fri Aug 17, 2012 8:32 am

I didn't know they made a transdrive in '69, thought they were all V Drives....
FLASH1969 Chris Craft Cavalier Ski-230 HP 327Q

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Ollon
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Post by Ollon » Fri Aug 17, 2012 1:03 pm

Incredible job on the boat. I plan on redoing the interior on my 17 Lancer this winter including removing and putting in a new floor. I'd love to know what was found under there and how best to go about it.

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Chad Durren
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Post by Chad Durren » Fri Aug 17, 2012 3:48 pm

Below are the 1969 Hull #s

FRAV-19-001 to FRAV-10-090 (V-Drive)
FRAZ-19-001 to FRAZ-19-015 (Trans Drive)

Jim has #1 in the Trans Drive option.
1952 CC 18' Sportsman
1969 CC 19' Commander Super Sport

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Paul P
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Post by Paul P » Thu Aug 30, 2012 3:11 pm

Here is a little more red meat for the restoration guys, this one is similar to the first one in this posting, but it is a v-drive boat instead, and this particular restoration took much more of an exhaustive process................the results are almost too good to put in the water.

The shoebox top was removed on this one too, and additionally reinforced and cleaned up cosmetically. This particular restoration was intended from the start to be "the most comprehensive ever done" on this particular model, 100% faithful to original specs except the overall finish of course, which is light years better than Chris Craft could ever afford to produce in a production line product.

Photos compliments of Mike Watson, the owner/restorer; exerpts from my "Restoration" book, now sold out :-)

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Projects like these are inspirational, and they not only SHOW what can be done with a beat up old fiberglass hull, they raise the bar and help save more boats too. Not for the faint of heart, and not inexpensive to do either.

Regards,

Paul
1956 17' CC Sportsman, 300-hp
1957 17' CC Sportsman, 95-hp
1966 20' CC fiberglass Sea Skiff, 210-hp+
1973 23' CC Lancer inboard project, 427/375-hp.
1966 38' CC Commander Express, 427/300-hp(2)

So many boats.........so little time.....but what a way to go!!

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maritimeclassics
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Post by maritimeclassics » Fri Aug 31, 2012 7:50 am

That is a great job! What a cool project hopefully I will see it in person some day and hear the thunder of the motor.
Family member of Chris Craft founder
Owner of Maritime Classics
http://www.maritimeclassics.com
Ph# 231-486-6148

Restoration Projects:
1936 25' Gar Wood Custom
1947 Ventnor Hydroplane
1957 17' Deluxe Runabout
1948 25' Chris Craft Sportsman Twin
1959 19' Sliver Arrow Hull #75
1929 26' Chris Craft Custom Runabout
1937 25' Chris Craft Custom Runabout

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