got hold of an aristocraft w/a merc i/o setup for free( i haul i can have..)
does any one know anything about this boat good or bad. i dont know what
year it is, but the glass seems to be in good shape minus cosmetics.
engine is a different story, ants living in it..
any help would be greatly appreciated

That's a well-regarded old southern marque. Does it have the sliding
hardtop? When I first moved to Lake Lanier (near Atlanta) over 25 years
ago, there used to be quite a few of them on the lake. If you don't mind
putting the work into restoration/rebuild, it should last you a great long
while.

Check the stringers on which the engine is mounted. Nearly all of them
would have rotted by this time. It's not rocket science to replace them,
but it does require pulling the engine (maybe you'd do that anyway?) to do
it easily. Likewise, probably nearly anything else wooden on the boat will
either now or soon require replacement. I went through that exact scenario
with my 84 Baja not too long ago. Fortunately, for whatever reason, my floor
didn't rot, but every other wood part which carried weight did.

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
http://tinyurl.com/384p2

"And then again, when you sit at the helm of your little ship on a
clear night, and gaze at the countless stars overhead, and realize
that you are quite alone on a great, wide sea, it is apt to occur to
you that in the general scheme of things you are merely an
insignificant speck on the surface of the ocean; and are not nearly
so important or as self-sufficient as you thought you were. Which is
an exceedingly wholesome thought, and one that may effect a
permanent change in your deportment that will be greatly appreciated
by your friends." - James S. Pitkin

"Dread" wrote in message
...
got hold of an aristocraft w/a merc i/o setup for free( i haul i can
have..)
does any one know anything about this boat good or bad. i dont know what
year it is, but the glass seems to be in good shape minus cosmetics.
engine is a different story, ants living in it..
any help would be greatly appreciated

It does have the hard top..I remember saying it looked like a chevy bellair
on the inside.
yeah its going to be very labor intensive but i dont mind . Ill be replacing
all the wood. and im sure the stringers are rotted . would adding an
outboard transom bracket be feasible to go from i/o to outboard. the
transome i think is wood too
so while i have it apart or is a rebuild on the merc and outdrive system a
better cheaper route?
"Skip Gundlach" wrote in
message ...
That's a well-regarded old southern marque. Does it have the sliding
hardtop? When I first moved to Lake Lanier (near Atlanta) over 25 years
ago, there used to be quite a few of them on the lake. If you don't mind
putting the work into restoration/rebuild, it should last you a great long
while.

Check the stringers on which the engine is mounted. Nearly all of them
would have rotted by this time. It's not rocket science to replace them,
but it does require pulling the engine (maybe you'd do that anyway?) to do
it easily. Likewise, probably nearly anything else wooden on the boat
will
either now or soon require replacement. I went through that exact
scenario
with my 84 Baja not too long ago. Fortunately, for whatever reason, my
floor
didn't rot, but every other wood part which carried weight did.

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
http://tinyurl.com/384p2

"And then again, when you sit at the helm of your little ship on a
clear night, and gaze at the countless stars overhead, and realize
that you are quite alone on a great, wide sea, it is apt to occur to
you that in the general scheme of things you are merely an
insignificant speck on the surface of the ocean; and are not nearly
so important or as self-sufficient as you thought you were. Which is
an exceedingly wholesome thought, and one that may effect a
permanent change in your deportment that will be greatly appreciated
by your friends." - James S. Pitkin

"Dread" wrote in message
...
got hold of an aristocraft w/a merc i/o setup for free( i haul i can
have..)
does any one know anything about this boat good or bad. i dont know
what
year it is, but the glass seems to be in good shape minus cosmetics.
engine is a different story, ants living in it..
any help would be greatly appreciated

Howdy...

"Dread" wrote in message
.. .
It does have the hard top..I remember saying it looked like a chevy
bellair
on the inside.
yeah its going to be very labor intensive but i dont mind . Ill be
replacing
all the wood. and im sure the stringers are rotted . would adding an
outboard transom bracket be feasible to go from i/o to outboard. the
transome i think is wood too
so while i have it apart or is a rebuild on the merc and outdrive system a
better cheaper route?

Depends on who you have do it and what is needed in the rebuild. There's
umpteen salvage joints who can sell you a serviceable outdrive - if all
yours needs is cleaning up and lubing, I'd keep it, but otherwise...

Ditto the engine. I'm guessing this is the 4-cylinder 140ci? Fortunately,
those, too, are ubiquitous. It might take some time to track down a good
engine, but if you're going to be rebuilding it all, you'll have plenty of
time for that.

As to the transom, if it's not rotted (and it may well be, of course), you
could plug the hole and reglass and regelcoat the repair. However, I/O
transoms aren't designed either for the stress of the outboard, nor is there
a well built in and all the other niceties of the proper outboard-designed
deck (top piece).

Unless you're wanting to get into a fairly complicated fiberglass
fabrication project, or be willing to have it be the essence of a
rowboat-style outboard (just the transom, nothing to keep the water from
coming in over the stern), you'll find the restoration of the I/O to be a
lot simpler, I believe. On top of that, you'll have a considerably quieter,
cleaner, faster boat...

Hope that helped...

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
http://tinyurl.com/384p2

"And then again, when you sit at the helm of your little ship on a
clear night, and gaze at the countless stars overhead, and realize
that you are quite alone on a great, wide sea, it is apt to occur to
you that in the general scheme of things you are merely an
insignificant speck on the surface of the ocean; and are not nearly
so important or as self-sufficient as you thought you were. Which is
an exceedingly wholesome thought, and one that may effect a
permanent change in your deportment that will be greatly appreciated
by your friends." - James S. Pitkin

thanks i think ill rebuild the i/o and the motor.
i know how to glass but hat the sanding that comes with
"Skip Gundlach" wrote in
message ...
Howdy...

"Dread" wrote in message
.. .
It does have the hard top..I remember saying it looked like a chevy
bellair
on the inside.
yeah its going to be very labor intensive but i dont mind . Ill be
replacing
all the wood. and im sure the stringers are rotted . would adding an
outboard transom bracket be feasible to go from i/o to outboard. the
transome i think is wood too
so while i have it apart or is a rebuild on the merc and outdrive system
a
better cheaper route?

Depends on who you have do it and what is needed in the rebuild. There's
umpteen salvage joints who can sell you a serviceable outdrive - if all
yours needs is cleaning up and lubing, I'd keep it, but otherwise...

Ditto the engine. I'm guessing this is the 4-cylinder 140ci?
Fortunately,
those, too, are ubiquitous. It might take some time to track down a good
engine, but if you're going to be rebuilding it all, you'll have plenty of
time for that.

As to the transom, if it's not rotted (and it may well be, of course), you
could plug the hole and reglass and regelcoat the repair. However, I/O
transoms aren't designed either for the stress of the outboard, nor is
there
a well built in and all the other niceties of the proper outboard-designed
deck (top piece).

Unless you're wanting to get into a fairly complicated fiberglass
fabrication project, or be willing to have it be the essence of a
rowboat-style outboard (just the transom, nothing to keep the water from
coming in over the stern), you'll find the restoration of the I/O to be a
lot simpler, I believe. On top of that, you'll have a considerably
quieter,
cleaner, faster boat...

Hope that helped...

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
http://tinyurl.com/384p2

"And then again, when you sit at the helm of your little ship on a
clear night, and gaze at the countless stars overhead, and realize
that you are quite alone on a great, wide sea, it is apt to occur to
you that in the general scheme of things you are merely an
insignificant speck on the surface of the ocean; and are not nearly
so important or as self-sufficient as you thought you were. Which is
an exceedingly wholesome thought, and one that may effect a
permanent change in your deportment that will be greatly appreciated
by your friends." - James S. Pitkin