Classic 22 Project Updates and Questions

T

ThousandIslander

New member
As some of you know I bought a 1986 Classic 22 named Y-Not a few weeks ago for a very reasonable price from Tony in Florida. Since that time I have done the following:
-Had trailer repaired including tires, bearings & lights.
-Had it shipped from FL to upstate NY
-Tons of cleaning
-Removed lots of damaged and outdated accessories and electronics
-Filled in numerous old drilled accessory holes with West 2-part epoxy
-Removed and sold the old carbed 2-stroke Mercury

At this point I have a really nice basic C-Dory with a few major projects ahead of me as follows:

-The transom has absolutely no flex or cracks but upon removing the motor mounting bolts and some accessory screws it seems that at least some of the plywood core is wet. Given that I am going to go ahead and have the transom replaced professionally...it's probably beyond my skill level to do myself.

-The old trim-master trim tabs seem to only sort of work. The company has gone out of business. I'm thinking I may just install a new set, any recommendations on brand and size?

-The steering cable is shot and the rotary unit is ancient. It looks like I can buy a Teleflex rotary setup for under $200. Any suggestions here? I'm not really interested in spending the $ to go hydraulic.

-My local boat shop sells Tohatsu outboards. The 90hp model is apparently made by Honda and rebadged as a Tohatsu. I've priced Honda, Yamaha and Evinrude--all seem to come in around $10-$11k installed. The Tohatsu is about $9,700. Anyone have any experience with these

-Final crazy thought. I'd really prefer twins. I can do twin Tohatsu 50s for $5,500 each installed...BUT the Classic transom doesn't look like it's anywhere close to wide enough for twins. I'm hesitant to even ask...how much would it change the scope of work to widen the transom/splash well when they replace the transom??? I'm probably way off in the weeds here. It has also occurred to me it might make more sense to fix the transom on this one and sell it to buy a newer 22 with the updated hull...

-John

PS-if you're an admin I'd love to have a galley to post some pics.
 
I was excited for you when I saw you found this project boat, and I'm going to live vicariously through you, I hope you continue to post your work on Y-Not. I've had a few project boats that before so I know what's involved, its a labor of love.

If your having the transom rebuilt, you can specify to rebuild your motor bilge to be a little bigger to fit twins. I'm not familiar enough with the classic boats to know if that's even needed, but if your rebuilding it, you can have them do whatever you want.

You prefer twins, but are not interested in hydraulic steering. I have some bad news! Twins need the hydraulic steering setup to move both of those motors. You can get away with a Teleflex system on a single, but you wont be happy with twins.

I've heard some great things about those tohatsu motors, BTW
 
Maybe your transom does not need replacement . I would buy a moisture meter and check it

I like Bennett tabs,. Best service too
 
The Tohatsu motor is as good as any of them. If the price includes gauges and rigging, it is a great deal. There are a lot of similarities with the Tohatsu and Honda--same weight, displacement and basic technology. Don't know if parts are interchangeable.

The transom could be configured for twins on a rebuild, but The weight will be a little more. I happen to be one who prefers the simplicity of a single--all in all is

I certainly think the boat is worth restoring--and will serve you very well!
 
Good thought on the brass thru-hull...I hadn't thought of that. The plywood around the motor mounts is definitely rotten, I can get my pinky finger in there and the wood is mush.

I may ask the fiberglass guy about widening the transom, it looks like a big job to me because it would require widening the splash well. Twin engines just seem to make a lot of sense to me given how we use our boats. We commute to our island cottage in all kinds of weather, day and night, often in near freezing temps. It's mostly psychological but the idea of a second motor on a dark/choppy/windy November night is reassuring. I guess a kicker could serve the same purpose--but if I'm totally honest there's also kind of a cool factor to twin engines. Then again it's more expensive ($1,300 more for motors + sounds like hydraulic steering is a must + additional transom work), heavier and requires 2x the maintenance.

Budget wise I want to do it right but I also don't want to exceed the value of the completed boat by too much. I think Tony's selling price was very reasonable so I started low but it won't take much to have $20K invested by the time I do the work outlined below. At some point it makes more sense to just buy a newer C-Dory...although this one is really quite nice.

Thanks for all the advice and ideas!
 
ThousandIslander":2zfalj3c said:
Good thought on the brass thru-hull...I hadn't thought of that. The plywood around the motor mounts is definitely rotten, I can get my pinky finger in there and the wood is mush.

I may ask the fiberglass guy about widening the transom, it looks like a big job to me because it would require widening the splash well. Twin engines just seem to make a lot of sense to me given how we use our boats. We commute to our island cottage in all kinds of weather, day and night, often in near freezing temps. It's mostly psychological but the idea of a second motor on a dark/choppy/windy November night is reassuring. I guess a kicker could serve the same purpose--but if I'm totally honest there's also kind of a cool factor to twin engines. Then again it's more expensive ($1,300 more for motors + sounds like hydraulic steering is a must + additional transom work), heavier and requires 2x the maintenance.

Budget wise I want to do it right but I also don't want to exceed the value of the completed boat by too much. I think Tony's selling price was very reasonable so I started low but it won't take much to have $20K invested by the time I do the work outlined below. At some point it makes more sense to just buy a newer C-Dory...although this one is really quite nice.

Thanks for all the advice and ideas!
Click to expand...
Hydraulic steering is not a must for twins. Many, many twins have been installed on CD's with cable steering - my previous 22 was done that way. Hydraulic is needed if you want an autopilot or second steering station but otherwise you can just tie the two engines together and use a cable.
 
Twins are very cool. Also, while you can do cable steering, now is the time to put in hydraulic twin or single. You will be glad you did. Wear and tear on the helmsman alone makes the hydraulic a winner and it isn't that expensive and is a DIY job if you are at all handy.
 
I can speak to your Tohatsu question - Yes the 90 is a re-badged Honda so you can't go wrong there. The 40/50 hp (which I have) is Tohatsu designed and built. I'm going into my third season, and so far so good! I previously had a Honda 50 on another boat, and originally wanted the Honda on this boat, but at the time I was ready to repower, the highly-regarded shop at which I do all my outboard business (EQ) was only selling Tohatsu. Aesthetically the Honda 50 looks much better than the Tohatsu 50 (personal preference) but on the other hand I am kind of glad that I ended up with the Tohatsu instead, because I like their offerings for kickers better than the current Honda competitor (the Honda 5 vs. the Tohatsu Sail Pro 6 hp High Thrust), and of course the kicker should always color-match with the main!

My only complaint with Tohatsu is with regards to the number of dealers where I live - the one closest to me in Everett is always booked out at least 3 months, so I'm left with driving 70 miles up to EQ for drop-off and pick-up, but that is actually fine with me because Kathy and crew are the best around, and it's a nice scenic drive anyway!

-Mike
 
I have twin Honda 40's. Bought the boat new in 2001 with Teleflex no feedback cable steering. Easy to steer and no problems in 15 seasons (about 80 hours per season) but I am only in fresh water - cold clear fresh water (I'm lucky).

Jay
 
John,

I have an '84 Classic. I don't know if its original transom dimensions are the same as an '86 or not. I'm doing a project that most sane people don't want to consider; I've widened the stern of the boat so that the sheer is the same beam dimension as the current C-Dory Angler product; the new transom will handle twins, although I'm not taking that route. The cutout and engine well dimensions on my original boat with the 70" Classic transom measurement at sheer line would not allow installation of twins. I don't believe that modifying the transom cutout and engine well without widening the overall transom would provide the results you are looking for. My two-cents is to go with a single main and, perhaps, a kicker mount that would enable a remote tilt, helm-controlled engine so you can lift the main and lower the kicker and troll away...

Your boat provides a great lump of clay to mould in the manner that suits you. I'll be following your posts.

T
 
I pulled the brass thru-hull...more rotten plywood....the boat is headed to the fiberglass shop on Saturday.

I've decided a 90hp single is the way to go...now I just have to decide which one! I'll probably go with a 4- stroke Tohatsu or Honda because I have experience with the local dealers. I do love the 90hp e-tec on my Glastron but it's a bit more expensive locally. I did notice Honda has a new 100hp based on the same block...is it worth considering?
 
I had a conversation this winter with my Honda guy about the 100 compared to the 90 and he said it wasn't really worth considering.

Same motors with slightly different tuning and when run the way they would be on a C-dory, the difference would be minimal at best.

In fact, he continues to tell me that the 75hp version is a better buy for our slow planning boats and reminds me of it each time I bring up the higher HP units.

Greg
 
On my classic 22 restoration, I replaced the transom with 4 layers of 1/4 inch marine plywood, with biaxial cloth in between.
Hope to get back to working on the hull with better weather, pilothouse is painted and complete, ready for reattachment!!! Good luck.
 
chriscarrera--that's a serious restoration you've undertaken! It's great to see pics of the hull structure.

My fiberglass shop plans to glass in marine plywood (basically bring it back to how it was when it was new). They only do fiberglass work and have a good reputation locally so I'm going to trust their judgement. The current wood lasted 30 years which is long enough for me!

I did a little more research on the Honda BF100. It's basically the same as the 90 but has a higher redline and requires 93 octane fuel...kinda sounds like an overstressed version of the 90.
 
The Honda BF100 is probably the BF90 with variable value timing, aka, V-Tech for some manufactures, which makes the values stay open longer at very high rpm, say near 5000 and above to produce a few more marginal hp. No increase in hp or torque at normal cruising rpm. More suitable for Bass Boats than utility boats and cruisers. (IIRC!) :lol:

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
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