Building the Glen-L Monte Carlo- a 24.5 ' Triple Cockpit Runabout

"Unfair"

Building Notes & Photos

Finding Parts:

 

 

 

Engine & Mechanical:

December 04 Update: Now fixed on a late 50s Graymarine 188hp, American Motors based 327 block with twin Carter YH Carbs  Also used on Early Blue Flame 6 Corvettes, Turbo Corvairs, and some Nashes for gosh sakes.

Everything should be a straight remove, clean, paint, measure, and reinstall in donor boat.  Only "iffy" is the condition of the long-block which "time will tell' about.  This "new donor boat" solves my purchasing and matching problems with accumulating parts from a variety of sources.

Will be working on individual part restoration over the winter until Spring when will probably extract it from the boat....  Process is relatively simple--

  1. Take digital hi-res photos of everything before starting, and after each assembly removal.
  2. Restore individual parts as needed, carbs, starter, generator, water pump, etc over the winter when you have time to be careful and detailed. 
  3. Re-use anything metal-- bead blast everything, paint immediately, reassemble subassemblies.
  4. Always look for problems that sill occur later when you don't have time to do it right.

August 04  Have 2 choices here-- a '50s Chrysler Ace out of  a '58 Higgins and a 68-72 Chevrolet 307 w/ Velvet Drive out of some twin-engine cruiser.

Although the Chrysler is the sentimental choice, I think I am going with the 307. A local full-service machine shop looked up the block # and got the correct codes.  The engine only cost $200 (plus a 550 mile trip to pick it up.  It is complete, was born a marine engine, and has all the correct accessories- manifolds, carb, water pump, etc.  It would end up at 210-250 hp depending on parts and would be the simplest, if inelegant solution. They will dissassemble, do what is necessary, and reassemble for $1000-2000-- depending. 

Seems like a good choice to let the experts do their thing.  My norm would be to "assume everything works" and take my chances-- but I have enough things to do to this boat without doing the engine too.  The goal is to have a dependable boat too-- so this is the chance to have it rebuilt.  (Too, if I document everything, I can sell the engine for almost the cost of the rebuild at going eBay prices.  The velvet-drive alone is worth $500. 

The machine shop can give be a junk block for placing the engine and motor mounts too so is a good solution.

Will keep the Chrysler Ace for parts for Olderthanus-- or maybe later have it rebuilt for the day Olderthanus' original '47 Chrysler gives up the ghost.