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Whaler Central is a great resource for Boston Whaler owners; and now that I have joined the site, I'm eager to learn much more about Boston Whaler ownership. I'm happy to report that I purchased my first boat ever today, a 1966 Boston Whaler Sport. While the boat is in operable condition as is, I am considering restoring it and have a few questions. I have uploaded some photos of the boat for your reference. Also, before I purchased the boat I used contiuouswave.com's "buying classic whalers" article as a guide to help me evaluate the boat's condition. What both intrigues me and worries me about this boat, is that had never been gel coated or painted and is close to original in specifications. On one hand, this gives the boat a vintage appearance and makes it a great project, but also illustrates previous owner's failure to mantain the boat, specifically the gel coat. The entire hull is covered with spider cracks, causing what can be described as a hull-spanning crocodile pattern. From what I can tell and what I was told by the dealer, delamination hasn't occured. If anyone can provide me any information as to the devastation these spider cracks cause to the hull, how to further investigate the damage, and how they affect the re-gel coating and restoration process or even the boat's performance I would appreciate it. On another note, the interior wood is in an ideal condition for a great restoration outcome. I would like someone's opinion on whether or not my boat has the original steering wheel, I think it is, but I was wondering if it may have been painted sky blue, but is it originally white? The boat also came with a removable/clamp on accessory seat/seat back and I was wondering if it was an original option for a 66' whaler. In general, and despite being 43 years old, the boat is in pretty good condition. While most boats can't stand the test of time, Boston Whalers hold up extraordinarily well and have a great reputation, which is why I was in the market for one in the first place. It's current condition is all I really need for what I'm going to use it for and I actually kind of enjoy its withered, salty dog appearance. But I feel this boat is in need of some TLC and I plan on working on it in the future. The boat is equipped with a 2006 30 HP Honda Four Stroke Engine, which I believe contributed most to the price I paid for the boat. Thanks and I appreciate any comments as to the boats condition and originality, so please look at the pictures carefully.

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JJS,

Start a personal page.
You will be much better off in the lone run as this thread will probably get lost in the other 30,000 or so threads.

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ok, how do I start a personal page? I'm sorry I'm new to message boards.

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Under your profile on the right sidebar you will see "Edit Personal Page".

Click on there and follow the instructions.

Welcome to WhalerCentral.

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Can you check to see if I successfully created a personal page? I'm not sure if it is saving. how and where do I repost my original message in this thread?

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JSJ, Keep the thread here, the personal page is separate, mainly for pic's.

When you say the entire hull is covered in spider cracks, do you mean the exterior too or just the blue interior?

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Thanks for the reply. I'm referring to the white of the exterior. While the pictures can't illustrate it, imagine that the white sides have a crocodile pattern appearance due to the spider cracks. There are also some spider cracks in the blue in the transom area. the rest of the blue interior has only a few spider cracks. I would like to know what problems this could cause with the restoration. Please let me know if you have any more questions.

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This is a good article on general gelcoat cracking, pretty educational.

http://www.javelin38.com/images/gelco...acking.doc

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I don't doubt what you say but, from the "pics", the little "skipper" look's pretty darn GOOD !

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Welcome to Whaler Central and congrads on your purchase. Looks like you have really come across a jewell that will become a show . Without actually seeing the spider cracks it's hard to make an absolute prediction, but I would speculate that you are going to find that they can be repaired with great results if you take your time and apply thin coats at a time. As far as the baby blue steering wheel, all I can say is that I have never seen one that is that color so I would guess that it has been painted from its original color of white. Please keep us posted with questions and photos on your project. B)

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Do a site search for "spider cracks" to see what others have done or suggested. The boat looks nice in the pics.

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Thanks for the advice and compliments! Your boats look great too. Tom, you did a really nice job restoring your boat's wood and, overall, she looks awesome. Does anyone know if the clamp-on seat back originally came with the boat? Also, there is a wood post on the console that seems like it's for mounting a compass or even a depth finder, and I was wondering if that was added on or was an original part of the console. This is one thing that makes me question whether or not the wood is original. In the future, I will post some before and after pictures when the boat becomes my project.

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JSJ,

No, the clamp on seat is not original nor is the piece of wood that looks like a place for the compass.

Take a look in the Whaler Model Specifications section and look at the various models. Most are original but not all.

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Congratulations! Enjoy her, she looks great. I have a 13ft. 1967. I love it.