Hello from South Carolina

[Neckbone]

Hello everyone. Glad to see this site up and running strong.

My boat is a 1983 Souwester. It's a 23' CC built for twins. Right now, I have twin 90's on it. I believe that's what she has had all her life. She tops out in the mid 30's and cruises in the mid to lower 20's. If all goes as planned, I want to switch out the twins for a 200HPDI and a kicker. That should get me 40mph top end, and cruise at 30mph. With much better economy.

So far, I've brought the shine back in the gel coat, and had a new Souwester logo made. I've also done a few odds and ends here and there. I plan on repainting the inside sometime this summer or fall.

Here are some pictures of it. A couple when I got it and after finishing off the gelcoat.

 

[Neckbone]

Now the in progress pictures, since I'm not officially at the after phase. Now, I need to repaint the bottom, and she'll look pretty good.

 

[Megabyte]

Awesome boat!
Welcome aboard :!:

 

[Themis]

Welcome aboard Neckbone.....

 

[Porkchunker]

Nice boat.

If I was independently wealthy, I'd restore old boats for fun. But since I'm not, I only have one restoration project.

My current restoration project is a 1958 wooden boat my father build. Link is in my signature.

 

[Neckbone]

Tell you what, Porkchunker. I'm almost drunk and in a dam good mood right now. I'll definately be on the losing end of this deal, but I'll swap you even. Your Parker for mine. Then you could completely restore this older boat. :wink:

 

[Porkchunker]

The Admiral (and namesake of my Parker) would kill me if I took on another project. She would also kill me if I gave away her diamond. I didn't give her a diamond on our 10th like I promised, but bought the boat instead. Now you know the "rest of the story" as Paul Harvey said.

 

[originalsin]

Hey Neck...

I finally got pics posted here and over on THT. They are a little further down the page on the intro forum. Title of the thread on this site is "Hello from SE NC."

Thanks btw for the advice on gelcoat restoration. I used the wet sanding methods you suggested followed up with a once over with the 3m product for gelcoat restoration and waxing. I will probably go over her again with another wax of some sort because I'm bored. Not sure yet what I'll use. Once I get the hull finished, I plan on having someone paint on the original logo that came on mine. It is the logo that has Sou'wester Printed in small letters over the Parker logo that is used today.

Have you given any thought to removing the bottom paint from your 23? I'm a little more than half way and have yet to decide what to do afterwards, 2-part poly or nothing at all. I'm gonna start a thread here as well as on THT if you're interested in knowing what I do.

You still looking at the Yamaha 4S motors? I still have to say that you should consider the 250 over the 200. Same weight but far superior performance with the 250. Not too much difference in price either.

Have you had any luck with a windshield??? I need to replace mine and I'm not sure where to start.

later

Matt

 

[Outta Here]

Windshield for CC ?

Try UPD Plastics,
They've been very responsive and have a good website to help you measure up.

 

[originalsin]

Thanks FF

 

[Neckbone]

Originalsin,

Glad to hear about your gelcoat. A little elbow grease, but IMO, it's better than painting it. I gotta get out and wax mine again sometime in the next couple of weeks.

I think I have a couple more Souwester decals left, if you want them, just let me know.

About the bottom paint. The more and more I read on the net, I'm beginning to think that I'm going to repaint it black, and not mess with paint removal. However, I think I'm going to get a quart of ReadyStrip from Jamestown Distributors and give it a try. If it works great, I'll buy a gallon or two. If not, I'll just go back over it w/ bottom paint. In fact, I'm going to order that quart tonight. I'll let you know how that works.

I'm still going back and forth about engines. I was thinking about a 300HPDI from Eds for $10K. However, I talked to Farron Peffer about it and he said that would probably be too much engine for my boat. He said if it were up to him, every 23SE would leave the factory with a 200 HPDI. However, everyone wants 4strokes now, so that's all they rig with. If you know anyone who wants a 300 HPDI, tell them to call Parker. They have 3 that they will let go for cheap. 2 brand new, and 1 w/ about 5 hours on it. So, I in other words, I still haven't decided on power. However, I would like to get a mid 30's cruise. The F250 would probably give that to me, the 200 HPDI probably won't.

 

[originalsin]

Mid 30's would be an underestimate for your rig. I cruise 35-38 with the F250 on my 25. I bet you would be closer to thirty.

Good luck either way.

Matt